Photos

Located in Watsonville, the Gizdich Ranch is a local treasure, and the Nature Camp crew stopped here for seasonal pie when returning from Elkhorn Slough.

The Marine Mammal Center (TMMC) is a private, non-profit organization that was established in 1975 for the purpose of rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing marine mammals who are injured, ill or abandoned.  Since its inception, it has rescued over 24,000 marine mammals, with the three largest categories of rescued animals being elephant seals, sea lions, and seals. It also serves as a center for environmental research and education. 

Nature Campers took a private tour of the facility, followed by a ride down to Rodeo Beach.  Finally, everyone rode back to Sausalito and caught the ferry back to SF. 

To reach St. John's Cemetery, Nature Campers must bike up Parrott Drive.  The street is named for John Parrott Sr. who became rich in the Gold Rush. He was involved in banking, real estate, mining, and ranching. In 1859, he acquired the Brookside estate, 400 acres south of the San Mateo Creek, eventually changing the name to Baywood. This historic cemetery is located on land given by Abby Parrott--John Parrott Sr.'s wife--to the Catholic Church in memory of her husband. It contains 3,700 graves across 8.5 acres, and its most impressive feature is the Parrot crypt. John McLaren, who worked for the Howard family in Hillsborough and became superindendant of Golden Gate Park, planted some of the trees in the cemetery.

After visiting Harley Farms and Ano Nuevo, we stopped for a slice of seasonal pie at Pie Ranch before the final drive home.  The mission of Pie Ranch is to cultivate a healthy and just food system from seed to table through food education, farmer pathways, and regional partnerships. 

On the way from the Golden Gate Bridge to Tiburon, Advanced Nature Campers stopped at this 10 acre center that overlooks 900 acres of open water that serves as a sanctuary for migrating waterbirds.  We then travelled to Tiburon where we caught the Ferry back to SF.

Located in the hills above Woodside, this 167 acre preserve offers trails as well as creek walking in its beautiful creek.  The property was originally purchased by San Franciscan Julian Thorne in 1908 as a summer home.  The property was given to the Sierra Club and eventually to the Mid-Peninsula Regional Open Space District.  Advanced Nature Campers visited in 2022, seeing many newts in the deep pool of the creek. On the return trip, students stopped at historic Folger Stables and the Pulgas Water Temple.

On days when we'll be riding south on Canada Road, only Advanced Campers will ride up to Canada Road from South School.  Experienced Campers will be dropped off at the northern end of Canada Road (where it intersects with highway 92).

The “Carolands Chateau” was built by Harriet Pullman and her husband Francis Carolan. In 1912, they purchased 554 acres and built a 92 room, 4-story French chateau. Each summer, the Carolands Foundation gives us a tour of the gorgeously renovated home and gardens--even providing ice cream for our picnic lunch in the gardens.

One of Nature Camp's favorite historic homes to visit in Hillsborough is Rosecourt. Rosecourt was built by George and Helen Cameron.  Helen was the daughter of Michael de Young, the owner of the SF Chronicle and the man to establish the de Young museum in SF.  George Cameron made his money in the concrete business. In 1913, they hired Lewis P. Hobart to design a French styled mansion which sat on 7 acres. Their estate was named “Rosecourt” for the pink color of the bricks. The entry cobblestones were taken from the de Young home in SF which was destroyed in the earthquake of 1906. The home has 17 rooms as well as a music room imported from Spain. In 1970, Allen Sebanc subdivided the Cameron estate, and his daughter and her family continue to live in the historic home, graciously opening the home and gardens to Nature Campers. 

The Japanese Garden and Teahouse on De Sabla Road are on the National Register of Historic Places and show the importance of Japanese culture on CA design in the early 1900’s.  The current owners graciously open their historic garden to Nature Campers, allowing them to sketch the historic plants and feed the large koi. The Garden and Teahouse were built circa 1907 by Baron Makota Hagiwara (who was the chief gardener and concessionaire of the Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco) at direction of Henry Pike Bowie. Hawaii was annexed as a territory in 1898, allowed Mr. Hagiwara to enter the US.

Nature Campers take the train to Stanford's campus and then tour through the University, enjoying the cacti garden, the Oval, Hoover Tower, the Anderson Collection, the Burghers of Calais, and the O'Donohue Family Educational Center. Stanford was founded in 1885 by Leland Stanford and his wife and Jane Lathrop Stanford. The couple purchased an 8,180 acre farm in Palo Alto to become the campus. The school opened in 1891 and was nicknamed “The Farm. The Stanfords were both originally from New York. Leland prospered as a merchant in the Gold Rush and then became a railroad magnate (one of the Big 4). Leland Stanford was governor of CA during the Civil War and later a CA senator. The University was named in honor of their son, Leland Stanford Jr, whom they lost to typhoid when he was only 15 in 1884. In founding the University, the Stanfords said:

“The children of California shall be our children. It is our hope to found a university where all may have a chance to secure an education such as we intended our son to have.”

The San Mateo Arboretum Society is dedicated to the preservation of San Mateo's rich horticultural heritage and is located in San Mateo's Central Park. Central Park is 16 acres and was once part of the estate of Charles B. Polhemus, the founder of downtown San Mateo and the director of the SF and San Jose Railroad. While visiting, Nature Campers learned about the butterfly garden and how to propogate a plant. The activities of the Society are based at the Kohl pumphouse, which was built between 1890 and 1920.

Ano Nuevo State Park is one of the very unique areas on our coastline. Each year, up to 10,000 elephant seals return to mate, give birth, and molt on the scenic dunes.  Prior to walking out to the dunes, Nature Camp visits the Marine Education Center and learns about the human history of the area as well as about the animals that live and visit the point.  Tide conditions permitting, we also like to stop off at Cove Beach.

Experienced Campers cross the 101 Freeway on the Monte Diablo overpass and then head south on the Bay Trail, stopping at Leo Ryan Park and Seal Point Park. Then, we head to Foster City or Redwood City, observing the marsh habitats, and the birds that live there, that used to be so prevalent along the SF Bay.

Experienced Nature Campers head first to Mercy's beautiful campus after an uphill climb. Then, campers bike to Ray Park before heading down to CuriOdyssey and Coyote Point. Mercy has been a Catholic girls high school since 1931. The main building is the Kohl mansion, originally built for Charles Frederick Kohl and his second wife Bessie as their country estate. The architect was George Howard, and the house is in the English Tudor Revival style. The 40 acre estate was completed in 1914.

CuriOdyssey is a Zoo and Science Playground, with nearly 100 animals. Most animals arrived at the zoo because they couldn’t survive in the wild, and almost all are native to California. After meeting and sketching the animals and the birds at CuriOdyssey, Nature Campers have lunched on the beach.

This day started early (we had a 7:30 departure) so the Nature Camp bus could arrive at Kayak Connections at 9 am in the morning. In kayaks holding two people, Nature Campers explored the Elkhorn Slough with guides, a seven-mile arm of the Monterey Bay located halfway between the cities of Santa Cruz and Monterey.  Elkhorn Slough has an incredible abundance of animal life, including southern sea otters, harbor seals, brown pelicans, and terns.  After our kayaking expedition, we headed over to the Elkhorn Preserve, 1,700 acres that include a salt marsh, mud flat, oak woodland, and grass habitats, for lunch and a hike.