COMING SOON-- WORKSHOPS
What really goes in the blue bin
--and what doesn't
Deepen your outdoor experience
--Use a topo map and compass
COMING SOON-- PHOTO GALLERY
Browse photos of a coming tour
--or of the tour you just took
ARMCHAIR TOUR!
Movie: Cane Toads: An Unnatural History
--A comedic short documentary that examines the disastrous results of interfering with an ecosystem by bringing in non-native species. Farmers in Australia, frustrated with an infestation of beetles, imported cane toads from Hawaii who wound up not eating the beetles, poisoning all their natural predators and multiplying to the point of becoming a larger nuisance than the beetles ever were.
Book: The Life of the Skies
--by Jonathan Rosen
--New York Times book review says: If Peterson and Sibley [birding guide book authors] provided checklists . . . then “The Life of the Skies” is the essay question, the question being: Does bird-watching offer a bird-watcher an avenue toward greater meaning, like prayer or yoga? For his part, Rosen, a novelist and the author of “The Talmud and the Internet,” has a lot of faith in it as a meditative act. “I can’t think of any activity that more fully captures what it means to be human in the modern world than watching birds,” he writes.
Stories of all the great American birders are included, from Thoreau to Teddy Roosevelt to "Kenn Kaufman, the Jack Kerouac of birding, who in the '70s hitchhiked the back roads of America for sightings."
Music: Appalachian Spring
--By Aaron Copland
--The sound of spring fever on the West Coast, not only in Appalachia! Try the recording by Michael Tilson Thomas's S.F. Symphony.
TOUR TIP
The warmer sunshine feels good, but don't pay for it later. Remember your hat or bandana and a lightweight long sleeved shirt. Apply sunscreen effective against both UVA and UVB, and bring a small bottle so you can reapply during rest breaks. The spot most people forget to protect? The top edge of the ears! Ouch!
CUSTOMIZE
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Let us create a tour just for you!
Learn more today.
ECO-HISTORY FACT
The Eco-History facts revealed in our 3/2/08 tour of the Quicksilver Mine in Almaden were so fascinating that folks demanded we offer it again! Do you know how Bay Area people and the environment have always influenced each other... in this case, from the pre-Gold Rush discovery of mercury ore to today?
Learn the surprising facts as we walk through beautiful landscapes, ghost towns with gardens still blooming today, and see a mercury reduction furnace. See the tour description from the first time we offered it!
The tentative date for this second visit is 6/7/08. If you're interested, let us know. Give your email address, and we'll keep you posted. Remember, if you enjoyed the first trip, the wildflowers and weather will be different the second time!
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S.F. South Bay Backcountry Hike at CaliforniaNatureTours.com
San Francisco South Bay Backcountry Hike
South Bay's huge back country opens to you at Northern California's largest state park. Oak-studded hills and valleys, bursting with wildflowers in April following last September's fire, bring joy to the heart. We'll picnic at the old swimming hole on Coyote Creek.
South Bay Backcountry at Henry Coe State Park
Henry Coe State Park's endless hills are delightful
- Wildflowers on rolling hills
- Old growth oak forest, creeks
- Refreshing swimming hole
- Great wild turkeys!
- 12yrs+, 9miles/14k, 6 hrs
- Sun 5/04/08, 10:30am, $25 USD
- Henry Coe Park in Morgan Hill CA
FAQ, Contact David
Henry Coe State Park's South Bay Backcountry
Henry Coe, Northern California's largest state park, will be especially beautiful this Spring, thanks to last September's wildfire clearing the brush to make way for wildflowers. There are endless hills and valleys, and creeks shaded by oaks, and abundant wildlife, including deer, coyotes, and wild turkeys. It's just a few miles from Silicon Valley, but it's the biggest wilderness in the Bay Area.
Join us for a journey into the real Old West, starting at the old Coe Ranch House and following the trails where Henry Coe raised his daughter Sada Sutcliffe Coe in the saddle, herding cattle. She loved the ranch so much that she donated it for a state park in memory of her father. Later, the state (taxpayers) bought many square miles of adjacent hills and valleys to make the park even bigger. It gets very hot here in the dry season and very cold in the winter -- but in May it's just right.
Dead-end of East Dunne Avenue at Henry Coe Park Headquarters in Henry Coe State Park, Morgan Hill CA ("B" on the map) ALERT! "B" on this map is correct and not what always comes up when you search for "Headquarters".
Sun 5/04/08, 10:30am
FAQ, Contact David
DON'T WANT SAN FRANCISCO SOUTH BAY BACKCOUNTRY HIKE IN HENRY COE PARK?
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Action Alert
California State Parks Saved!
Gov. Schwarzenegger scuttled his plan to close 48 of them! Call the Governor to thank him at (916) 445-2841.
Learn more
I've really enjoyed many of David's hikes!
On Montara Mountain we had a stunning 360 degree panoramic view of the coast.
At Point Reyes we swam in beautiful Bass Lake and saw the sublime Alamere Waterfalls.
David is very knowledgeable about Nature and the History of the Bay Area. He's also very attentive to the hikers.
I'll be back-- again!
Mr. M.C.
San Mateo, CA
Thank you David, for your
hike at China Camp.
It was a beautiful setting and we saw deer at close range.
But what made it especially interesting & memorable was your knowledge of the area.
I'm looking forward to
reading the book!
Thanks again and regards,
Ms. A.V.
Oakland, CA
I'm an inquisitive hiker who often wants to know more than previous guides seem to know...
But sometimes I just
want quiet moments.
Somehow, David does both
things just right!
A tour with David really does have something more.
Ms. C.A.
San Francisco, CA
In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.
John Muir
The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.
John Muir
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