May 25, 2009
We returned yesterday from a quick Sierra Club backpacking trip to Castle Rock State Park in the Santa Cruz Mountains. This is a lovely park. We hiked in along steep ridges covered with sticky monkey flowers, lupines and globe lilies. We gazed on a deep valley that was soon flooded with coastal fog. The campsite was great. Pacific madrone trees surrounded us; their crimson bark changed colors as the day grew old. Stellar’s jays and chickadees squawked at us endlessly. The stars were great Saturday night – they reminded me of white light needles streaking towards us from the heavens.
Another great thing was that our fellow hikers were our age or older. We hiked with
John, Al and Olivia and had a little community in the woods for the weekend. We
Hope to hike with them again. It’s well known that backpacking isn’t just for twenty somethings, but it’s always great to get real confirmation.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Wildflowers and time
What is it with wildflowers? Some only survive a few weeks; other species seem to be around for a long time.We hiked in Huckleberry Regional Botanical Preserve in the Oakland Hills on Saturday.Many wildflowers were blooming on schedule – wild roses and columbines shared their brief presence with us. Some of our favorites – trillium and hound’s tongue were long gone. These are early flowers, and they usually vanish by mid April.
Others survive for a longer period. Douglas Iris were still flowering in their glory. These first appeared a month or so ago, and since some buds haven't opened they look like they will last for a long time. These surprised us a lot less than a manzanita bush with its lantern shaped pink blossoms. This is one of the earliest flowers to appear; they generally thrive earlier in the season than trillium and hound’s tongue. There they were! I can only guess this particular shrub found enough water and shade to continue flowering this late in the season. The answer may elude me, but the forest remains a jigsaw puzzle both in time and in place.
Others survive for a longer period. Douglas Iris were still flowering in their glory. These first appeared a month or so ago, and since some buds haven't opened they look like they will last for a long time. These surprised us a lot less than a manzanita bush with its lantern shaped pink blossoms. This is one of the earliest flowers to appear; they generally thrive earlier in the season than trillium and hound’s tongue. There they were! I can only guess this particular shrub found enough water and shade to continue flowering this late in the season. The answer may elude me, but the forest remains a jigsaw puzzle both in time and in place.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Columbine Trail post
It's been a while but I have had trouble with my computer and web connection. The computer is fine, the web connection is if-fy, but here we go.
Kate and I camped at Chabot Regional Park near San Leandro last weekend. This park is known for its marina - kayakers and people who like to fish abound here. We have kayaked and enjoyed it a lot. It isn't wilderness; city noises and gunshots from the nearby shooting range can interrupt a hike or boat ride. But Chabot also shares natural history treasures to folks who explore.We left the campground and hit the Columbine Trail early Saturday afternoon. This trail winds through some eucalyptus and hits a bay-oak forest after a half mile. These great trees twist at all angles like dancing Shivas to catch sunlight We were surprised to see that the hillsides here were still green, given the ongoing drought. Wildflowers covered the hills. Blue eyed grass, actually a blue- purple iris with yellow sepals surprised us; we though we’d passed this beauty’s season. We were also stunned to find some small rust colored mushrooms. Fungi tend to grow in rainy times; these must have found enough left over dampness to survive.
Sticky monkey flowers thrived in sunny spots. These shrubs boast leaves covered with sticky resin to hold water in dry times. Their trumpet shaped flowers add butterscotch yellow to the forest’s collage. Globe lilies, delicate spherical flowers glowed like round candle flames. The day was hot, but cool wind caressed us like a full body kisses.
We sat on a bench for a while and listened to the white crowned sparrows that surrounded us. I felt like we were at the center of some undefined geometrical shape and the birds sang at its vertices. Turkey vultures cast drifting shadows on the forest floor. People associate these scavengers with death and shun them. They are actually very intelligent and curious birds who like to watch passing hikers. If you threaten them, they defend themselves by losing their last meal. I’m told the smell is bad enough to discourage any predator.
Chabot surprises us with its wildlife. We generally see black tailed deer. The Columbine trail crosses the territory for the biggest and most beautiful rattlesnake we’ve seen in the wild, although we haven’t met it in several years. Great horned owls love this park. We’ve watched them perching above Columbine Trail; one woke us with its hoot at 3 AM on Sunday.
The lake itself is full of life. Large fish – I am guessing they are carp – leapt high and scattered the surface. A lone swan drifted close to shore; we wondered if birds spend time alone to think about the meaning of love. Western grebes and coots passed the hoards of Canada geese. Three ospreys circled the lake; the fish remained still when these fish hawks passed.
This mini-vacation ended too soon, they all do that. We did come home refreshed. It is always good to see how many living things survive on the edges of our lives.
Kate and I camped at Chabot Regional Park near San Leandro last weekend. This park is known for its marina - kayakers and people who like to fish abound here. We have kayaked and enjoyed it a lot. It isn't wilderness; city noises and gunshots from the nearby shooting range can interrupt a hike or boat ride. But Chabot also shares natural history treasures to folks who explore.We left the campground and hit the Columbine Trail early Saturday afternoon. This trail winds through some eucalyptus and hits a bay-oak forest after a half mile. These great trees twist at all angles like dancing Shivas to catch sunlight We were surprised to see that the hillsides here were still green, given the ongoing drought. Wildflowers covered the hills. Blue eyed grass, actually a blue- purple iris with yellow sepals surprised us; we though we’d passed this beauty’s season. We were also stunned to find some small rust colored mushrooms. Fungi tend to grow in rainy times; these must have found enough left over dampness to survive.
Sticky monkey flowers thrived in sunny spots. These shrubs boast leaves covered with sticky resin to hold water in dry times. Their trumpet shaped flowers add butterscotch yellow to the forest’s collage. Globe lilies, delicate spherical flowers glowed like round candle flames. The day was hot, but cool wind caressed us like a full body kisses.
We sat on a bench for a while and listened to the white crowned sparrows that surrounded us. I felt like we were at the center of some undefined geometrical shape and the birds sang at its vertices. Turkey vultures cast drifting shadows on the forest floor. People associate these scavengers with death and shun them. They are actually very intelligent and curious birds who like to watch passing hikers. If you threaten them, they defend themselves by losing their last meal. I’m told the smell is bad enough to discourage any predator.
Chabot surprises us with its wildlife. We generally see black tailed deer. The Columbine trail crosses the territory for the biggest and most beautiful rattlesnake we’ve seen in the wild, although we haven’t met it in several years. Great horned owls love this park. We’ve watched them perching above Columbine Trail; one woke us with its hoot at 3 AM on Sunday.
The lake itself is full of life. Large fish – I am guessing they are carp – leapt high and scattered the surface. A lone swan drifted close to shore; we wondered if birds spend time alone to think about the meaning of love. Western grebes and coots passed the hoards of Canada geese. Three ospreys circled the lake; the fish remained still when these fish hawks passed.
This mini-vacation ended too soon, they all do that. We did come home refreshed. It is always good to see how many living things survive on the edges of our lives.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Happy Earth Day
I'm late here, but happy earth day. I had a good one. I am a lead teacher with a Museum program at an ecologically run water treatment plant. We show the kids how the plant cleans wastewater without using chlorine or other chemicals. The water flows into a marsh where it
contributes to healthy habitat for a lot of plants and animals. We ask the kids if they think the
plant is doing a good job; they always talk about the animals they saw and say "YES!"
I handled the dip netting station on Wednesday. The kids use nets to catch swimming creatures in the marsh. We identify them, observe them and let them go - the kids would often like to keep them as pets but understand why we have to release them. We caught a lot of young crayfish (who swim backwards to escape predators - the kids love to watch that), some thread worms (who wiggle like they are dancing to trance music), some mosquitoe larvae (they wiggle too; we release them unharmed because a lot of fish prey on them), alot of scuds (very small amphipods, they look like fast swimming shrimp) and a baby western pond turtle.
That was amazing - as far as I know it was the first time anyone had caught a turtle there!
It is really fine to watch kids get surprised and excited about small creatures, the kind that
many people scorn. I remain a firm believer that kids and adults have an innate need for contact with the natural world. Lots of research supports the idea that this contact promotes mental, physical and intellectual health. Observations of kids in nature supports this research to the max!
contributes to healthy habitat for a lot of plants and animals. We ask the kids if they think the
plant is doing a good job; they always talk about the animals they saw and say "YES!"
I handled the dip netting station on Wednesday. The kids use nets to catch swimming creatures in the marsh. We identify them, observe them and let them go - the kids would often like to keep them as pets but understand why we have to release them. We caught a lot of young crayfish (who swim backwards to escape predators - the kids love to watch that), some thread worms (who wiggle like they are dancing to trance music), some mosquitoe larvae (they wiggle too; we release them unharmed because a lot of fish prey on them), alot of scuds (very small amphipods, they look like fast swimming shrimp) and a baby western pond turtle.
That was amazing - as far as I know it was the first time anyone had caught a turtle there!
It is really fine to watch kids get surprised and excited about small creatures, the kind that
many people scorn. I remain a firm believer that kids and adults have an innate need for contact with the natural world. Lots of research supports the idea that this contact promotes mental, physical and intellectual health. Observations of kids in nature supports this research to the max!
a cheerier post
Here is a cheerier post! The first one was a little sombre because I've been sitting on those thoughts for a long time. This upbeat one comes from my trip to northern Pennsylvania last summer.
Paul Belz
PO Box 11507
Oakland, Ca. 94611 Copyright 2008 Paul Belz
LULLABY
Pennsylvania grabs me by the heels
and pulls me to the fungus scented earth.
This lake’s far shore is so dark
I can’t tell where the long mountain ends
and its rippling water reflection starts.
Pale Jupiter climbs the darkening sky
slowly like night’s approach. It comes back
each dusk. Safe at home, all my cells shout!
This purple flower that I can’t name
waits nightly on the lakeshore for me.
Cicadas rattle like tambourines..
Two cricket species join with single tones.
One’s a flute, the other’s a high pitched electric guitar.
Safe at home, all my cells join this chant.
Now wrinkled clouds dark as the lake
crawl briefly across the dawning stars,
"Awwnk!" Something’s disturbed a goose.
Clouds softly part and drift away.
Faint Polaris greets Jupiter
while the Dipper, the crooked W
and all the stars circle like a hawk.
The goose calls again. Safe at home,
none of my cells will sleep.
Mauch Chunk Lake, northern Pennsylvania
Paul Belz
PO Box 11507
Oakland, Ca. 94611 Copyright 2008 Paul Belz
LULLABY
Pennsylvania grabs me by the heels
and pulls me to the fungus scented earth.
This lake’s far shore is so dark
I can’t tell where the long mountain ends
and its rippling water reflection starts.
Pale Jupiter climbs the darkening sky
slowly like night’s approach. It comes back
each dusk. Safe at home, all my cells shout!
This purple flower that I can’t name
waits nightly on the lakeshore for me.
Cicadas rattle like tambourines..
Two cricket species join with single tones.
One’s a flute, the other’s a high pitched electric guitar.
Safe at home, all my cells join this chant.
Now wrinkled clouds dark as the lake
crawl briefly across the dawning stars,
"Awwnk!" Something’s disturbed a goose.
Clouds softly part and drift away.
Faint Polaris greets Jupiter
while the Dipper, the crooked W
and all the stars circle like a hawk.
The goose calls again. Safe at home,
none of my cells will sleep.
Mauch Chunk Lake, northern Pennsylvania
A rather somber reflection on wildflower Season
Hello all,
I'm happy to have this new blog~ I will share some nature discoveries, and will look forward to other folks' observations and comments. This will include poems, short essays, reflections and whatever else the planet inspires us to create!
It is wildflower season in northern California! We are surrounded by kaleidoscope grasslands.
Yesterday my friend Norm and I hiked around Tennesee Valley in Marin County; today Kate and I visited Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve in Oakland. Both abounded with silver lupines, sky lupines and California poppies; patches of purple and orange danced with the grass. Norm and I also saw a great blue heron standing on a hillside among the popples; we renamed it a "Gray Botanical Bird". California buttercups and goldfields splashed both emerald parks with yellow. Wild cucumber vines flowed through Sibley; Kate and I renamed their patches of tiny ivory flowers "Center of the Galaxy Flowers". It's late in wildflower season for blue eyed grass (which is actually a lily), but hoardes of it crowded the fields. I'm guessing this weekend is the peak of this year's wildflower season; I'll be amazed and very happy if the nova of blossoms expands!
Now for the somber part of this entry. It was hot in Sibley today. The forecast said it would reach 80 degrees farenheit; Kate and I both guessed it was at least 85. It is early for this kind of heat in northern California; this is particularly troubling when you consider the relatively low rainfall we've had for the past few years. The grasslands in Contra Costa County, where I work at least three days each week are starting to turn brown - it is definetly early for that.
This is why I am guessing we are at the peak of wildflower season in the inland areas. Tennesee Valley is closer to the ocean, and the Pacific keeps it relatively cool and often foggy. This region will thrive with flowers longer than the dryer areas, but I will want to keep track of the season's duration there as well.
The winter of 2008 - 9 was dry and often warm; I will look up the exact figures another time.
One thing that disturbed Kate and me was the condition of the quarry pond in Sibley Preserve. We often visit this spot in winter. We usually find two wintertime ponds there. Pacific tree frogs gather around one to mate and deposit eggs in the water; California newts throng to the other. We visited the quarry in early February and noticed that the frog's pond had not formed yet. The newt's pond was relatively small. Neither had received enough rain to grow to its normal size.
Pacific tree frogs dominated the pond where the newts usually mate, croaking loudly in the early afternoon. These little amphibians usually get quiet when people approach them, but they
just croaked on as people came close. Were they being exceptionally loud because of the reduced amount of territory that money? I don't know, but their calls were deafening. We searched in vain for newts in the pond. I am not clear if they were stationing themselves farther from the shore than the frogs or if they were finding a major lack of space for mating and egg laying. We feared for them.
It rained heavily in March and we returned one clear day to check on our amphibians. The frogs' pond was now in place, and the newts' pond had expanded to almost its normal size.
There were now plenty of newts and their egg masses and we couldn't find a single frog on their turf. Things seemed to have returned to normal, for the moment.
We have had little rain in the past few weeks. This is not unusual, we are close to the end of the season. Today we stood on the ridge above the newts' quarry pond and noticed that it seemed small for this time of year. We hope that newts larvae were able to emerge from their eggs before the territory dried out, and that many of them have enough aquatic space to find food and survive.
I want to be clear that everything I'm saying here is based on pure speculation and personal observations. I haven't conducted any scientific studies or seen any East Bay Regional Parks data on this year's rainfall in Sibley and on the newts' situation. I also haven't seen any predictions about the duration of this year's wildflowers. But I will offer a hypothesis that weather patterns are changing.
Is this situation due to human induced climate change? Everyone who follows this issue knows that while the data does support the idea that while this phenomena is real, it is impossible to say conclusively that any one situation results from it. Still, I did feel some fear as I walked among the wildflowers today. We need to keep this planet thriving.
That is it for now. You can bet I will share many more observations and thoughts on a range of topics. And I promise I won't always be so somber; expect celebration and joy.
I'm happy to have this new blog~ I will share some nature discoveries, and will look forward to other folks' observations and comments. This will include poems, short essays, reflections and whatever else the planet inspires us to create!
It is wildflower season in northern California! We are surrounded by kaleidoscope grasslands.
Yesterday my friend Norm and I hiked around Tennesee Valley in Marin County; today Kate and I visited Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve in Oakland. Both abounded with silver lupines, sky lupines and California poppies; patches of purple and orange danced with the grass. Norm and I also saw a great blue heron standing on a hillside among the popples; we renamed it a "Gray Botanical Bird". California buttercups and goldfields splashed both emerald parks with yellow. Wild cucumber vines flowed through Sibley; Kate and I renamed their patches of tiny ivory flowers "Center of the Galaxy Flowers". It's late in wildflower season for blue eyed grass (which is actually a lily), but hoardes of it crowded the fields. I'm guessing this weekend is the peak of this year's wildflower season; I'll be amazed and very happy if the nova of blossoms expands!
Now for the somber part of this entry. It was hot in Sibley today. The forecast said it would reach 80 degrees farenheit; Kate and I both guessed it was at least 85. It is early for this kind of heat in northern California; this is particularly troubling when you consider the relatively low rainfall we've had for the past few years. The grasslands in Contra Costa County, where I work at least three days each week are starting to turn brown - it is definetly early for that.
This is why I am guessing we are at the peak of wildflower season in the inland areas. Tennesee Valley is closer to the ocean, and the Pacific keeps it relatively cool and often foggy. This region will thrive with flowers longer than the dryer areas, but I will want to keep track of the season's duration there as well.
The winter of 2008 - 9 was dry and often warm; I will look up the exact figures another time.
One thing that disturbed Kate and me was the condition of the quarry pond in Sibley Preserve. We often visit this spot in winter. We usually find two wintertime ponds there. Pacific tree frogs gather around one to mate and deposit eggs in the water; California newts throng to the other. We visited the quarry in early February and noticed that the frog's pond had not formed yet. The newt's pond was relatively small. Neither had received enough rain to grow to its normal size.
Pacific tree frogs dominated the pond where the newts usually mate, croaking loudly in the early afternoon. These little amphibians usually get quiet when people approach them, but they
just croaked on as people came close. Were they being exceptionally loud because of the reduced amount of territory that money? I don't know, but their calls were deafening. We searched in vain for newts in the pond. I am not clear if they were stationing themselves farther from the shore than the frogs or if they were finding a major lack of space for mating and egg laying. We feared for them.
It rained heavily in March and we returned one clear day to check on our amphibians. The frogs' pond was now in place, and the newts' pond had expanded to almost its normal size.
There were now plenty of newts and their egg masses and we couldn't find a single frog on their turf. Things seemed to have returned to normal, for the moment.
We have had little rain in the past few weeks. This is not unusual, we are close to the end of the season. Today we stood on the ridge above the newts' quarry pond and noticed that it seemed small for this time of year. We hope that newts larvae were able to emerge from their eggs before the territory dried out, and that many of them have enough aquatic space to find food and survive.
I want to be clear that everything I'm saying here is based on pure speculation and personal observations. I haven't conducted any scientific studies or seen any East Bay Regional Parks data on this year's rainfall in Sibley and on the newts' situation. I also haven't seen any predictions about the duration of this year's wildflowers. But I will offer a hypothesis that weather patterns are changing.
Is this situation due to human induced climate change? Everyone who follows this issue knows that while the data does support the idea that while this phenomena is real, it is impossible to say conclusively that any one situation results from it. Still, I did feel some fear as I walked among the wildflowers today. We need to keep this planet thriving.
That is it for now. You can bet I will share many more observations and thoughts on a range of topics. And I promise I won't always be so somber; expect celebration and joy.
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