What a beautiful hike! I hadn't ventured to the McCormick Sanctuary in at least a year and it was a treat. This often overlooked piece of Sugarloaf State Park contains the headwaters of Santa Rosa Creek and habitat for myriad plants and animals - a piece of remarkably wild land just outside of urban Santa Rosa.
Spring was showing its bright face last weekend as LandPaths celebrated its 14th birthday with a hike to the Grandmother Oak - the largest coast live oak in Sonoma County! Flowers were blooming (even some early lupine!), butterflies were out, and the buckeyes and big leaf maples were budding out.
A million shades of green - and a great time to be outside. And with all this rain, that green should last a while! Get out there and enjoy it!
Thanks to Gary for sharing some of his fantastic photos and to Dee for bringing a scrumptous cake.
If you were on this hike, let us know about your experience. If you didn't make it, would you like us to do it again? Comment below...
"People Power" in the form of volunteers and interns is an essential part of LandPaths' mission of connecting people with the land.
Whether in the office or on the trails, LandPaths has many ways for you to get involved as a volunteer. We will update this list as new opportunities become available. Please contact us if you are interested. If you have a skill or time to share and you don't see your interest listed, drop us a line anyway. Thanks for your support!
2/2/11: Online Media Intern / Longer-term Volunteer:
Computer savvy? Want to help LandPaths improve and maintain our online presence (web, blog, facebook, twitter, etc.)? Got a few hours (4-16) a week to dedicate to a good cause? Then drop us a line (c/o Jonathan Glass) and tell us why you should be the next LandPaths Online Media Intern. Include a resume or portfolio if you have one. Six month minimum committment. Modest stipend available depending on experience.
Despite the recent closures of many State Park access points and campgrounds - and more closures on the way - Willow Creek remains open - thanks to you! With public funds increasing scarce, it is clear that we need another solution to keep our local parks open and cared for. To combat the ‘closed park blues’, we need ‘People Power.’
Check out our recent press coverage of a "Cure For Closed Park Blues":
1. Keep Willow Creek accessible and stewarded in 2011 and beyond by continuing the Willow Creek permit, Trail Watch, and volunteer stewardship programs.
LandPaths want to ensure that the unparalleled hiking, biking and horseback riding available on this beautiful property is not put at risk.
2. Improve park access and circulation through partnerships with neighbors such as Mendocino Redwood Company.
3. Build the foundation for a more sustainable "People-Powered Park" - one that will cost less over time and that can serve as a model for other budget-strapped parks.
To those of you who supported the park in 2010, THANK YOU! To those who have already donated for 2011, ANOTHER HUGE THANKS!
IF YOU HAVEN'T DONATED IN 2011, NOW'S THE TIME!
Through People Power, we have already lowered the annual budget for this project from over $100k to only $60k. We're already over half way to our 2011 goal. We need your support to raise an additional $25,000.
"The enthusiasm for this model is fantastic," said Caryl Hart, the new Sonoma County Regional Parks Director, while attending a recent Taylor Mountain permit orientation along with 100 other hikers, bikers and horseback riders. "It's going to have tremendous influence on the future of how we open new parks."
Barefoot Winery Co-Founders and long-time conservation supporters Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey also received their permits for use. Houlihan commented, "By giving people a stake in the land, LandPaths provides open access where public budgets have fallen short." This approach engages users in a new paradigm of increased personal and community investment and ownership.
Gary Abreim, committee chair at the Grove of Old Trees (another People Powered Park), is enthusiastic about the role he plays in providing access, upkeep, and support. "Neighbors and communities have to take a bold step and come together to protect our parks. We can't count on Washington and Sacramento anymore," he says.
With People Powered Parks, LandPaths provides public agencies and private landowners not only with volunteers to reduce management costs, but also with the professional oversight and insurance to reduce liability costs. "In my estimation it's the cheapest date in government; they're running parks for pennies on the dollar," says Rick Ryan, Jenner resident, businessman and Willow Creek Park permit holder.
This "cheap date" is quickly garnering attention around the region and state. "We are looking at the public adoption of open space work that LandPaths is pioneering as a model for to help shape the future direction of land trusts statewide" says Bill Leahy, co-chair of the California Council of Land Trusts.
Most of us would like nothing more than to see our park agency budgets restored to functional levels and will continue to work toward that goal. In the meantime, however, we can keep the ‘closed park blues' at bay with a strong dose of ‘People Power.'
If you have ideas to share, comments or questions, please contact me.
Thank you for your support. I look forward to seeing you on the trails at Willow Creek.
Jonathan Glass Willow Creek Project Manager LandPaths
We love to get feedback, especially from someone who truly GETS IT! Thanks Mark Morley for sharing your perspective on LandPaths' work!
"I wanted to take a moment to respond to Craig Anderson's comments in the Press Democrat today. I was one of the volunteers at the Grove of Old Trees work event last month and I found it to be a revelation." I am relatively new to Sonoma County and had been looking for resource management volunteer opportunities. Looking at some of the park agencies, the formal options seemed limited to gate closer and dog park attendant. These volunteer positions are undoubtedly important in meeting the parks' resource management goals, but not what I had in mind.
I used to be a park ranger with East Bay Regional Parks District, so I was not entirely surprised by the lack of organized volunteer possibilities. In my experience, park staff often find volunteer events to be more trouble than they can justify. And with budgets and staffing tight, opportunities for volunteers may be considered a luxury rather than a necessity. Personally, I loved leading volunteer events: the freshness and eagerness of volunteers, the opportunities for mutual learning, and the incredible amount of goodwill and buy-in generated for the parks.
The Grove of Old Trees event seemed to offer all of these advantages and honored the skills of volunteers in a way that I had never experienced before. I really appreciate how this event allowed participants to give of themselves in whatever way they could and to the extent of their abilities. The lack of hierarchy and rigidity in the event seems to mirror the incredibly informal and welcoming nature of this park. It feels like a people's park: people-shaped and dynamic. Contributing to its upkeep was a pleasure, and I thank you for the opportunity.
And I thank you for, more generally, moving parks into the center of Sonoma County society. Having spent five years in Portland, OR, I have been somewhat dismayed upon my return to the Bay Area by the relative lack of urban venues for positive social interaction. But, I think what you are doing is taking Sonoma County's greatest asset--its incredible landscape--and turning it into one of those venues.
Mr. Anderson wrote of "strengthening community connections" in the process of maintaining the Grove of Old Trees". And I think this may be an even greater contribution of LandPaths than its facilitation of land acquisition and holding, and the eventual opening to the public of those lands. In a very literal sense, you are providing "common ground" for Sonoma County residents to come together, to learn, to appreciate, and to celebrate.
Having (briefly) supervised corps members from Conservation Corps North Bay, I have seen additional examples of how our landscapes can be a venue for learning, for testing one's mettle, and for building camaraderie and community. Before that experience, and before the Grove of Old Trees event, I truly had not imagined all the possibilities for human and societal growth that our public lands hold. I look forward to learning more about LandPaths and to watching as you continue to transform our parks and our community. Keep up the good work!"
1. A donation of your working truck (2000 model or newer, ideally 4x4) for use with LandPaths workdays at Riddell, Willow Creek, Grove of Old Trees, and other People Powered Parks around the county. Contact us directly for this option. (the truck pictured here is no longer available for our use).
By donating your vehicle to LandPaths via Donate for Charity: • Help us maintain and expand our efforts in the community • Receive auction sales price of your vehicle as a tax deduction • Avoid the possibility of receiving a low trade-in value from a dealer, or the h anxiety and hassle of selling to a private party
If you decide to donate your vehicle: • It will be picked up free of charge • It will be sold at auction or older vehicles can be sold for parts • Proceeds will go to LandPaths • You will receive a receipt entitling you to a tax deductionOur vehicle donation program is made possible through our partnership with Donate For Charity.
After the grand success of our pilot camp in 2010, LandPaths is eagerly looking forward to Owl Camp 2011!
Owl Camp is a nature-based day camp open to young people aged 5-12 (must have gone through Kindergarten). Camp is located at Ranchero Mark West in Northeast Santa Rosa, off St. Helena Road-- a 120-acre preserve with a pristine creek, pond, redwood forest and miles of trails all ready for exploring. Location is about 20 minutes from downtown Santa Rosa.
Activities include: storytelling, tracking, creek exploration, archery, swimming, music, keeping a nature journal, building things from nature, music, nature games, learning bird calls, hiking, canoeing, exploring redwood & salmon habitat, woodworking and organic gardening.
Most of us remember from our own childhoods, how magical and transformative an experience summer camp can be, and how many life-long memories are formed there. Our hope at LandPaths is that the nature-immersion experience of Owl Camp, married with the stunning beauty and diversity of the land itself at Ranchero Mark West, results in a summer camp experience that is full of magic, joy, education, community-building and an even-more-deeply-felt love of the land.
Three themed sessions for summer 2011: (click the links below for more details and to register)
Monday thru Friday 9:00AM to 3:00PM. There will be 28 student maximum per week.
SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE!
$200-$300 per child, sliding scale.Please choose a fee within the sliding scale that fits your budget. We depend upon some families paying more in order to assist others who are not able to pay the full tuition.
LandPaths Owl Camp is partnering with PACEAPP to offer the summer camp experience to even more kids. If you currently receive childcare subsidy through PACEAPP, or qualify to do so, Owl Camp could be accessible to you for a much reduced weekly fee.
For more information and to sign up, contact: Meg Hamill, Camp Director meg@landpaths.org, 707-544-7284 ext. 15
Here's what parents are saying:
"I really want to thank you and every one of the Owl Camp staff for running such a great program. Yours is the only camp I've found that mirrors my values so closely: to connect and interact with nature, natural crafts, mythology, and the opportunity to learn about many different beings from raccoons by their prints or scat......to faries!" Juliana Holstrom
"I just want to say that my kids LOVE Owl Camp. They hope that they can go again next year! I'm so thrilled that Owl Camp was even an option in the pool of various camps (nature is the BEST way to go)! Thank you so much for making this happen and the sponsorship provided has helped so much! Please extend my gratitude to Landpaths, the landowners, the sponsor, and your staff. I am one thrilled parent because my kids are SO stimulated when they come home, and they sleep like champs (eat like champs too!)! Thank you, thank you, thank you." Julianne Odell
"I also wanted to thank you and your fabulous staff for putting together such an innovative extension to IOOBY. I was so excited that our children would have such an opportunity to subsidize their science education this summer. As our education system continues to be eroded, we really yearn to find these types of fun opportunities to get the kids engaged in non-traditional environmental education. Great stuff!" Kim Batchelder
Owl Camp Wish List 2011
Please contact Meg Hamill, Summer Camp Director, if you have materials to donate: meg@landpaths.org
Coping Saw
Large plastic storage containers-14 gallons & up
Small plastic storage containers-3 gallons (ish)
Small, needle files for filing wood(set of 6 or 12)
We did it! Thanks to your support, we have met our $20,000 Year End Challenge Match. Your contributions will be matched for a total of $40,000 toward LandPaths programs!
This support will help us get YOU outside more often, with a variety of innovative Outings, Stewardship Projects, and Educational opportunities.
And your donation goes even further than that, helping get kids outside through our In Our Own Backyard program, keep parks open through our "People Powered Parks" program, and provide access to local food through our Bayer Farm Community Garden.
Happy New Year! We hope to see you soon in Sonoma County's Big Outside!
What a beautiful hike! I hadn't ventured to the McCormick Sanctuary in at least a year and it was a treat. This often overlooked piece of Sugarloaf State Park contains the headwaters of Santa Rosa Creek and habitat for myriad plants and animals - a piece of remarkably wild land just outside of urban Santa Rosa. 
2/2/11: Online Media Intern / Longer-term Volunteer:
1. 
Director meg@landpaths.org, 707-544-7284 ext. 15
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