Point Reyes Weekend

You Mon Tsang June 22nd, 2009

This is a guest letter by Lyons Filmer, Point Reyes Farmers Market Steering Committee member.

A poem of gratitude, a letter of blessings – beautiful texts written about the special qualities we see in our everyday lives. Writings by West Marin School student Adrian Vega and farmer Sandy Dierks are my inspirations as this year’s Point Reyes Farmers Market readies to open on Saturday, June 27.

Photos thanks to Richard James.

• Farmers Market
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You Mon Tsang May 18th, 2009

Start the summer right by heading up to Point Reyes on Memorial Day weekend. Besides the usual outdoors fun, the Point Reyes Open Studios offers great works by local artists.  Check it out…

• Art
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You Mon Tsang May 15th, 2009

John Small was waiting for the fog to clear at Point Reyes; it did not.  But Point Reyes has its own special mood in the fog, captured well in one of his photos.

• Photos
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You Mon Tsang May 6th, 2009

What’s happening in the park in early May 2009.

• So far this year, one snowy plover nest is being monitored. Enclosures of string and metal fencing along the Great Beach are reminders of where they are attempting to nest, please avoid these areas, look for the annual closures signs especially from Kehoe Beach South to North Beach.
• Springtime is also the beginning of annual bat monitoring – a healthy 212 Townsend Big eared bats in the first Olema Valley counts.
• Spotted owl nest counts in older growth woods are also positive this year!
• The usual sign of spring at Bear Valley – the gopher hunting great blue heron appeared last week.
• This week is also peak harbor seal season – Bolinas Lagoon and the Estero Trail are good spots to observe from a safe distance. Or the newly repaired film at Bear Valley Visitor Center has some great images of onshore antics of these marine mammals.
• New photography show at Bear Valley Visitor Center is nature images by Kevin Shea going up this week!

These are highlights from the National Park Service Park Wavelengths newsletter.

Photo courtesy of Ian:Brewer

• NPS , Wildlife
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You Mon Tsang May 4th, 2009

What if Point Reyes was a fully developed with housing? Well, in the 1950s, things were heading that way. If you want to know how the area got saved, I recommend this book on the history of Point Reyes and the Bay Area parks.  Fortunately for us, the National Park service is continuing its mission of restoring the area to its natural state.

Projects at the Giacomini wetlands and Limantour include removing dams and levees, building bridges and restoring streams.

Take a look at this photo of Limantour in 1961. This was to be a housing development. Fill the land with tract homes and watch it spread across the peninsula. We have a lot of people to thank for saving this place.

Photo from NPS Archive via Pacific Coast Science and Learning Center

• Nature
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You Mon Tsang April 30th, 2009

Just in case you need inspiration to head to the Point Reyes area this weekend.

Photo courtesy of generationexe

• Lighthouse , Photos
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You Mon Tsang April 23rd, 2009

What’s happening in the park in late April 2009.

• The rains means more wildflowers! Chimney Rock is in peak condition, with the yellow Indian Paintbrush coming in. The pastures at Bear Valley are purple with tiny Sky Lupines. There are rumors of dogwood flowering on Bear Valley Trail.
• Poison Oak is also enjoying a banner year – leaves of three let it be – it can be a shrub or a climbing vine.  Also, I teach my son “If it’s shiny, watch your hiney.”
• Last of the grey whales moving north, the third phase of the annual movement is the mother and calf pairs passing the Lighthouse; a couple of pairs have been seen each day over the past week.
• The first string enclosures to protect snowy plover nests are being put up on the Great Beach; nesting activities have been observed, so far, no eggs.

These are highlights from the National Park Service Park Wavelengths newsletter. Photo by Pat Ulrich.

• Whales , Wildflowers
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You Mon Tsang April 16th, 2009

Great shot of a scooting sea lion across Limantour.

Photo courtesy of Jef Poskanzer

• Photos , Wildlife
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You Mon Tsang April 7th, 2009

What’s happening in the park in early April 2009.

• Fish , Transportation , Wildflowers
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You Mon Tsang April 4th, 2009

Point Reyes and the nice folks at the Cowgirl Creamery have made a cheese lover out of me (see a past post on the best grilled cheese sandwich ever).  So it was no surprise to see that two local cheeses on the SF Chronicle list of 10 iconic California cheeses. The two are the (1) Point Reyes Original Blue and (2) Red Hawk:

The only classic-style blue cheese made in California, Original Blue is produced by the Giacomini family with milk from their own cows. The four Giacomini daughters turned to cheesemaking nearly a decade ago as a way to preserve their West Marin farm. The rindless Original Blue has a dense, moist, creamy interior with threadlike blue veins; its flavor is robust, finishing with a buttermilk tang.

On the Red Hawk:

Made with cream-enriched organic cow’s milk from Marin County’s Straus Family Creamery, Red Hawk belongs to the category of smelly cheeses known as washed rinds… A ripe Red Hawk has the luscious texture characteristic of triple-cream cheeses and aromas of mushroom, earth and spice.

So we have these two great cheeses and we now have grilled cheese sandwiches on the mind, so Morry Anne over at Fare to Remember comes to the rescue. She adds a hot dipping sauce to make a beautiful looking Hot Wing(less) Grilled Cheese Sandwich. Way to go!

• Cheese , Food
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