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September 27, 2005 This Wednesday, September 28 - a prescribed fire is scheduled for Olema Valley - there may be some smoke and traffic control will be in place. A second burn is planned for Thursday, September 29 along Limantour Road. A paving project is scheduled for Limantour Road this Wednesday, September 28, also, there will be traffic delays. The park is hosting next Thursday's, October 6, Chamber of Commerce meeting at the Red Barn at park headquarters. Please RSVP for the dinner ($12.00 catered by Ferrari) by email or telephone (415) 663-8522 ext. 5140. We will be showing a new park film made by the Discovery Channel and have a presentation from Muir Woods staff. September 20, 2005 Naturalist Notebook: The autumnal equinox is this Thursday, September 22 - the daylight and night time hours are equal and the days continue to grow shorter. Happy Birthday Point Reyes! The park was dedicated on September 20, 1966 by Lady Bird Johnson "...to save and preserve, for purposes of public recreation, benefit, and inspiration, a portion of the diminishing seashore of the United States that remains undeveloped..." Tomorrow, Wednesday, September 21, the next prescription fire is scheduled for the McCurdy Trail area off Highway 1. The trail will be closed during the burn. The fire will be ignited around 10:00 am if the weather conditions are appropriate. Unusual birds are being reported as the fall migration begins. A Virginia Warbler sighted at Lagunitas Creek where Sir Francis Drake crosses Lagunitas Creek. It was noted in mist nets maintained by Point Reyes Conservation Science (PRBO). A Green-tailed towhee at the Fish Docks. An immature chestnut sided warbler in the RCA Tower area. A Pileated woodpecker in the Estero Trail area. The bi annual Bolinas Quail Count is slated for this Thursday, September 22. Call PRBO at (415) 868-1221 if you'd like to participate in counting quail in the Bolinas area. Birders be aware; a new map for access in the Chimney Rock area has been published at the park website https://www.nps.gov/pore. Paper copies are available at park visitor centers or if you send me an address. It allows for privacy to park residents AND bird viewing! Fat, green acorns are on the Coast Live Oaks and Tan Bark oak trees. Squirrels, deer and acorn woodpeckers have been scuttling around Bear Valley preparing for the harvest. It is also an important time in the Coast Miwok calendar. Traditionally, families would gather into groves of oak trees passed down from generation to generation to collect acorns. Umpa or acorns in Coast Miwok were stored with mugwort and bay leaves to repel insects. Today, the Coast Miwok gather in October as a time to be grateful for the blessings received during the previous year. Coming up Sunday, October 2, Marin County Open Space rangers are leading a walk along the Bolinas Ridge Trail from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. This trail will walk done the Randall Trail and provides lovely views of the whole Olema Valley. However, this area does have cows and calves and a visitor was injured when they came between a cow and calf. Keep an eye out! A permit has been issued for a wedding at the Sunset Overlook off Limantour Road for October 2nd between 2:00-4:30 pm. There may be some traffic slowing and congestion. A final construction crew will be at Kule Loklo, the Coast Miwok Exhibit on September 28. There will be noise and dust in the area around the roundhouse. September 7, 2005 "The moon voice shouts out brilliant twilight through acres of black sky" Naturalist Notebook: The full moon rises on Saturday, September 17 at 7:01 pm - the Harvest Moon so designated since it is the full moon closest to the autumnal equinox on September 22. For the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska - "the moon when the elk bellow." The elk continue bellowing at Tomales Point as the annual rut moves into full swing - bugling, antler rattling. The breeding activity makes it much easier to spot the animals - after the rut, the males are weakened by the strenuous breeding activities and seem to hide away as they drop antlers. A small group of transplanted tule elk are now browsing the fields at the Drakes Beach/Sir Francis Drake Road intersection. Traditional signs of fall are in the air - in the early evenings flying V of Canada geese can be seen over Point Reyes. However, these geese are naturalized to wherever they hatch. A small flock has been settling in on the Giacomini wetlands. Other small groups becoming local residents are at the Nicasio Reservoir. A prescribed fire is planned for today, Wednesday, September 7 along Highway 1. If conditions are safe and the fire is ignited - it will help combat non-native broom and reduce fuel that could feed a wildfire. The first of many activities to mark the anniversary of the Vision Fire begins this weekend - a ranger guided nature hike through the burn area to examine the recovery of many species and the viewshed. Meet at the Bay View Trailhead on Saturday, September 10 - 10:00 am to 2:30 pm. To get in the Halloween mode? Marin County Open Space and parks sponsors a hike about spiders on Friday, September 16 from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. Meet at the Five Brooks Parking Lot on Highway 1 south of Olema. Permits have been issued to the College of Marin for a night class in bioluminescence at Limantour Beach on Saturday, September 10. Also, a bicycle training "Team Leukemia" has a permit for an aid station at Bear Valley Visitor Center on Saturday September 10. Mark Your Calendars! On Thursday, September 22 at 12:00 noon in the Red Barn at park Headquarters. Scientists from the USGS will show their bathymetric images of the sea floor of Tomales Bay (like an underwater 3D map - no glasses needed). |
Last updated: February 28, 2015