by Bonnie Gosliner | Feb 24, 2024
Rock Spring Calypso Orchid Hunt, and More!
Sunday, March 10, 2024, 10:30 am to 2 pm Leaders: Kristin Jakob & Renee Fittinghoff
Please sign up for this field trip Meetup Registration Please sign the Field Trip Waiver
Join Kristin and Renee to search through the Douglas fir forest looking for the fairy slipper orchid, Calypso bulbosa. The group will explore the trails around the upper Rock Spring meadow, enjoy a picnic lunch around noon, then head down the Cataract Trail as far as participants wish to hike, enjoying other early wildflowers and a diverse array of ferns. Trails are not particularly steep, but narrow and rocky in part, and possibly slippery if wet.
Directions: Meet at the Rock Spring parking lot on Mt. Tamalpais, located at the intersection of Ridgecrest and Pantoll Roads. This is approximately one mile uphill from the state park ranger station at Pantoll; turn uphill across the road from the ranger station. For those unfamiliar with the area, the ranger station is located on Panoramic Hwy. on the way from Mill Valley to Stinson Beach. There is no charge to park at the Rock Spring paved lot, and there are some additional parking spaces along Ridgecrest.
Bring: Water, a lunch, sturdy shoes, and rain gear. Rain cancels.
Email Kristin akristinjakob@gmail.com with any questions. Text for day-of-trip questions or issues: 650-608-1274
by Ann Elliott | Feb 25, 2024
Monday April 29, 2024
Please sign up for this field trip on Meetup. Registration opens April 1. Please sign Waiver for Marin Chapter 2024.
Mitchell Canyon is one of the wildflower “hot spots” in the Bay Area. This walk will be slow and easy, about 2 miles in length total, three-fourths on the Mitchell Canyon fire road and one-fourth on the single-track Globe Lily Trail. Please bring your lunch. After the walk, we will eat at the picnic tables in the shade near the visitor center.
We expect to see the rare (1B.2) Mt. Diablo fairy lantern (Calochortus pulchellus), along with many other spring wildflowers, hopefully including goldenbush (Ericameria linearifolia), broomrape (Aphyllon fasciculatum), blue witch (Solanum umbelliferum), virgin’s bower (Clematis ligusticifolia), colonial onion (Allium unifolium), Sacramento Valley buttercup (Ranunculus canus), yerba santa, wallflowers, blow wives, ookow, silver bush lupine, and more. If we’re lucky, we’ll also see the butterfly mariposa lily (Calochortus venustus), although we may be too early for that one. And looking up, on the slopes of Mt. Diablo, we’ll see stands of beautiful gray pines (Pinus sabiniana).
The Mt. Diablo Interpretive Association publishes a wonderful online Wildflower Guide. In addition, along the fire road there are ten numbered markers, which are described in this downloadable Mitchell Canyon Trail Interpretive Guide
Carpooling Options: Meet at 8:15 at Mission Avenue Park & Ride in San Rafael or Meet at 8:15 at the Manzanita Park & Ride in Mill Valley
Meet at Mitchell Canyon Visitor Center, Mt. Diablo State Park, 96 Mitchell Canyon Road, Clayton, CA 94517
Driving Directions: The route to Walnut Creek may vary depending on where you start in Marin County. Once in Walnut Creek, from the intersection of Interstate 680 and Ygnacio Valley Road, go east on Ygnacio Valley Road 6.7 miles to Pine Hollow Road. Turn right on Pine Hollow Road and follow it for 1.7 miles to Mitchell Canyon Road. Turn right on Mitchell Canyon Road and follow it for 1.5 miles; the road dead-ends at the park entrance. Entry fee is $6.00 in cash per vehicle. There are restrooms by the parking lot.
Bring: Water, lunch, and rain gear. Rain cancels
Email Suzanne with any questions. Text for day-of-trip questions or issues: 510-909-3980
by Ann Elliott | Feb 26, 2024
Saturday, March 23, 2024 10 am to 3 pm Leader: Ann Elliott
Ascend the nicely graded Big Trees Trail through hillsides of ferns and wildflowers, and new stands of redwoods and mature woodlands that open up to scenic views of Stafford Lake. We hope to catch some of the early flowers on the 50th Anniversary Challenge list: shooting stars (Primula hendersonii), checker lily (Fritillaria affinis), and warrior plumes (Pedicularis densiflora).
Those making it to the top of the ridge will lunch near giant redwoods with million-dollar sweeping views of the entire North Bay. We will return down the slightly steeper Deer Camp Trail. The round-trip mileage is about 5.5 miles. Some may want to just venture up the trail a couple miles and then retrace their steps back or do the shorter loop without reaching the summit. According to David Herlocker, this is “one of the best destinations in the County.” Check out the iNaturalist field guide.
Directions: Meet at the Vineyard Rd trailhead in Novato. To get there, exit 101 at the San Marin exit, and go west for more than a mile. After you cross Novato Blvd., continue straight on Sutro Dr. Make a right onto Vineyard and follow to the end of the pavement.
Bring: Water, lunch, and rain gear. Heavy rain cancels.
Email Ann with any questions. annonfire@gmail.com Text for day-of-trip questions or issues: 530-521-4402
by Bonnie Gosliner | Feb 26, 2024
Chimney Rock, Point Reyes National Seashore
Leader: Ann Elliott Thursday, March 27, 2024 10 am to 2 pm
Chimney Rock is a spectacular walk year-round. During this mid-spring visit we hope to find some of the flowers on the 50th Anniversary Challenge list: Wight’s paintbrush (Castilleja wightii), goldfields (Lasthenia californica), tidytips (Layia platyglossa), suncups (Taraxia ovata), and more. We will see some elephant pups before they take off to deeper ocean and maybe the beginning of the pacific gray whale northward migration.
Directions: Meet at the Chimney Rock parking area, located in outer Point Reyes, near the end of Sir Francis Drake, a mile or so before reaching the Lighthouse. Please remember, even if it’s warm and sunny when you leave home, it could be cold and foggy and very, very, very windy at Point Reyes.
Bring: Water, a snack, and rain gear. Heavy rain cancels.
Email Ann with any questions. annonfire@gmail.com Text for day-of-trip questions or issues: 530-521-4402
by Ann Elliott | Jan 31, 2024
Signup – Meetup
Signup Details:
- Registration will be handled in Meetup online or with the app. Sign ups to Meetup are free for participants using your Google, Apple, or Facebook account or by using an email address.
- You must also digitally sign the CNPS waiver with WaiverSign. New! You only need to sign the waiver for Marin CNPS events once in 2024. 2024 Marin CNPS WaiverSign Link
- This field trip is limited to 20 participants. Please only sign up if you plan to attend.
- Contact the leader with any questions.
Tomales Bay State Park has botanical treasures any time of the year, from the Zen-like environment of the bishop pine forest through mixed hardwoods to ledum swamps and decomposed granite beaches along the bay. Bring your mushroom identification books along too.
Be prepared: Recall the plight of the couple who wandered from this trail on Valentine’s Day 2020 and were lost for over a week. To avoid their fate, please stock your packs with the essential equipment for any hike:
- navigation (map & cell phone);
- food & water;
- protection from sun, rain, and wind (dress in layers w/sturdy shoes);
- first aid kit;
- emergency whistle;
- helpful extras: shelter (space blanket), headlamp, knife, and fire (matches).
Meet at the small unmarked parking area at the top of the Jepson Trail, which is located just south of the entrance to Tomales Bay State Park on Pierce Point Rd. To get there from central Marin, go out Sir Francis Drake Blvd., several miles past Inverness. At the fork in the road, bear right onto Pierce Point Rd., and go approximately one mile to the parking area. If you see the entrance sign to Tomales Bay State Park (Heart’s Desire), you have gone too far, so turn around and go back 200 yards. Heavy rain cancels. Call Ann
