Contents

Theme: Long Hikes for Long Summer Days

A 20-Mile Hike through the South Skyline Region

Skyline to Sea

A Mid-Summer Experience

Other Features

Access to the Popular Stanford "Dish" Area Restricted Under Conservation Plan

Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District to Limit Bicycle Access

Take a Volunteer Vacation this Summer

Book Review: Handbook for Forest and Ranch Roads

Pat Oren's Secret Trail Work Motivator - Revealed!

Wild Lit

Note from the Literary Editor

Meeting with Pan at Midnight - Rachel Oliver

Apogee - Brian Kunde

Departments

From the Editor

Park News

Trail Center Notes

Upcoming Events

Along the Trail: Member and Volunteer Notes

The Trail Companion

Summer 2000

Trail Center Notes

Trail Construction and Maintenance

Arastradero Preserve, Apr. 22, May 13, June 3 and July 12

We successfully completed our 1,400-foot reroute a section of the Acorn Trail over the course of three great workdays in partnership with Bay Area Action's Arastradero Preserve Stewardship Project.

The California Trail Days/Earth Day 2000 crew - click for a larger image [90Kb]

Photo by Cindy Russell

Any Mountain Ltd., Hobee's California Restaurants, and Crystal Geyser Mountain Spring Water sponsored both our California Trail Days/Earth Day 2000 and National Trails Day events with donations of merchandise and refreshments; California State Parks Foundation provided an $800 tool grant for California Trail Days (new loppers, mattocks, McLeods and gloves); and Izzy's Brooklyn Bagels donated a great selection of bagels for our May workday.
Over 85 volunteers came out on for California Trail Days. We built over 900 feet of trail in short order.

The maintenance crew on May 13 -- click for a larger image [119Kb]

Photo by Geoffrey Skinner

Then in May, with nearly 40 more volunteers, we installed two of three culverts, built more new tread, and repaired the section of Acorn Trail just to the west. We wrapped up the project with another good turnout in June, building the remaining sections at either end, and laid down filter cloth and gravel on two sections of vulnerable soil.
We met no fewer than three rattlesnakes on the project - a record for us. The first, on Apr. 22, was a baby rattler that clung to a piece of loose bark in an adjacent tree all afternoon. We didn't come too close and it seemed content to supervise. The second, also on Apr. 22, left the area as quickly as possible, but not without a few good buzzes. Our third, on June 3, however, hid in a pile of concrete chunks we were using for culvert reinforcement.

The big culvert on Acorn Trail -- click for a larger image [130Kb]

Photo by Geoffrey Skinner

Crew Leader Trainee Katherine Thomas said she'd never before seen five guys jump backward so fast was when Crew Leader Scott Heeschen heard the buzz as he started to pick up a piece of concrete. Volunteer Todd Belt later managed to safely move the snake across the road and out of the way.
On July 12, seven volunteers, including most of the regular BAA Wednesday night crew, put finishing touches on the two puncheons built to protect the trail during wet weather.

Other uses for a wheelbarrow (May 13) -- click for a larger image [113Kb]

Photo by Geoffrey Skinner

As soon as the final shovelfull of gravel was in place, we took down the barricades and officially opened the trail to all users. We declared it a job well done over refreshments at the nearby Alpine Inn (Zots).
Greg Betts, Superintendent of Open Space for Palo Alto, visited the project and praised the new trail as "the nicest trail in the Preserve" and especially liked the way the trail passes through a mix of woods and grasslands.

Thank you, Acorn Trail Volunteers! Harley Adams, Sarah Albee, Matt Albee, Ed Alderman, Rich Allsop, Chris Auber, Paul Bacchetti, Candace Bain, Bart Balacki, Adam Barrett, Priya Bathija, Ryan Belcher, Steve Bell, Todd Belt, Jeff Bridges, Bill Brune, Chris Bui, Andrew Buysse, Matt Carr, Lindsey Christensen, Kim Christie-Wise, Patty Ciesla, Peter Colby, Karen Cotter, Dave Croker, Sara Poggi Davis, Emily de Schweinitz, Caleb DeFrees, Doug DeFrees, Jackie Leonard Demmick, Erin Duerichin, Anne Ellison, Thomas Engquist,

Ribbon cutting, June 3 (Geoffrey Skinner, Scott Heeschen and Karen Cotter) -- click for a larger image [113Kb]

Photo by Bill Henzel

Mark Eshbaugh, Beverly Fang, Julio Garcia, Kinshuk Govil, Michelle Ha, Lennard Hachmann, Jon Haight, Jerry Hearn, Scott Heeschen, Bill Henzel, Bill Henzel, Linda Herrera, Samantha Hewer, Miles Hopkins, Grace Hopper, Ariadne Horstman, Tex Houston, Jay Isaacson, John Isaacson, Kent Jenkins, Taino Johnston, Ed Jones, Oded Kafka, Rajesh Kamah, Renette Kelso, Justin Knowles, Nicholas Kolaitis, Pete Krause, Rajesh F. Krishnan, Adam Lee, Greg Lee, Dan Livingston, Saul Lopez, Chris Magnusson, Melisa Mahoney, Wendy McCarthy, Aaron McKenzie, Michael Miller, John O. Miller, Cheri Mingst, Karen Niemeier, Laura Noss, Tim Oren, Pat Oren, Linette Park, Matt Peak, Bryon Perry, Ulrike Porat, Darwin Poulos, Lisa Rampton,

The trail is open! -- click for a larger image [113Kb]

Photo by Bill Henzel

Charles Read, Alan Ross, Frank Rowand, Madelyn Ruiz, Cindy Russell, Veronica Sam, Mike Sandy, Sam Sandy, Shilpi Saran, K. Sato, Greg Schaffer, Joan Schwan, Jason M. Selznick, Cathy Sewell, Gireesh Shrimali, Geoffrey Skinner, David Smernoff, John Stanley, Mason Starbird, Andy Steele, Julie Stevens, Thevi Sundaralingam, George Taylor, Katherine Thomas, Karie Thomson, David Thomson, Paul Thomson, Michelle Townsend, Matt Trinidad, Tom Vick, Andrew Volkert, Ian Watterson, Greg Werner, Harry White, Boyd Wise, and Dawn Woo.

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