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Friday, April 30, 2010 Subject: New Marine protection May 1 The new California North Central Coast Marine Protected Areas laws take effect tomorrow, May 1, 2010. These new protective measures were reached after public meetings and review. A full accounting may be found at: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/mlpa/northcentralhome.asp Changes at Point Reyes include "no take of marine life"/no fishing along Drakes Beach, Chimney Rock, and the western end of Limantour Spit. Fishing is permitted to the south side of Limantour or to the left as you walk towards the beach. Fishing on the Great Beach continues. Check tides and wind reports, especially in winter, for heavy surf and dangerous waves. Friday, April 23, 2010 The full moon rises on Wednesday, April 28 with dramatic low tides in the mornings:
Snowy shrubs flowering along Limantour Road are Ceanothus with pale lilac flowers; some species have deep blue flowers. The tiny purple blue Sky Lupine are coming up in the Bear Valley pastures. The Great Blue Heron has moved its gopher hunting to the old rodeo grounds off Bear Valley Trail. More signs of spring are flights of Brown Pelicans over the Lighthouse, and rafts of scoters mixed in with the occasional elephant seal. It is high wind season on the coast; if your visit includes Chimney Rock or the Lighthouse, check with the park's Visitor Centers or webcam for wind advisories. Gale force winds in excess of 40 miles per hour close the lighthouse steps. As part of the Giacomini Wetlands Restoration Project, the sinking structure in Inverness Park across from the deli area will be removed this week. Brown Bag luncheon series at the Red Barn Classroom on April 29 at 12 noon covers the non-native Atlantic Oyster Drill, a whelk that is impacting the recovery of native Olympia oysters in Tomales Bay. The lecture is free and open to the public. Following on May 5th will be a talk on the Tule Elk populations. Friday, April 23, 2010 Forwarded to Local Park Wavelengths List
Tuesday, April 6, 2010 A new moon rises on April 14 and continues the spring-summer trend of early morning low tides for a week. The Lyrid meteor showers peak April 22, but visibility may be impacted by the waxing moon until around 3 a.m., when the moon should set.
Poppies are the latest wildflower to begin blooming along the Bear Valley pastures and Abbotts Lagoon. Plenty of buttery yellow Lupine at the Lighthouse perfuming the air on warm days and also beginning at Tomales Point. Spiky, yellow flowers on roadside shrubs are Red Elderberry. Many of the deer are sporting knobby, velvet covered antlers. In about a month or two, look for shredded bark on willows and other smaller trees as they begin to scrape off the velvet and hone the antlers for upcoming tussles in the late summer. Permits have been issued for a bike ride from Healdsburg to the Lighthouse on April 10 with 43 participants and for the annual "Ridge to Bridge" trip along the Bolinas Ridge Trail. Both should bring lots of activity to the area. The shuttle bus season has ended for this year. The annual weekend service will begin its 13th year, weather permitting, on December 26, 2010. |
Last updated: September 18, 2022