Dan's Outside

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

Mt. Hamilton Land Protected

According to SFGate, a “ranch the size of San Francisco [is] to be protected from development near Mt. Hamilton.

A huge stretch of land near Mt. Hamilton that is roughly the size of San Francisco has been donated as a conservation easement by the Hewlett and Packard families to protect the property from development, the Nature Conservancy said today.

The protection of the 28,359-acre San Felipe Ranch from development will complete a 70-mile long corridor of protected natural lands that extends from Pacheco Pass to Livermore Valley, according to the Conservancy.

The land, which has oaks, year-round streams, seasonal ponds and wildflower meadows, was volunteered as a conservation easement by the families about 10 years after the Conservancy identified the ranch’s “combination of the large amount of intact flourishing habitat and the location” as one of its top priorities for protection in the Mount Hamilton and Diablo range just outside San Jose, according to a statement by the Conservancy.

Not a lot of information was yet available when the article was released, but this sounds like a great development for everyone who loves the outdoor environment of Central California.

January 20, 2008 Posted by | Commentary, Environment | 1 Comment

A Coe Park Trip Report

Other Tom (Tom Clifton) has posted a nice piece about the beauties of the Central California oak/grassland environment as part of a report (with photos) on his recent and first visit to Henry Coe State Park.

January 20, 2008 Posted by | Commentary | Comments Off on A Coe Park Trip Report

Passing Along the News from Two-Heel Drive

Tom at Two-Heel Drive (why do I always type To-Hell Drive the first time? ;-) has posted a couple of interesting announcements.

First, he has announced that the Annual Ground Hogs Day Invitational Hike will take place on Saturday Sunday, February 2 3*. You are invited, so it must be an invitational, right? Details are not exactly set in stone just yet, but there is a good chance that we’ll go to Henry Coe Park (quickly, before the Governator tries to close it) and probably in the morning. Follow the link to Tom’s blog for more information.

* Tom wrote to point out: “Dan: Feb. 3 is a sunday (Super Bowl Sunday in fact)”

Second, he notes a couple of appearances by Bay Area outdoor phenom 4WheelBob and his impressive feat on White Mountain last summer.

January 20, 2008 Posted by | Events | 2 Comments

A Hike. Finally

Two weeks ago I was hit by this awful bug/cold/flu that seems to be going around here in the Bay Area. The pattern is that it doesn’t seem that bad at first, but it lasts… and lasts… and lasts. I have students who took three weeks or more to get over it.

Needless to say, it was all I could do to get to work during the past week and a half. (First week of the winter term, so it would be a pretty bad time for me to take a week off!) Finally today I felt enough better to try an actual hike – out on the Skyline To The Sea Trail at Big Basin. I managed to do perhaps 6 or 7 miles – slow, but at least I was out.

January 20, 2008 Posted by | Commentary | Comments Off on A Hike. Finally