JANUARY EVENTS IN THE RIVER PARK
Sundays, January
4, 11, 18, 25
10:30am - 3:30pm
North San Diego Certified
Farmers Market -
Rain or Shine!
Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead:
12655 Sunset Dr., Escondido
Saturday, January 10
9:00 - 10:30am
Second Saturday Ranger-
Led Walk at the San
Dieguito Lagoon
Meet at the San Dieguito Lagoon Staging Area
2 miles, easy
Hosted by San Dieguito
River Park Ranger Bryan Ward
Sunday, January 11
8:00 - 11:00am
Volunteer Trail MaintenanceMeet at Old Coach Trail Staging Area "North" Hosted by San Dieguito
River Park Ranger David Hekel
RSVP to Leana Bulay Saturday, January 17 8:00 - 11:00am Volunteer Habitat Restoration
Meet at the Ysabel Creek Rd. Staging AreaHosted by San Dieguito River Park Ranger Jake Gibbs RSVP to Leana Bulay Saturday, January 17 10:30am - 11:30am Wildlife Presentation:
Creatures of the Mountain
Held at the Julian Library: 1850 Hwy. 78,Julian, CA 92036Co-hosted by Volcan Mountain Foundation and Biologist Mike Puzzo Sunday, January 18
8:30 - 10:30am
Coastal Walk & Yoga on the Beach Meet at the San Andres Dr. Interpretive Kiosk 4 miles, easy
Co-hosted by SDRVC and
Yoga Instructor Susan McCrea
Sunday, January 18 10:00am - 1:00pm Kanaka Loop Trail Hike Meet at the Farmer Rd. Staging Area, Santa Ysabel Open Space Preserve East7 miles, moderate Hosted by San Diego County Parks Staff Thursday, January 22 8:00 - 10:00am Exec Trek on
Highland Valley Trail
Meet at the Highland Valley Trail Staging Area4.2 miles, easy Hosted by SDRVC Executive Director Trish Boaz Saturday, January 24 9:00am - 12:00pm Sky Island Trail Hike Meet at VMF's Volcan
Mountain Nature Center: 22850 Volcan Rd.,
(at the gate at the beginning of Volcan Rd./end of Farmer Rd.) Julian, CA 92036 1.5 miles, easy Hosted by Volcan Mountain Education Coordinator Kathleen Beck RSVP to Kathleen Beck at VMFEducation@VolcanMt.org or (760) 518-3273 Saturday, January 24 10:00 - 11:00am The History of the Cuyamacas and What's Happening to the Oaks Meet at the Farmer Rd. Staging Area, Santa Ysabel Open Space Preserve EastHosted by San Diego County Parks Sunday, January 25 10:00am - 12:00pm Canyoneers Hike at
Crest Canyon
For hikes, all mileages are approximate.
Please visit our website for more details and full events calendar.   
Your membership helps us to fulfill our mission to protect the San Dieguito Watershed for generations to come. SUPPORT NATURE SUPPORT THE RIVER PARK For more information, please visit these websites: www.sdrp.org www.sdrvc.org www.fsdrv.org www.sdparks.org
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Run the California 10/20 with Team SDRVC!
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It's a race and a party! Join Team San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy and run the California 10/20 with us on February 15, 2015!
Run/walk the 10-mile course through Del Mar, Solana Beach, and Encinitas and get entertained by 20 live bands along the way. Former Eagle, Don Felder, will headline the finish concert.
We've been selected as a local non-profit partner and California 10/20 is donating $1,500 to the Del Mar River Path Extension project!
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Join us for the first Exec Trek of 2015! We'll be hiking on Highland Valley Trail.
This easy, 4.2-mile hike will be hosted by Executive Director Trish Boaz. We'll meet at 8:00am on Thursday, Jan. 22nd at the Highland Valley Trailhead. |
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Save the Date - Plein Air
Art Gala & Exhibit
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Mark your calendars now -- Legacy of the Land, a Plein Air Painters Art Gala & Exhibit, will take place at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido starting in March!
Purchase tickets now for the Opening Gala on March 21st. This will be your first chance to purchase artwork from Plein Air painters documenting California's rural, urban, and ocean landscapes. The paintings will remain on display at the California Center for the Arts through May 3rd.
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San Diego International Wine Show
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We were honored to be selected as the focus charity for the San Diego International Wine Show! This two-day event, held on April 25-26th at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, will feature wines and wine experts from all over the world.
The Conservancy will receive $5,000 for our conservation, education, and recreation programs. Learn more and purchase tickets here!
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Have You Gone on a Hike Recently?
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by Ginni Kitchen, Trail Patroller
For a great hike, let me recommend San Dieguito River Park's Bernardo Bay trail. It has finally gotten cool enough that fellow trail patrollers Amy and Lynn and I can walk it every Thursday after work.
The beginning of November we were greeted by a few birds, including a few gorgeous American White Pelicans and two White-tailed Kites. The next week there were even more birds on the water, and a Greater Roadrunner stood on a rock, posing in the sunshine for me. A little further down the trail, we saw a pair of coyotes on the shore. One coyote slunk into the bushes, but the other stayed in the open, looking at the birds on the water (possible dinner?) and up at us on the trail. He was the epitome of calmness.
Last week there were dozens of White Pelicans circling over the lake and flashing their black wing markings. The Western Grebes are just starting to practice "rushing," a courtship display where two birds run across the surface of the water, side by side, with their necks curved gracefully forward. American Wigeons and Green-winged Teals are appearing, the males sporting lovely green eye masks. You don't have to know one bird from another -- we're just learning! -- to enjoy watching hawks soar, ducks dabble, hummingbirds hover, and all the other wonderful creatures along this trail. We have even seen Mule Deer under Lake Hodges' pedestrian bridge at sunset. And last year we saw a Bald Eagle!
The SDRP webpage provides trail maps to help you find all our great trails. Bernardo Bay is an easy hike -- only 1.6 miles. If you have time, don't do the loop, but go out and back along the water. This will increase your distance a bit, but who knows what you'll spot the second time around that wasn't there the first time. Hope to see you on the trail soon!  | |
all photos by Ginni Kitchen
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San Dieguito Lagoon
Historical Ecology Report
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by Shawna Anderson, AICP
A fascinating study on the historical ecology of North County's six coastal lagoons, including the San Dieguito Lagoon, was published in September 2014, and is available for free download at this website: http://www.sfei.org/projects/north-san-diego-county-lagoons-historical-ecology-study
 What was the San Dieguito Lagoon like in the late nineteenth century? How was it commonly used and how much area did it cover? How has the river changed over time and what events led to its current configuration? Answers to these questions and more are found in this study, funded by the California State Coastal Conservancy, which explores and documents the ecological characteristics of San Diego's North County lagoons circa the late 1700s to late 1800s and contrasts them to today's conditions including historical depictions, in-depth analysis, maps, and explanations of lagoon dynamics over time. The study also explores the historic changes in watershed dynamics including water flow, water quality, and lagoon inlet tidal prisms. San Dieguito Lagoon's 345 square-mile watershed is by far the largest watershed of the six North County lagoons, four times the next largest watershed (Los Penasquitos) and over 15 times the size of the smallest. Historically, the inlet at San Dieguito was not permanently open to the ocean, instead it was often blocked by a sand bar across the lagoon mouth. During the dry season flows from the river to the ocean ceased and wave action created the accumulation of sand at the mouth. This was exacerbated throughout the first half of the 20th century mostly from the reduction of freshwater flows after the construction of the Hodges Dam. The study's in-depth analysis of inlet dynamics uses the San Dieguito Lagoon as a case study. All the north county lagoons are covered extensively providing the historic context for the current state of our unique lagoon systems and a glimpse into early exploration and settlement of the area. The hope is that a better understanding of the historic ecologic context and evolution will help guide and better inform restoration decisions in the future.
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Become a Wildlife Tracker!
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by David Jones, Dust Devil and Trail Patroller
The San Diego Tracking Team (SDTT) is made up of volunteers dedicated to promoting the preservation of wildlife habitat in San Diego County through citizen-based wildlife monitoring. They conduct wildlife surveys to evaluate the health of key species, the connectivity of open space areas, and the efficacy of the City and County's Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plans. Scientific advisers from public resource agencies and academic institutions oversee these activities, and the data produced is used in planning transportation and urban development projects throughout San Diego County.
SDTT is planning to work with the River Park to create a team of wildlife trackers to monitor wildlife activity in our park. They offer a series of three training classes (Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced) to teach SDRP volunteers to do this surveying work, which includes learning to recognize the tracks that different creatures leave in the soil.
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photo by Ginni Kitchen
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This is an ideal activity for the River Park's rangers and volunteers to get involved in. Measuring the number of animals in the park, and how the numbers rise and fall over time, will provide invaluable data to track the effectiveness of our current programs and help plan future park programs.
We are planning to form a group of volunteer wildlife trackers who would complete wildlife surveys about four times a year. The next SDTT Beginning Tracker Class starts in February 2015 and consists of one weekday evening (February 18) and one Saturday (February 21).
This is a great opportunity to learn more about the River Park's native species! If you're interested in participating, please contact: Jess Norton, Conservation Manager, at jess@sdrvc.org.
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Del Mar River Path Extension:
Planning Begins!
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Thanks to public donations and several grants, we are excited to move forward with planning the Del Mar River Path Extension! Our first planning meeting was on December 3rd, where we heard valuable input from residents about the River Path. We're presenting a project update to the Del Mar City Council on January 20th.
We are so excited to make progress on this project throughout 2015! Look for more updates throughout the year!
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City of Solana Beach Grant
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We're thrilled to receive a $2,000 grant from the City of Solana Beach in December! The funds will benefit our Connecting People with Nature Program!
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