Dan's Outside

I go, I see, I do, I walk, I think, I like…

2003.08.21

BearCreekSpireReflection: Bear Creek Spire reflection. August 3, 2003.
Bear Creek Spire reflection. Eastern Sierra Nevada. August 3, 2003.

***Red tape takes a hike, and a trail is born:
Public to get first close look at ecologically rich Peninsula watershed – “It was closely guarded and fiercely debated. The endangered red-legged frogs could perish. Nonnative plants could take over. Fires would surely ignite. Terrorists, posing as hikers, could taint San Francisco’s water supply.”

“Now, the decadelong battle over a pristine stretch of land 13 miles south of San Francisco has ended. Beginning Saturday, a sliver of the long-off- limits Crystal Springs Watershed in San Mateo County will provide free tours to small groups of bikers, hikers and equestrians.” [SFGate]

Its about time. San Francisco has locked up huge sections of Bay Area open space for years. Now let’s hope that they fully open this area – and open up some of the others that are still closed.

***Yosemite landmark falls – Sentinel Dome’s oft-photographed Jeffrey pine topples
– “Yosemite’s famous Jeffrey pine on Sentinel Dome — whose poetic beauty and unique, wind-swept formation made it one of the most photographed trees in the park, if not the world — has crashed down.”

“The gnarled tree, photographed by Carleton Watkins in 1867 and later made famous by Ansel Adams, had stood dead since a severe drought in 1977. It finally fell sometime last week, most likely between Aug. 9 and 11, after a series of severe storms, said Yosemite spokeswoman Deb Schweizer.” [SFGate]

When I was in junior high school I did a lot of black and white photography – trying to emulate Ansel Adams, who I heard speak at a local college. Somewhere I have a black and white print of a photo I took of the tree when it was still alive.
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August 21, 2003 - Posted by | Commentary

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