Junior Land Stewards Field Guide Orientation Continues

This group of Half Moon Bay High school students have continued honing their nature journaling practices in preparation for their role as Junior Land Stewards field guides. Students started with an introduction to "I notice, I wonder, It reminds me of", then chose a nature treasure and used prompts to document their observations. Through the process of observing, journaling and labeling the students came away with some great tools to use on our field trips

Donate to support the Junior Land Stewards program and the preservation, protection and stewardship of our shared open spaces.

Junior Land Stewards Field Guide Orientation In Action

On October 18th the Coastside Land Trust hosted Half Moon Bay High School Students from the AP Environmental and Agricultural Programs out at Wavecrest Open Space to prepare these students who will be acting as field guides for the Junior Land Stewards Program. This orientation featured four environmental presenters/ leaders. Barbara Dye spoke about native and invasive plants and their characteristics as well as habitat restoration. Ginny Marshall from Sequoia Audubon Society guided the students in a bird walk where they discovered and learned about the many birds that depend upon the coastal prairie. Sara Polar from the San Mateo County Resource Conservation District (and CLT board member) taught the students about land trusts, trail building, and land management. Ryan Seelbach, geologist and big wave surfer, gave an in depth view of coastal geology, erosion, and wave formation. This was a day of great learning and preparation for all involved.

Donate to support the Junior Land Stewards and the critical protection and stewardship of our shared open spaces.

Photograph credit: Barbara Dye

Nature Journaling Workshops for Junior Land Stewards Teachers

This week the classroom teachers working with the Junior Land Stewards program began their first of three nature journaling workshop trainings. They are training to facilitate this practice within the classroom and in the field. Within this first session, these fourth grade teachers from Hatch Elementary, El Granada Elementary and Farallone View Elementary came together to collaborate, share ideas, and become familiar with the tools and basic framework.

The Nature Journaling workshops are facilitated by Elexis Padron. They are funded by a grant from The Land Trust Alliance. This workshop was hosted by El Granada Elementary in the library. Great thanks to EG principal, Erin O'Connor Brown, and librarian Annemieke Baker for hosting us.

Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival Information and Community Table

Photo Credit: Aaron Burden

Happy Pumpkin Festival weekend! Stop by and see us at our CLT booth in the Bank of America parking lot, where we will be selling pumpkin seeds and cookies. We will be there all weekend, and would love to see you there to say hi, answer questions, and chat.

Coastside Land Trust Annual Report

Check out the Coastside Land Trust 2021 Annual Report. You will notice a new visual format this year, which we hope will delight you.

The Coastside Land Trust is dedicated to the preservation, protection and enhancement of the open space environment including the natural, scenic, recreational, cultural, historical, and agricultural resources of Half Moon Bay and the San Mateo County Coast for present and future generations.

MULCH Appreciated

Many thanks to Ramsey and Michael from the City of Half Moon Bay Public Works who took on the herculean task of bringing the mulch to Wavecrest Open Space, in preparation for this year’s Junior Land Stewards’ gardens. Many students and staff thank you both.

The Junior Land Stewards have begun their year of study

All seven 4th grade classes (representing Alvin Hatch, El Granada, and Farallone View elementary schools have begun their Junior Land Stewards (JLS) Program journeys. Students began with an introductory lesson on what they have to look forward to this year, which includes their upcoming work in the field and in the classroom. Coastside Land Trust educators were excited to learn what these future land stewards already know about their local environment. Students learned and practiced documenting their thinking through an “I notice, I wonder, It reminds me of " lesson with the John Muir Laws' Nature Journal Connection. High school field guides from the Advanced Placement (AP) Environmental Science and Advanced Agriculture classes were also briefed on how they can volunteer on JLS field trips. These first field trips will begin during the last week of October, and there is great excitement in the air!

Wavecrest Raptor Walk with Sequoia Audubon Society

Photograph credit: Barbara Dye

Wavecrest Raptor Walk

Saturday, November 5, 2022

10:00am -Noon

Come explore our local overwintering raptor population. Wavecrest is the single most important site on the San Mateo Coast for wintering raptors, which can be seen hunting in the property's broad fields. Raptors and other species rely on its expansive grasslands, wetlands, and roosting sites. Wavecrest is the place to see many raptors, including White-tailed Kites, Northern Harriers, Turkey Vultures, Sharp-shinned/ Cooper's/ Red- tailed/ Rough-legged Hawks, American Kestrels and Falcons.

Thank You For Coming Out To See Us

Thank you to the many community members who stopped by our tables this morning to learn and share support for the upcoming coastal trail extension. A wonderful turnout of people stopping by on bikes, with dogs, and out for a hike with cameras, binoculars and/or family and friends. We are looking forward to making this an even more pleasurable space for many people to enjoy- while curbing erosion and rehabilitating the bluff top.

Donate to support this project, as well as all of the critical land preservation, protection, and stewardship done by the Coastside Land Trust.

Rebuilding Coastal Prairies With Grey Hayes - Community Webinar Recording

The Coastside Land Trust welcomes Grey Hayes to talk about the many facets of the coastal prairie - including an in depth talk about what lives within it, and why we should care. He also explores the history, current restoration and conservation efforts, and the concept of re-indigenation from the perspective of a restoration ecologist.

Grey Hayes has worked in land stewardship with UC Natural Reserves, large-scale monitoring and strategic planning with The Nature Conservancy, professional education with the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve, and has taught at UC Santa Cruz. He has served as an advisor for the Sierra Club and the California Native Plant Society, and is a recognized Fellow by the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation.

Check out Grey’s blog and sign up for his newsletter at www.greyhayes.net.

You can also check out the California Native Grasslands Association to learn more about our California grasslands, how they are being researched and conserved, and how you can get involved.

Please donate to support the Coastside Land Trust free webinar programs and the protection and stewardship of our critical shared open spaces.

Junior Land Stewards join Together Bay Area biodiversity discussion

Junior Land Stewards (JLS) program manager, Haley Peterson joins the TOGETHER Bay Area “Together Tuesdays” discussion on Urban Biodiversity. She shares how JLS students of Cabrillo Unified school district encourage biodiversity through their endemic plant restoration work, while also connecting and learning about the natural world (through nature journaling, field trips, and in- class studies). This discussion is a great way to hear a bit more about the important work the Junior Land Stewards are doing, as well as other groups within the Bay Area .

Donate to support the Coastside Land Trust and the protection and stewardship of our shared open spaces.

Coastal Trail Informational Event

*CLT staff and board members will be posted at the starred locations.

Upcoming Community Webinar- Rebuilding Coastal Prairies

Join the Coastside Land Trust as we examine the many facets of the coastal prairie. Presenter, Grey Hayes will share an in-depth presentation on what lives within the coastal prairie, and why we should care about it. We will also explore the history of our coastal prairie, and the current restoration and conservation efforts.

Wetland Plants Along the San Mateo Coast -Webinar Recording

Enjoy the recording of our free community webinar, in which local botanist and author, Toni Corelli, explores our local wetland plants. The wetlands west of Highway 1 include seasonal freshwater wetlands, saltwater and brackish marshes, riparian (creek, stream, and river) wetlands, wet gullies, ditches and ponds. The watersheds that surround us drain down from the surrounding Santa Cruz Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. Much of our coastline sits on a mostly flat coastal bluff, where freshwater settles- replenishing the groundwater and draining to the ocean. This leads to a diverse wetland habitat that supports many plants and animals that live along the San Mateo Coast.

Please check out these resources provided by Toni Corelli:

Wetland Indicator Species List

Webinar references

If you would like to purchase Plants and Plant Communities of the San Mateo Coast, by Avis Boutell, Toni Corelli, and Nancy Frost please email us at info@coastsidelandtrust.org or give us a call at our office.

Photographs by Toni Corelli

Donate to support the Coastside Land Trust free webinar programs and the protection and stewardship of our shared open spaces.

Wetland Plants Along the San Mateo Coast -with Toni Corelli- Free Community Webinar

Saturday, August 6, 2022
10:00 am PDT
Coastside Land Trust Webinar

Join local botanist and author, Toni Corelli, as she explores our local wetland plants. The wetlands west of Highway 1 include seasonal freshwater wetlands, saltwater and brackish marshes, riparian (creek, stream, and river) wetlands, wet gullies, ditches, and ponds. The watersheds that surround us drain down from the surrounding Santa Cruz Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. Much of our coastline sits on a mostly flat coastal bluff, where freshwater settles- replenishing the groundwater and draining to the ocean. This leads to a diverse wetland habitat that supports many plants and animals that live along the San Mateo Coast.

Our presenter, Toni Corelli, is a botanist and author of several books on the local flora of San Mateo and Santa Clara County. The San Mateo coast runs along the Pacific Ocean for over 60 miles and has acres of public land with over 25 parks and state beaches. For the last 20 years Toni and two California State Park volunteers have surveyed these public lands. They have identified over 700 different species of plants that occur along the San Mateo coast.

Thank You To Our Volunteers

Thank you to the volunteers who made for another successful Wavecrest work day on Saturday. A big shout out to Sara Polgar for organizing this event, to many members of our excellent CLT board, and the dedicated volunteers who came out to tend to our shared open spaces.

Donate to help provide essential funding to preserve the urban open space of the San Mateo County coast for now and for generations to come.

Wavecrest Workday This Saturday

Photograph by Barbara Dye

Don't forget to join us on the coastal prairie THIS SATURDAY for our next habitat restoration workday at Wavecrest Open Space. Meet at the Smith Field ballpark at 10:00 am at the west end of Wavecrest Road in Half Moon Bay. Wear layers, sturdy shoes, and sun protection. All ages welcome and encouraged. Under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

[Directions to Wavecrest Road]

Envirotokens at New Leaf Community Market

Thanks to the New Leaf Community Market's Envirotoken program, every time customers reuse a bag at New Leaf Community market they can receive a token worth 10¢ a bag to give to local, non-profit groups. New Leaf’s Envirotoken program is a great way to care for our environment while supporting the Coastside Land Trust. These funds will be well used in the preservation, protection, and stewardship of the local open space environment here on the coast! Please don’t forget to bring your reusable bags next time you shop at New Leaf.

Introduction To Fog Belt Birding; From Ocean to Redwoods Recording

Alvaro Jaramillo, International bird guide, returns to the Coastside Land Trust community webinar series by popular demand, exploring the rich diversity of birds that inhabit and pass through the San Mateo coast- from the shores and coastal prairie to the foothills and the forest. Alvaro's presentations are accessible and greatly enjoyed by ornithologists and beginning birders alike.

If you left the webinar with an unanswered question, Alvaro has kindly taken the time to answer them below:

ALVARO’S RESPONSES TO REMAINING Q AND A

To learn more about Alvaro Jaramillo and his tours, research, and other work, check out: Alvaro’s Adventures and Birding Your Best Life.

Alvaro is also an author of several local and international bird guides including American Birding Association Field Guide to Birds of California- available for order at your favorite local book retailer.

Photographs by Alvaro Jaramillo

Donate to support the Coastside Land Trust free webinar programs and the protection and stewardship of our shared open spaces.

Running Of The Goats Tomorrow At 8 AM

The restoration herd will be moving to their new grazing spot, along the historic Ocean Shore Railroad Right-Of- Way, tomorrow morning at 8 AM.

This large herd of over 200 sheep and goats comes from Star Creek Land Stewards, and works with the Coastside Land Trust and the City of Half Moon Bay as a part of a planned grazing project. These sheep and goats are effective at eating fire fuel, aerating the soil, fertilizing the ground, and encouraging the growth of native plant species. This results in a reduction in wildfire danger, improved soil fertility, and an increase in the diversity of native perennial grasses. This process is also good for the environment, as it doesn't require petroleum products or chemicals of any kind.

Within this planned grazing project the goats and sheep work together- each serving it’s beneficial role, as grazers (sheep) and browsers (goats). As grazers, sheep are herbivores that feed on lower lying plants, such as grass and other ground level vegetation. As browsers, goats enjoy roughage. Goats like to eat at chin level and will eat the leaves and twigs off of shrubs and trees before they’ll turn to grass, which they will also do, but with less consistency than sheep. Goats are also likely to take a chance on eating a plant they don't know, and their guts can tolerate a wide variety of plant species.

Stop by the intersection of Railroad Ave & Poplar St in Half Moon Bay and watch these fuzzy restoration workers run to work!!