 Quarterly Newsletter: Volume 1, Issue 3
June 30, 2010
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Special Offer for Newsletter readers: Take $2 off any order from Way Out There Press. Four different guidebooks are currently available at www.wayoutthere.com: A Visitor's Guide to the Presidio of San Francisco A Visitor's Guide to Angel Island A Visitor's Guide to the Marin Headlands A Visitor's Guide to Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods |
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Enter this code on the Shopping Cart page and click on the Apply Coupon button:
1278015421 Offer expires September 30, 2010. One dollar from each sale goes to fund a non-profit organization that helps to support these parks. Today, donations for June will be sent out to the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation, the Marine Mammal Center, and the California State Parks Foundation. |
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State Parks Initiative Qualifies for November Ballot
The State Parks and Wildlife Conservation Trust Fund Act of 2010 has qualified for the November ballot. The petition drive, conducted mostly by volunteers, generated 760,000 signatures and was certified by Secretary of State Debra Bowen on June 10. The ballot initiative has not yet been assigned a number, although it will be among the most important issues for voters to decide this coming November.
The State Parks and Wildlife Conservation Trust Fund Act, if passed, would set up a trust fund which would be generated through a new $18 surcharge on vehicle registrations. The fund would ensure a stable source of funding of $500 million annually for the operation and maintenance of the 279 state parks in California. At the same time, Californians will be able to visit any of the state parks and not have to pay entrance or parking fees. The new source of funding would also free up the current $130 million state park budget to be used for other pressing needs, such as education, hospitals, and care for the elderly and disabled. To learn more about the initiative and how to get involved, visit www.YesForStateParks.com. |
News Updates from State and National Parks around the Bay Area |
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 The new Seed and Plant Lab at the Presidio Nursery |
The Presidio of San Francisco
The Presidio Nursery has undergone a major transformation over the past few months and the results are very visible. The old greenhouse, a former Army building, was torn down last year to make way for a new Seed and Plant Lab, as well as a new greenhouse.
The Presidio Nursery is also the site of some of the exhibits in the Presidio Habitats art installation, which focuses on the natural world of the Presidio environment. These innovative exhibits are scattered throughout the Presidio, and the one in the Nursery features giant balls of wax that represent the tiny pollen globules carried by bees to propagate plants throughout the world. The wax balls are inscribed with poetry and observations on the natural world. We've been seeing a lot more visitors wandering through the Nursery lately, so this is a great way for people to come and see the amazing work that is taking place here. |
 Updated version of A Visitor's Guide to Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods |
Mount Tamalpais
A major new update of A Visitor's Guide to Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods will be available in the month of July. The updated version includes new chapters on the Hiking Clubs of Mount Tamalpais, a profile of self-taught botanist Alice Eastwood (a great crusader for the preservation of wilderness on Mount Tamalpais and throughout the world), a directory of Mount Tamalpais place names, as well as greatly expanded chapters on Camping & Accommodations and Flora & Fauna.
If you have already purshased a previous version of the PDF book, send an email request to hanrahan@wayoutthere.com to request a FREE copy of the updated version. $1 from every sale goes to support the California State Parks Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting our beautiful state parks. |
 Volunteer Sam Louie explains the new Interrogation Table to a group of students |
Angel Island
The restoration of the Angel Island Immigration Station continues at a rapid pace, as new exhibits and features are being added to the Detention Barracks and the grounds of the complex. A scale model of the Immigration Station sits in the middle of the open grounds of the old Administration Building, which burned to the ground in 1941. Another exhibit shows an example of an Interrogation Table, where prospective immigrants were questioned about their family ties in the U.S., in order to verify their eligibility for addmission. The questions were tough - even to the point of being ludicrous. How many people can name the birthdays of all four of their grandparents? Or give an accurate count of the numbers of windows in the house where they grew up? The Angel Island Immigration Station has become a place of great cultural importance through the tragedy of historical injustice and the need to correct the mistakes of the past.
More information can be found on the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation website. |
 I'm holding a baby harbor seal here, preparing her for a tube feeding |
The Marin Headlands One of the greatest things about the Golden Gate National Recreation Area is the many partnerships that the National Park Service has with a number of non-profit organizations that help to support the parks, the environment, the arts, and the rich variety of wildlife that we are so lucky to have here in in the Bay Area. Prominent among these organizations is the Marine Mammal Center, which has been in the forefront of rescuing the large number of baby sea lions which have been born this year in unusual places, such as Pier 39 in the heart of San Francisco.
A number of these baby sea lions have been transferred to the Navy in San Diego, where they will be trained to find underwater mines or seek out would-be terrorists who are trying to swim into unauthorized areas. This may sound like something out of a science fiction novel or the latest Hollywood blockbuster, but sea lions are incredibly intelligent and can be trained to carry out a number of complex tasks. Now the Navy SEALS will be joined by Navy Sea Lions in their duties. |
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