Pine Mt./Elliott Preserve Hike (1/5) Preview

SHUTTLE HIKE - NOTE EARLY STARTING, LATE ENDING TIME

 
CALL WENDY AT 457-3949 or send her an e-mail her at bdreskin@comcast.net if you are coming!

We'll kick off the new year with this annual "Winterim" hike. (Remember that registration for the College of Marin Winter 2016 hike series opens on Monday, January 4, 2016.)
 
This one-way shuttle hike starts in oak/bay/madrone woodland, passes through chaparral, then heads down to a valley with a stream, passing some serpentine rock areas. We'll check out birds and mushrooms as we go.  Maybe we'll see the first Milkmaids, or beat our earliest Indian Warrior sighting which was January 6th! (Click here for the recap of our hike in this area in January of 2009. There are a few photos from a past hike in this area in one our online albums.)


Directions to trailhead: We need some people to meet at the end of Cascade Drive in Fairfax at 9:20 a.m. (Click here for a MapQuest map with that location and click on the #1 to get directions to it). If you have time pressure after class go there as well, since the car shuttle won’t get us back to the trailhead until a little after 2:00 pm. Wendy will drive those drivers to the start of the hike.

Others should meet at the trailhead by taking the Bolinas-Fairfax Road past the Meadow Club golf course and up to the crest of the hill. (Click here for a MapQuest map with that location and click on the #1 to get directions to it.)

Park in the parking lot across from the Pine Mountain Fire Road. It is a large dirt parking lot on your left, and the fire road is on the right. If you start going downhill and can see Lake Alpine, you’ve gone too far.  There may or may not be a porta-potty at the trailhead.

Carpool to the trailhead (not the end of Cascade Drive) will leave from St. Rita's at 9:25 a.m. (Wendy won't be at St. Rita's she is going early to drive to the end of Cascade Drive).

Weather forecast: As of Wednesday, December 30th, the National Weather Service forecast for Fairfax on the day of the hike was rain likely, mostly cloudy, with a high near 54. (Click here for an updated forecast). Note that unlike College of Marin sessions hikes, rain can cancel "Winterim" outings. So on the morning of the hike, check your e-mail before you leave home to see if Wendy has cancelled the hike. She'll phone those who don't have e-mail.

More on this hike: We'll be hiking on both MMWD watershed lands (click here for a map that you can view, zoom in on or print) and those of the Marin County Open Space District (click here for a description of the preserve (now called Cascade Canyon Open Space Preserve instead of Elliott Preserve) on the District's Website, or click here for a map of this area).

New Book on California National Parks!

Just in time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, San Francisco based Bay Area Travel Writers (batw.org) has just released Travel Features and Photos: California’s National Parks, Monuments, Trails, Seashores, and Historic Sites, a 130-page collection of stories and photographs about the Golden State's many federal parks.

Purchase it in print and get a free iPad digital copy or download a free PDF copy.

Dick Jordan is among the many travel writers who contributed their work to the book; it includes his stories about Lassen Volcanic National Park and Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.

Relax! No Hike This Week

Just a reminder that you have another week to rest up before hitting the trail with the Tuesday Meanderers again: There is no hike on Tuesday, December 29th.

Our first outing of 2016 will be on Tuesday, January 5th when we do the Pine Mountain to Elliott Preserve Open Space Shuttle Hike near Fairfax.

Wine Country Five Way Fungal Feast!

Mushrooms.

Once the rains begin we see them along the trail.

But rather than finding funghi during a hike, why need eat it in style in "wine country"?

(Photo courtesy of Ramekins)

Join Chef John Ash from 6:30-9:30 pm on Thursday evening, April 14, 2016 for a "hands-on" class at Ramekins cooking school in the Town of Sonoma to make and eat these five mushroom dishes from appetizers to dessert:

• Maitake Tempura with Ponzu Sauce
• Wild Mushroom Pate
• Chawan Mushi with Black Trumpet Mushrooms
• Hanger Steak with Red Wine-Oyster Mushroom Sauce
• Lemon Polenta Cake with Candy Cap Mushroom Custard Sauce

Two glasses of wine and a copy of all recipes is included in the $125/person class fee. Click here to register online.

Happy Holidays from The Meandering Blog!

Wishing all of you the happiest of holidays, wherever you may be meandering for the remainder of 2015!

(Andrew Wilkinson Flickr Photo)

The next Winterim hike is January 5 - Pine Mountain to Elliott Preserve Open Space Shuttle Hike, Fairfax.

COM Phone Registration SNAFU Fixed!

ESCOM Gold Card members who are entitled to register now for Winter College of Marin Community Education classes ran into a problem when they tried to phone the College of Marin last Thursday: The regular registration phone line was down.

(Flattop 341 Flickr Photo)

 As of today, Monday, December 21st, that line (415 485-9305) is working once again.

You can sign up for the Meandering Tuesday hiking series (class no. 9395b/924, free to at least some ESCOM Gold Card members) this week (Monday through Wednesday) by calling that number, or by registering in-person at Room 145 in the Student Services Building on the Kentfield campus (9 - noon, 1-4 pm).

COM is closed from December 24-January 3rd.

Online registration, and registration for all students, opens on Monday, January 4th.

Winter College of Marin Hike Information

While we will still be in "Winterim" until the end of January, complete information for all of the Winter 2016 College of Marin Tuesday hikes is now online.

Registration opens at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, January 4, 2016 (and probably 1-2 weeks earlier for ESCOM Gold Card members).

Here are the details about the course:

• Class Number: 924 W02
• Dates: 1/26-3/8/15
• Cost: $142 ($120 for ESCOM Gold Card Members)
• The entire College of Marin Winter Class Schedule is now online.
• Important note about credit card payments: Starting December 17, 2015, Community Education will no longer be accepting written credit card information as a form of payment.  To pay by credit card you must pay in person, over the phone, or online.  All mail-in registrations must be paid by check.

Sky Trail to Bear Valley Hike (12/15) Preview

We return to Point Reyes National Seashore on Tuesday, December 15th for our the first "Winterim" outing of 2015-2016.

The trail is about 7.3 miles long, but a lot of it is fairly level, so the hike is a bit easier than the distance implies.  

This is a shuttle hike, so CALL WENDY AT 415-457-3949 or 415-517-0488 or send her an e-mail her at bdreskin@comcast.net if you are coming! 

Note the earlier than usual meeting time at Bear Valley.

Directions to trailhead: We’ll meet at Bear Valley at 9:20 a.m. and carpool to Sky Trail. (Click here for a MapQuest map that shows the parking lot at Bear Valley; click on #1 to get driving directions and time from your location.)

(If you are running late, you drive directly to the Sky Trail trailhed. Click here for a MapQuest map showing the trailhead location; click on #1 to get driving directions and estimated travel time from your location). 

When we get to Mt. Wittenberg we’ll go down Old Pine to the Bear Valley Trail (which is always soggy, whether it has rained recently or not, so waterproof your boots!

We’ll need some people who are not in a rush to drive people back to Sky Trail after we reach the Bear Valley Visitor Center and parking lot.

Restrooms at Bear Valley, none at Sky Trail trailhead, but some as we pass Coast Camp.

Carpool leaves St. Rita Church in Fairfax at 8:45 a.m.

Weather forecast: As of Wednesday, December 9th, the National Weather Service forecast for the hike was mostly sunny, with a high near 55.  (Click here for an updated forecast).

More on this hike:  "G3 Sky Trailhead to Bear Valley" in the Martins' book, Hiking Marin, is a version of this hike although we usually go straight at Junction #1 shown on their map and continue on to Sky Camp rather than take the detour up to Mt. Wittenberg (which we do on a separate loop hike from the Sky Trail trailhead) and then back down to the Sky Trail before continuing on to the Old Pine Trail, Divide Meadow and on to Bear Valley.  (Click here for the Seashore's South District Hiking Map which shows these trails).

The following Google Earth image gives a bird's eye view of where we'll be hiking:

Let Them Eat (Eggnog Pound) Cake!

What did Marie Antoinette serve her Christmas holiday guests at the end of a meal?

Why the very same Eggnog Pound Cake that Dick Jordan brought to yesterday's "Final Exam" post-hike luncheon, of course! Its so easy to make, that you can whip it up in no time on days so busy that you feel like you're losing your mind (if not your head)!

Click here to view and print an updated version of the recipe that appeared in Sunset magazine several years ago.

Lake Lagunitas “Final Exam” Hike (12/8) Preview

We return to the MMWD watershed for our final hike of the 2015 Fall "2" session.

Here's what we'll be doing:  "We make a partial circle around the lake, looking for Ring-Neck ducks, Mergansers, Grebes and other birds, and then make a loop past Pilot Knob, returning on Southern Marin Line. We usually see newts and some interesting mushrooms on this hike."

"Bring your contribution to our gourmet feast, plus a plate, utensils, and a cup." (Click here for a recap of our December 2009 "Final Exam" hike at this location or click here for photos from past hikes.)

Directions to trailhead: Take Sir Francis Drake Boulevard into Fairfax. Jog left and make an immediate right in front of the movie theater. The first left puts you on Bolinas Avenue. Follow this until you see the sign on your left for Lake Bon Tempe and Lake Lagunitas. Follow the road to the old toll booth by Sky Oaks Ranger Station.

Click here for the MMWD map and directions. Or click here for a MapQuest map showing the trailhead location; click on the number "1" to get driving directions and estimated travel time from your location.

Unless you have an MMWD pass, continue past the old toll booth, pull over at the parking area on the right and pay the day use fee, and then continue driving until you reach the end of the road.
 
The day use fee is $8.  You can use a credit card, $1, $5, or $10 bills (but not coins or $20 bills) at the automated pay station.

Annual watershed area parking passes for Marin residents are $60 ($30 for those 62 and older). You can buy them online or at the MMWD main office in Corte Madera.

Time: 30 minutes from College of Marin. Outhouse in parking lot.

Carpoolers can meet at St. Rita's Church at 9:20 a.m. Click here for a MapQuest map showing St. Rita's ("A") and directions and estimated driving time to the trailhead ("1").

Weather forecast:  As of Tuesday December 1st, the National Weather Service forecast for the hike was a slight chance of rain, partly sunny, with a high near 63. (Click here for an updated National Weather service forecast.)

More on this hike:  Hike "C16 - Lakeview FR to Pilot Knob" in the Martin's book, Hiking Marin, sets out a shorter hike than we'll be doing; instead of following the Pilot Knob trail back to the parking lot, we'll take a longer route back by continuing eastward and then looping back the west, picking up the Southern Marin Line Road (called the Filter Plant Road on the Martin's map). (Click here to view, zoom in on, and print a map of the MMWD watershed lands).

Although this is the final hike of the College of Marin Fall 2 session, we'll do the first "Winterim" hike and the last one in 2015 on December 15th, meeting at Bear Valley at Point Reyes National Seashore, carpooling to the trailhead at the crest of the Limantour road, and then going up Sky Trail and down to Bear Valley before shuttling drivers back to the trailhead.

Details on registering for the Winter 2016 College of Marin hiking series should be available in the near future.