Photos and Destinations

The Ohlone originally used the land that is now Wunderlich Park, with Europeans arriving in 1769 with Portola's expedition. In 1840, John Coppinger, an Irishman, was the first European settler on the land. Simon Jones purchased the property in 1872 and planted grape vines and fruit trees. The Jones family eventually sold to James Folger II in 1902, and then Martin Wunderlich purchased the property from the Folger Family in 1956. Finally, in 1974, Martin Wunderlich donated 942 acres to San Mateo County.

We’ll visit the historic stables and then take a hike in this beautiful preserve.

Biking to Mills Canyon involves a challenging uphill grade, but the beauty of the canyon's trail, the Ed Taylor Trail, and the downhill journey more than compensate for the uphill effort. The Ohlone tribe lived in the canyon for many generations prior to the arrival of Europeans in the SF peninsula. In 1859, brothers in law Darius Mills (Gold Rush banker) and Ansel Easton each bought 1500 acres, with Mills Creek as the border. In 1977, Ed Taylor started to build the trail which is now named after him.

The Pescadero Marsh covers 235 acres and includes five distinct habitats--a tidal estuary, a freshwater marsh, a brackish water marsh, dense riparian woods, and northern coastal shrub.  More than 200 bird species have been spotted in the Marsh, and approximately 60 of these build their nests there.  The Pescadero Marsh is the only extensive wetland on the SF Peninsula and is located on the east side of highway 1. Nature Campers will take a guided tour.

Experienced Campers will bike from South School up Crystal Springs Road to the Sawyer Camp Trail where we'll ride south along the Crystal Spring Reservoir.  The man-made Crystal Springs Reservoir holds water captured from the Peninsula Watershed and water delivered from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park. The reservoir supplies water to San Francisco and the Peninsula. The original earthen dam (which is near the 6 mile mark) was constructed in 1877 and now separates the lower and upper man-made lakes.  San Mateo Creek was dammed in 1888 by a 150 foot concrete dam which was recently upgraded and reviewed for safety.

On the way down, we'll stop and enjoy creek walking in the San Mateo Creek.

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.

At one time, there were approximately 190,000 acres of tidal marsh ringing the SF Bay.  By 2009, there were just 49,000 acres.  There are efforts around the SF Bay to restore these tidal marshes, and this day's ride will give Nature Campers a good view of the SF Bay and some tidal marshes near us.  We'll also see the new sea wall that was under construction for two years. Experienced Campers will 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 through Foster City on our way to DTech in Redwood City, observing the marsh habitats, and the birds that live there.

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. 

Experienced Campers will meet at the northern end of Canada Road at 9:30 am for the start of this biking and hiking day.  We'll bike south on Canada Road until we reach Edgewood Road.  We'll lock the bikes and then hike into Edgewood Park from the western side. This beautiful preserve borders the 280 freeway and is home to many wildflowers and oaks as well as a variety of creatures, from turkeys to lizards to deer.

Experienced Bikers have the choice of riding up to Canada Road or having their parents bring them to the northern end of Canada Road at 9:30 am (near the intersection with highway 92). We'll all ride together to Filoli.  

Filoli is a country house set in 16 acres of formal gardens surrounded by a 654-acre estate. Filoli was built for Mr. and Mrs. William Bowers Bourn II, prominent San Franciscans, whose chief source of wealth was the Empire Gold Mine in Grass Valley, California.

We'll explore the ecosystems found at Filoli and the formal gardens. 

Following our time at Filoli, we'll bike to the Pulgas Water Temple which was erected by the San Francisco Water Department to commemorate the 1934 completion of the Hetch Hetchy Aqueduct.  It is located at the aqueduct's terminus. There, we'll enjoy the serenity of the location and participate in the great hill roll!

Central Park is 16 acres and is located in downtown San Mateo. It 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 will visit the historic Japanese garden. The Japanese garden was designed by landscape architect, Nagao Sakurai of the Imperial Palace of Tokyo. It features a granite pagoda, tea house, koi pond and bamboo grove.

Coyote Point was originally an island with a marsh connecting it to the peninsula. In 1921, a group of SF financiers purchased 90 acres of land between Peninsula and Burlingame Avenue that continued to Coyote Point. They called the area Pacific City, and at one time it had a roller coaster, Ferris Wheel, dance pavilion, and a pier.  They made the beach by trucking in sand.  Pacific City closed after just two years, in 1923, and only a lone palm tree west of the Peninsula Humane Center is all that remains.  We'll enjoy lunch on the beach and ice cream afterward!