Three of our parks make the San Francisco Chronicle

Colorado Desert District Newsletter T R A C K S

February 2012

Inside this issue

Looking for pork chops? 8

Great count, Page 12

Three of our parks make the San Francisco Chronicle

Ranger work day, Page 14

(Continued on Page 9)

Photo by Sue Barney Jeanne and John Parson renew their wedding vows at Pica-cho State Recreation Area January 1. The Parsons spent part of their honeymoon camping with friends at Picacho 30 years ago and continue to camp there each year with many of the same friends.

Three of the District’s parks were named in an article in the San Francisco Chronicle January 5, “... participants at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park spotted a bighorn sheep. At Palomar Mountain State Park, 30 hikers climbed a 1948 fire tower, never before open to the public, to see views of San Diego County. John and Jeannie Parsons renewed their wedding vows at the top of Rojo Grande Mountain at the Picacho State Recreation Area, having spent their honeymoon there 30 years ago.”

Picacho’s Supervising Ranger Robin Greene submitted the fol-lowing account of the activities at PSRA.

Eleven hardy hikers made the half-mile trek up the steep sum-mit of 710-foot Rojo Grande Mountain in Picacho State Recrea-tion Area as part of America's State Parks First Day Hikes 2012. The beautiful volcanic knob, also known as “Big Red,” did not disappoint any of the hikers. The group was treated to 360-

From March 2001 Tracks, by Gail Sevrens, District Superintendent, Acting

“A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”

~ Maya Angelou

During up and down times, it can sometimes be difficult to persevere and to remember why we do our work and how important it is. So this month I thought I’d look for inspiration to some famous folks who have faced down great adversities and uncertainties.

The importance of our work can be a double-edged sword: while it inspires us, it also adds worry, because we care not only about our own circumstances, but also about our parks.

However, it is our parks that give us purpose. We find reassurance because our contributions, taken together, preserve and protect these treas-ures and make them safe, accessible and meaningful to our visitors. And, it is our courage through the difficulty of the unknown that brings daily satisfac-tion of a job well done.

To put things into perspective, I decided to look at some people who survived great personal or professional losses, or who bore tremendous re-sponsibility for the lives of others.

Sir Winston Churchill was no stranger to adver-sity. Although born to aristocratic parents, he felt abandoned by them, did poorly in school and suf-fered from a speech impediment. As an adult, he lost his two-year-old daughter to illness. He saw battle in war and as a journalist was taken prisoner during the Boer War. Professionally he floundered in politics several times, including losing the prime ministry just before the Allies achieved victory in World War II, a victory for which he had strived so hard. Yet the victory was achieved, the war was ended and he later again became prime minister to help lead his country through the continued and difficult process of post-war recovery. But for this trying background, his quote might seem irreverent.

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” ~ Winston Churchill

Churchill’s American counterpart during World War II, Franklin D. Roosevelt, also bore the obliga-

tion for the lives of his countrymen and others. He made the decision for the U.S. to enter the war and oversaw the development of the atomic bomb. His personal battle with polio is now well known.

“When you get to the end of the rope, tie a knot and hang on.” ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

American author Og Mandino lost his mother as a young man. He later developed alcoholism, had problems with jobs, was left by his wife and child, and contemplated suicide. Nonetheless he wrote self-help books, including, The Greatest Salesman in the World, which actor Matthew McConaughey has credited with inspiring him to pursue acting. His words are indeed inspiring, while in part reminiscent of “the tough go shopping” advice.

“If I feel depressed I will sing. If I feel sad I will laugh.

If I feel ill I will double my labor. If I feel fear I will plunge ahead.

If I feel inferior I will wear new garments. If I feel uncertain I will raise my voice.

If I feel poverty I will think of wealth to come. If I feel incompetent I will think of past success. If I feel insignificant I will remember my goals. Today I will be the master of my emotions.”

~ Og Mandino

Tom Peters dips into the territory of the irrever-ent before bringing us back:

“Well if we can't plan for it, and we can't let it dis-tract us 24 hours a day every day, what can we do?

Beats me, is mostly my response. But I have fallen deeply in love with a word

that may be of use ... Resilience. ~ Tom Peters

It is this buoyancy of spirit that gives us the brav-ery to move forward, as we know that even if we feel down, if we continue on we will rebound.

Also we can use uncertainty as our friend:

“Uncertainty and mystery are energies of life. Don't let them scare you unduly, for they keep

boredom at bay and spark creativity.” ~ R. I . F i t zhen ry

Superintendent’s Message


(Continued on )

Page 3

Superintendent’s Message (continued) (Continued from Page 2)


Salton Sea State Recreation Area

From the desk of Interpreter I Fredda Stephens:

Things have finally picked up at the Sea now that the holidays are behind us. We were be-ginning to worry that too many people think that our Park is closed already or that the economy is having a negative effect. This past weekend our hook-up sites were full up, the scouts were here in force and we have five Elderhostel groups from Arizona scheduled to come out to enjoy the Sea.

Unfortunately the SPEED WEEK Boat Races

were postponed for now because of lack of sponsors, but we are looking forward to the Indio Date Festival for ten days, Friday, Febru-ary 17, through Sunday, February 26.

This will again give us the opportunity to promote the Salton Sea and get some sponsor-

ship. Actually it is a great way to promote Cali-fornia State Parks in general. There is always much interest in Anza-Borrego Desert State

LOG JAM: Notes from the District, sectors

Photo by Fredda Stephens Volunteer Bob Dyer helps a visitor spot birds on his birding walk at SSSRA. There were 43 species recorded on this walk—now that’s a record!

I had the great fortune of beginning my Parks career as a field interpreter working with children. As it happened, I had no experience or training on working with kids. But I soon noticed that the more I let my goofy side emerge, the more the kids could relate not only to me, but to what I was trying to teach them. If they wanted to be able to observe the birds in the marsh, should they run up to the water’s edge screaming “Look! There’s a bird!”? “Nooo!” came the giggles. Instead of telling them to never approach a sick wild animal, I’d ask if on en-countering one they should immediately run up to it and put their fingers into its mouth. “Noooo!” came the chorus. A colleague would gain rapport with kids by wearing a different color Converse shoe on each foot.

And, since, after all, we are all just kids inside,

this approach works well in the workplace. Through use of humor we can demonstrate our sense of working together for a common goal and our mutual respect. It gives us perspective on what is impor-tant, reminding us of the saying so apt that author Richard Carlson even used it as the title of his book:

“Don't sweat the small stuff … and it's all small stuff.” ~ Richard Carlson

So, let me leave you with perhaps the most fitting

quote I have recently come across:

“When in doubt, be ridiculous.” ~ Sherwood Smith

LOG JAM: District, sector notes (cont.)


Park, Mount San Jacinto State Park, Picacho State Recreation Area and Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area too. This year the Salton Sea History Museum and Sonny Bono National Wildlife Refuge also will be helping us.

We were honored by a Jr. Ranger home-

schooled family that has made a mission to get their children out in nature and to visit as many parks as possible. During the last few years they have earned 99 Junior Ranger badges and end-less benefits from their journey.

These kids were smart; what a great way to teach your children. After a special Jr. Ranger program, Acting Superintendent Paul Reisman came by to congratulate them in person.

Tent camping is picking up again also. There

have been lots of big groups and great atten-dance at the Saturday Jr. Ranger activities, bird-ing walks and the evening programs too. And lots of great bird attendance!! So I guess we are still alive and well, for now. We are still kicking.

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

The Volunteer Potluck will be held at 6 p.m. Monday, February 20, at the Senior Center. This

evening will include the 2012 volunteer class graduation. Bring a complete place setting, a beverage and a potluck dish to share. District and ABDSP staff are encouraged to attend.

The ABDSP Botany Society issued a thank

you to everyone who has helped make their flea markets such a success through contribu-tions, support and participation in the booth at

Uncommon visitors stopped in at the Salton Sea Recreation Area during the holidays. A white-faced ibis (left) marches along the show while a redhead swims on Christmas Eve.

Photos by Fredda Stephens Acting SSSRA Superintendent Paul Reis-man congratulates the Pierce family from Show Low, Arizona, who has made it a mis-sion to get out in nature and visit as many

(Continued from Page 3)



the Lions Club Flea Market. Because of the suc-cess of the markets, the society is able to con-tinue work on the Botany Department's labora-tory as well as supporting educational programs and speakers for the community. The next booth will be Saturday, February 4.

Botany Society Volunteer Marilyn Dickson who coordinates the flea markets, wrote, “Please consider the State Park’s Botany Society when disposing of your old, unwanted or lovely and exotic items … Please bring your clean, sal-able donations to Building 202 behind Park Headquarters Monday through Friday. If more convenient, you may bring them (the earlier the better) to our booth on Saturday morning. If you need help transporting your items or could spare some time helping us on Saturday, please call me at (619) 318-1126. It is fun to be with friends and it feels good to be of service to the Park.”

The Borrego Hawkwatch officially begins

Wednesday, February 15. There have been some changes in providing information about the Hawkwatch and Organizer Hal Cohen’s email address has changed to [email protected]. Hal has developed a hawkblog and will no longer send emails about Hawk-watch. You can access the blog at: http://www.borregohawkwatch.blogspot.com/

From the desk of Ranger Steve Bier: Our column today is brought to you by the

letter F.

F is for February, a leap month this year; You think there are twenty-eight, but wait ...

an extra day just appeared. F is for Phoenicide (Foe-knee-sid), or minor

meteor shower, Feb 9th the Alpha Centaurids fall once or

twice in an hour.

F is for Flowers: the deserts display, People start asking and just won’t go away.

F is for Fair Weather, which we’ve been having all day

Without winter rains, Flowers aren’t gonna play.

F is for Family and candy and hearts, Feb 14th is when chocolate departs.

F is for Fawns, not a true desert fauna, But our ewes are giving birth; come see

lambs if you wanna.

F is for freezing, as desert winter sets in, Except in a year, like the year we’re now in.

AND F is for Finally, ‘cause I can think of no more,

Words with F to use except for FUN ... Go Explore!

Photo by Steve Bier One of our youngest naturalists, Lorne Bier who is the son of CRSP Ranger Heidi Addi-son-Bier and ABDSP Ranger Steve Bier, may also be headed for a career in State Parks. He looked at this petrified stump pro-truding from a hillside in Fish Creek and saw a (California State?) bear looking sky-ward.


mailto:[email protected]




http://www.borregohawkwatch.blogspot.com/







The following compliment was submitted through public email and forwarded to us from Park and Recreation Specialist John Garlock:

“Hello, I am writing to commend you on the beautiful Information Centre and outstanding volunteer staff at both the Centre and the adja-cent state campground in Anza Borrego. We spent 4 days at the campground, and visited the Centre twice where we watched excellent films. I also joined an early morning bird walk with Anne. We also did the hike to the palm oasis, and there was even a volunteer at the start of the hike to help with questions. The staff were all extremely helpful and knowledge-able. All in all we had a wonderful experience, and cannot wait to return. Please pass this message on to the staff.

Well done! Sandra K, Vancouver, BC”

Photo by Steve Bier Park Maintenance Assistant Franz Boschiero stands next to an elephant tree for scale. He discovered this enormous tree near Bow Wil-low Campground. The tree had a rough measure of 30 feet long by 25 feet wide for a grand total of 750 square feet. It was about ten feet tall and had a single base with 18 branches half a foot above ground.

Photos by Rick Barclay Visitors (above) climb the trail to the Boucher Fire Lookout during a First Day Hike, January 1, at Palomar Mountain State Park. At right, people line up to tour the re-cently refurbished lookout.


Footprints Thanks to a grant from the California State

Parks Foundation, PORTS has a new seasonal Interpreter, Lisa Spoon. She is new to PORTS, but not to State Parks as she was a seasonal park aide, a volunteer at ABDSP’s Visitor Center and took the naturalist class. Lisa also worked with the Jr. Ranger program.

Retired District Superintendent Mike Wells was thrown from his horse December 21. He suffered nine fractures in five ribs and had a partially collapsed lung. He spent five days in the hospital, but is now up and about and actually working a little as a retired annui-tant. He says he is getting better every day.

Lisa Gonzales–Kramer, who was a park aide, and Mike Puzzo, who was an environ-mental services intern, both have promoted to Environmental Scientists PI and will con-tinue working on the reforestation at CRSP.

Palomar Mountain State Park From the desk of Ranger Jessica Murany: Palomar Mountain State Park kicked off the

new year with a First Day Hike which is a grow-ing nation-wide event. We had 30 participants hike the trail up to the Boucher Fire Lookout.

Two Forest Fire Lookout Association Volun-teers, Brad Eells and Bill Bollenbacher, kept the tower open for tours.

State Historian Alex Bevil, who participated in the hike, stated that this was the first time in history that the tower has been open to the public.

Hikers responded very well to the special treatment and they found the history of the tower fascinating and the views inspiring.

Once the tour was over, hikers had the op-tion to go on an extended hike with Volunteer Kathy Lande.

A large part of the group went on the ex-tended hike and learned about the Park's flora and fauna along the way.

Thanks to the good weather and the good help, we had a memorable First Day Hike. Photographs of the event can be viewed on http://palomarsp.org, photo gallery.

Rick Barclay, the chairperson for Friends of

Palomar Mountain State Park, is now kicking off a pledge drive to save the Park (see page 8). For more information, visit http://www.savepalomar.org.

Colorado Desert District Retired Associate State Archaeologist Joan

Schneider writes that there are “18 fabulous students in the new Archaeology for Citizen Sci-entists series of classes taught through the Anza-Borrego Foundation, with University of California college credits available.”

The six-week class started January 19 and is taught by Joan and guest lecturers.


Photo by Kerry Hunsinger ABDSP Maintenance Mechanic Mike Drye was surprised to find a pay envelope and money when he opened up a drinking foun-tain for repairs at the entrance to Borrego Palm Canyon Campground. The money ap-pears to have been in the fountain for about six years.

http://palomarsp.org/

http://www.savepalomar.org/




Californians still working to save parks People across the state are continuing their

efforts to keep open California’s 70 state parks that are slated to close.

Volunteers working with the Cuyamaca Ran-cho State Park Interpretive Association (CRSPIA) have formed a committee, set up a web page and obtained pledges to raise money to keep Palomar Mountain State Park open. Rick Barclay is leading the effort and hopes to reach agreement on a plan that would allow for donated funds to be used to pay for Park op-erations.

Under the CRSPIA plan, PMSP would con-tinue to operate as normal with day use and camping fees collected. Donated funds would then be used to fill the budget gap and keep the Park open. Barclay said that the group wants pledges so if the agreement does go through, they will be ready. To pledge, see www.save-palomar.org. Additional information or tax de-ductible donations can be made online at www.friendsofpalomarsp.org.

California State Parks Foundation launched a campaign to raise money for parks and has promised to match up to a total of $50,000 in donations. To donate to the California State Parks Foundation, go to its website, www.calparks.org.

Nine of the 70 parks set to close next sum-mer have been taken off the closure list thanks to different organizations and another 23 may be saved by non-profits, according to news re-ports.

Mark Landon, executive director of the non-profit Nature Corps, is encouraging students and the public to become stewards of the land. He's reaching out to local schools, acting as a liaison with State Parks to find cost-friendly ways to initiate field trips and enhance science educational standards.

Landon is encouraging people to access Na-ture Corps’ website, www.thenaturecorps.org and sign up for a newsletter.

In another move, the entrance fee to Muir Woods National Monument went from $5 to $7, and that increase will go directly to Cali-fornia State Parks, "in recognition of the heavy use their lands see as the access point for Muir Woods." The fees will support Mount Tamalpais and Samuel P. Taylor state parks that are located near the Golden Gate Na-tional Recreation Area.

A non-profit group has sent the state a bid to not only finance, but run Jack London State Historic Park, leading hikes and staffing the visitor center, maintaining trails, cleaning bath-rooms and keeping visitors safe.

An anonymous donor has given an ex-tremely generous gift, $150,000, to keep Los Encinos State Historic Park from closing—at least for a year. It costs about $210,000 to operate the park annually, according to re-ports. Supporters were trying to raise at least $150,000 by the July deadline when the donor made the offer.

Napa County Regional Parks and Open Space District and the Napa Valley State Parks Association have proposed to take over man-aging Bothe Napa Valley State Park and Bale Grist Mill State Historic Park.

The organizations plan to renovate 12 buildings in Bothe Napa that are in disrepair, allowing visitors to rent them. They also plan to install 13 yurts, 10 of which Napa County owns. They will charge fees for people to rent the yurts.

Correction

In a caption under a photograph by Sue Barney that accompanied an article on rat-tlesnakes in the January issue of Tracks, two western diamond back rattlesnakes were identified incorrectly as red diamond rattlesnakes. We regret the error.





http://www.thenaturecorps.org

Name your favorite books so we can read them too!

Photos by Sue Barney Hikers (left) climb the steep trail to the summit of Rojo Grande Mountain at Picacho State Recreation Area on New Year’s Day. At right the group gathers for a photo proving they made it to the top.

New year’s day at Picacho SRA (cont.) (Continued from Page 1)

holes and told stories of fishing as a child at Picacho with his father, Joe Hill.

One couple, John and Jeannie Parsons, re-newed their wedding vows at the top. The Parsons were married 30 years ago and spent a part of their honeymoon camping at Picacho State Recreation Area with friends. They have been out camping almost every year with many of those same friends ever since.

Photos by Robin Greene The beauty of the views from Big Red’s summit is almost overwhelming. Supervising Ranger Robin Greene calls it a photographer’s paradise. A fisherman in the group was anxious to spot and point out his favorite fishing holes from the summit.

degree views of the lower Colorado River, Pi-cacho's 54-site primitive campground, 30 acres of restored riparian forestlands and endless views of the Trigo and Chocolate Mountain ranges. The winds swirled as the group posed for a photo at the summit.

David Hill, an avid fisherman, was captivated by the sweeping views of the numerous back-water lakes. He pointed out his favorite fishing

We kill plants, burn them—all for the good Photos by Robin Greene

How do we protect and restore our parks? From the photographs on these pages, it doesn’t look like we have the right idea. However, the ones at right and below show huge amounts of non-native tamarisk trees waiting for burning after being pulled and cut out of the ground at Picacho State Recreation Area. This will open up the land for native trees to grow again. SSSRA’s Park Maintenance Chief I

Photos by Gary Reece Chad Rowan joined District staff members Park Maintenance Assistant Danny Aceves, State Park Equipment Operator Gregg John-son, Park Maintenance Worker II Scot Martin and Park Maintenance Worker I Michael Ta-banao for two weeks of hard work at the river January 9 through 19. Above and left are photographs of the prescribed burn at



Jim Dice talks to ABDSP’s Botany Society Senior Environmental Scientist Jim Dice will

explore the links between plants of north-western Mexico and those of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in a talk to the ABDSP’s Botany Society at the Visitor Center Monday, February 13.

Jim will chronicle the highlights of a botani-cal expedition he made with other botanists in 1982 into extremely remote areas of Mexico.

The public is invited to the free program which is slated to begin at 10 a.m.

Jim, who has a master’s degree in systemat-ics and evolutionary biology, will retire from State Parks this year. He will become the founding reserve manager for the Univer-sity of California at Irvine's Steele/Burnand Anza-Borrego Desert Research Center in Borrego Springs.

Photo by Leslie Bellah Senior Environmental Scientist Jim Dice speaks to the Botany Society at ABDSP’s Visitor Center Monday, February 13.

Cuyamaca Rancho State Park January 19 and 20. The burn was to make way for new trees that will be planted soon. Dead trees are re-moved and, in some areas, burned to prepare the ground for the new growth. Calls were received all over the District when people saw the smoke and wanted to know what was burning. Environ-mental Services Intern Gary Reece, Environmental Scien-tist Mike Puzzo and Research Analyst II Don Solleder from OWSVRA worked with CAL FIRE to burn what was needed, but no more. Gary’s wife, Abby, took the photo at right from their home in San Diego Country Estates, south of Ramona.

Prescribed burns make people nervous (continued) (Continued from Page 10)

Photo by Abby Reece

Birders record second highest species count Photo at left by Charlie Van Tassel

One of three Le Conte’s thrashers seen during the annual Anza-Borrego Christmas Bird Count poses at left near Clark Dry Lake. The December 23rd count pro-duced the second highest number of species in the 29 years of the count. Eighty-one participants re-corded more than 13,000 birds of 125 species. One of the highlights of the count was when Paul Jorgensen claimed the first-ever

sighting of a downy woodpecker. It was on Los Coyotes Indian Reservation, which is the extreme western edge of the count circle. A prairie falcon flies over the Peg Leg monument at right and another sits above a nest below. Birds of interest included a Harris’s hawk, Cassin’s kingbird (which is rare for the desert), Scott’s oriole and Law-rence’s goldfinch. Organizer Bob Théri-

ault noted that counters spotted ten gray fly-catchers, a bird that continues to be a reliable winter resident. One was prominent at ABDSP’s Visitor Center. Last year 134 species were re-corded, but only 11,990 birds were counted. Bird counters were assigned specific areas within a 7.5-mile radius of de Anza Country Club. Most birders counted from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., but some started as early as 5:45 a.m. The group gathered after the count at the Visitor Center for chili and for tallying their findings. One of the sad notes was that non-native wild turkeys, introduced in the mountains years ago, are well established in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. The most nu-merous birds counted were the house finch, white-crowned sparrow and western bluebird.

Photos at left and above by Jim Pea


Camp host tells what state parks really are By Debbie Moore CRSP Camp Host

On a crisp fall Saturday morning, the Paso camp host goes through the quiet campground. I am curious to see if anyone wants to take a short hike and explore one of the many trails Cuyamaca Rancho State Park has to offer. There are mountain peaks, wide mead-ows and wildlife. We share this place with beau-tiful animals, from majestic deer to the wilder animals that keep themselves hidden in the shadows of trees. It is amazing that they have survived the fires that devastated the land they call home.

Girl Scout group 3282 has decided the mem-bers need some exercise! They agree to the one-mile hike on Azalea Glen Loop. I show them rose hips, a nutritious berry once gathered by the Kumeyaay. I explain that the berries are high in vitamin C, just like oranges. They see buckwheat that grows in golden brown clumps everywhere. Then, right before them, the girls see deer tracks. They comment on how they saw does on the way to the Park, over in the meadow.

“They were beautiful,” a girl commented. We were coming to the end of our hike

when I took them to the CAL FIRE station for a Photos by Debbie Moore

Members of Girl Scout Troop 3282 (above)learn about fire fighting and earn their badges after hiking the Azalea Glen Loop with Camp Host Debbie Moore. During their hike, they spotted a doe (below) who, obvi-ously, had also spotted them.

surprise tour. The crew showed off the historic house built by the California Conservation Corps, then had the girls put on firefighting gear. The clothing and gear was bigger and heavier than the girls expected!

They were trying to earn badges so they spoke with engineer Charlotte Grant. The in-terview had to be from a woman that has pro-moted through the ranks into a leadership role. They earned their badges!

This is what the state parks are about: in-forming, helping and ensuring that future gen-erations will always come back to the things that gave them happy memories.

Get the popcorn ready and borrow a movie from the library

Video tapes, DVDs, CDs and audio tapes on subjects from Africanized bees to Yo-semite National Park are ready for your viewing and listening pleasure. Check out the new shelves in the Stout Research Cen-ter Library where you can learn about fire training, bird calls, resource management, salt cedar and other plants, and animals.

There is a self-check out sheet on a shelf on the west side of the library.

It’s just a few hours in the day of a ranger

Photos by Diana Lindsay Being able to patrol the backcountry, free of crowds and noise, while enjoying na-ture—sure sounds like an ideal career to many of us. Those of us in offices forget that rangers also have mun-dane duties. In Culp Val-ley, ABDSP Ranger Nicole Van Doren (above) sweeps tire tracks from a dirt road that is now closed. 1: Nicole visits with campers in Borrego Palm Canyon. 2: With Camp Host Judy Conary, Nicole helps a couple of hikers. 3: Examining the aftermath of the Monte-zuma Fire October 27, Nicole looks for signs of regrowth at the base of a Mohave yucca.

1

3

2


Let’s be kind to the Earth Producing recycled paper creates 74

percent less air pollution and 35 percent less water pollution than producing paper from virgin materials, according to an arti-cle in Body + Soul magazine.

The article also stated that Americans recycle only 10 to 15 percent of our paper bags and that paper is the number one ma-terial found in municipal solid waste. Paper bags produce methane when they biode-grade in landfills.

In 1999, about 14 million trees were felled to make the 10 billion grocery bags

used that year. The article stated an aver-age mature tree absorbs about 13 pounds of carbon dioxide per year.

Sometimes aluminum sulfate, a sus-pected reproductive toxin, is used in the manufacturing of bags. Dyes with chemicals that can include chlorine are also used and they release dioxins into the air.

The message is clear: we have to use and reuse earth-friendly shopping bags.

We welcome input from readers. Please send your earth-saving ideas to [email protected].

Volunteers, staff take safety training course

Photos by Jim Dascoulias Cuyamaca Trail Volunteers and the seasonal Roads and Trails crew (above, left) pay close attention to the class-room portion of the chainsaw safety class (see page 18 for chainsaw safety tips from DPR’s Tailgate Meetings). The class gathers (above, right) after the field portion of the class. From left to right are Bernie Martin, John Sproule, Ron Robillard, Kyle Rickard, Rick Barclay, Ken McIntyre, Dave Sharpe, Dave McClure, Cesar Garcia and Dick Alexander.

Library volunteers prepare for new software for us

Volunteer librarians are learning t There is a self-check out sheet on a shelf on

the west side of the library (619) 318-1126 or and instructions on how to use the computer if no one is there.

By Lou Bahar Paleontology Society

The end of year calculations have been com-pleted and the totals are in: Paleontology Soci-ety volunteers contributed 11,255 hours for the calendar year 2011! One of the require-ments of all the Park volunteer groups is to record the hours each volunteer spends on activities related to Park affairs. A separate re-quirement of the Paleontology Society is that each member contribute 80 hours of time per season to remain on the active list.

The Paleontology Society is a very active group and there are several reasons for the impressive number of hours. The class that was certified in the season 2010 thru 2011 was one of the largest in memory. The large-scale exca-vation of the giant tortoise from January through April generated much enthusiasm and extended time commitments by individuals. The increasing number of volunteers each year has contributed to completion of many old projects and the establishment of several new ones.

Paleontology volunteers not only record the hours spent, but also list the projects they worked on from field, laboratory, curation, education and interpretation. Field has the most time of all the categories. A primary at-traction of volunteers to the Paleontology Soci-ety is the opportunity to hike in the beautiful desert and learn the fascinating geology and stratigraphy as they prospect for fossils. All the rest of the work in paleontology is a result of the fossils found during the time spent in the field. Once fossils are returned to the Stout Research Laboratory, volunteers must clean, repair and preserve them in the preparation laboratory. In the curation facility they are identified and the locality and specimen infor-mation is entered into the database, specimen labels are printed and the specimens are placed in proper trays and cabinets. All this work pro-

Paleontology volunteers give 11,255 hours

tects and organizes the fossils and their locality information for future study by paleontologists visiting from anywhere in the world.

The 11,255-hour total from just this group is very impressive and shows the interest and dedication of its members.

One volunteer contributed more than 800 hours last year: Linda Gilbert discovered the giant tortoise and was instrumental in the plan-ning and execution of the excavation and ex-traction of the fossil last spring. She also is one of two experienced volunteers working on re-habilitating the fossil database which suffered from many minor and a few major problems accumulated during several decades of daily use, new additions and merging of tables and multiple databases from different institutions. Linda’s professional background is in data man-agement and she has been an enormous help in repairing and redeveloping this very important resource. Without the fossil database, we can-not quickly determine what fossil specimens we have or where to find them in the curatorial system.

The week between Christmas and New Year was devoted to resurfacing the floor in the Stout Research Center Laboratory. After years of foot traffic, the original painted surface

Photo by Jon Gilbert This fossilized partial horse skull, an old find (aren’t they all in paleontology?), needed support to keep it together so vol-unteers made the plaster cradle to hold it.



One gives more than 800 hours (continued)

was cracked and peeled, and created more dirt than the cleaning of fossils ever did. Jon Gilbert led the team of volunteers in extreme cleaning and scraping in preparation for the coat of ep-oxy paint. After the first coat dried it was deter-mined that another one was needed. With the double coat of paint the floor looks considerably better and should be much easier to clean. The effort involved 17 volunteers, five days of labor and 150 hours of volunteer time. This also is an impressive contribution to a facility that sees a large amount of activity: cleaning fossils, holding meetings and hosting visitors.

Field work continues and there have been some very important finds. One group, working in an area that is about 3 million years old, found a very old camel-type animal which could be one of the earliest examples of that taxo-nomic group in the ABDSP collection. There have been several finds in this area, previously considered to be unproductive for fossils, espe-cially vertebrates.

The season began with a push to enumerate and classify projects available for volunteers in


Photo by Jon Gilbert Volunteers work on resurfacing the floor of the paleontology laboratory—part of their contribution of 11,255 hours last year.

the laboratory and curation. Not only have these been defined, but volunteers have stepped up to take on the tasks, although this time of year, the cool of winter, is best for field work. These projects will doubtlessly get more and more attention as the temperature rises in April and after. It is impressive that the group is taking the time now to work indoors.

The educational aspect of ongoing paleon-tological training is very important so the vol-unteers requested additional training in strati-graphy, the study of layered sedimentary rock. The fossil collection is being arranged by strati-graphic unit, so it is important for volunteers to understand what the various units are and how they are recognized. Retired Paleontologist George Jefferson gave an extracurricular work-shop on stratigraphy in December and will fol-low up with a field trip in February. The work-shop was well attended and promises to be a wonderful addition to the already excellent lec-tures given on second Fridays.

All in all, the Paleontology Society is hitting the very height of the season these next weeks and there is more going on than can be summed up in this short article. For more in-formation, the website at anzaborregopaleo.org is very interesting and a wonderful tool for keeping abreast of activities. Non-members visit the site about 3,000 times a month and members visit about 35 times a day.

Photo by Hugh Vance Retired Paleontologist George Jefferson talks to volunteers during a field session.

Can we teach mountain lions to eat pork?

Chainsaw Safety—From DPR’s Tailgate Meetings Before you operate a chainsaw, read and

understand the operator’s manual, make sure you have the right chainsaw for the job and that your saw is sharp, properly tensioned and in good condition.

Wear protective clothing: hard hat, safety goggles, gloves, hearing protection, steel-toed shoes with non-slip soles and trim-fitting clothes that won’t get caught in the chain.

Start your chainsaw according to the manual’s directions. Clear the work area so the chain won’t touch anything but the wood you want to cut and place the saw on a level surface; never rest a saw on your leg or drop-start it.

Stand to the side of the saw so you won’t follow the cut through into your leg and stand on the uphill side of your work so it won’t roll into you.

Hold the saw parallel to the ground with your left arm straight for better control and to reduce the chance of the saw pushing into you if it kicks back.

Keep both hands on the saw while it’s running.

Work slowly, don’t rush. Let the chain-saw do the work; never force it.

Avoid cutting above mid-chest height. Never attempt to cut a tree with a di-

ameter greater than the length of the chain-saw blade and watch for branches that may spring back as you cut.

Always be aware of what is in the saw’s downward path after the cut.

Take frequent breaks from cutting so you don’t operate the saw when you’re tired.

Carry the saw below your waist, with it off and the guide bar pointed to the rear, so if you trip the saw drops behind you.

If your saw is electric, make sure you use an extension cord that’s approved for outdoor use and don’t use the saw in a damp environment.

When using a gasoline-powered chain-saw, do not overfill or spill the fuel. Let the saw cool down completely before refueling and have a fire extinguisher nearby.

Always have a companion within calling distance, but keep people at a safe distance from operation.

Photographs taken by field cameras at two separate l o c a t i o n s suggest a solution to the feral pig problem, but no one has offered to train the cou-gars yet.

We’re looking for District staff members who will share their ten favorite books to be published in TRACKS.

Please send your book list with short reviews to [email protected].

ABF has new, fascinating programs slated The Anza-Borrego Founda-

tion has some new and fasci-nating programs slated in the coming months as well as the favorites that have been such big hits.

The first program planned is Intermediate Desert Track-ing with Barry Martin, founder of the Western Tracking Insti-tute. It will be held Friday and Saturday, February 3 and 4.

No tracking experience is necessary; novice trackers are welcome. This class will bring new life and excitement to your hikes and outdoor adventures.

Imagine knowing where a cougar has crossed a trail or discovering where a bighorn sheep was bedded down for the night. Learn to read the tracks and sign of desert wildlife in this hands-on class.

Renewable Energy and the California De-serts is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, February 11, at the Performing Arts Center in Borrego Springs.

Laura Crane, senior project director for The Nature Conservancy, will discuss renewable en-ergy in the California Deserts and considerations to accommodate both renewable energy and the conservation of water and wildlife. The lecture will be followed by refreshments.

Astronomer Dennis Mammana will present De-sert Stargazing Saturday and Sunday, February 11 and 12. This workshop is designed for beginning stargazers interested in exploring amateur astron-omy. Mammana will teach techniques on viewing the sky with the unaided eye, binoculars and small telescopes.

High Points of Anza-Borrego – Whale Peak is slated from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, February 18. Chuck Banker will lead the trip through one of San Diego County’s best pinyon-juniper woodland

communities on this moder-ately strenuous hike to the 5,349-foot summit of Whale Peak.

This hike will feature lunch atop the summit and enjoy the grand panoramic views of the Salton Sea, Blair Valley and Mexico.

Milling Around Mine Wash will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Febru-ary 19. Hank Barber will lead this two-mile hike around an ancient Kumeyaay village site

where you will see hundreds of bedrock mortars, slicks, basins and rubs.

The adventure will include stops for wild-flower identification and discussions of de-sert Indians’ use of plants for food, clothing, shelter and medicine.

Geologist and Retired ABDSP Ranger Paul Remeika will present Land Before the Rain Shadow Friday, Saturday and Sunday, February 24 through 26, and Friday, Satur-day and Sunday, March 16 through 18.

This field course is a general introduction to the geology and paleontology of the Anza-Borrego Desert and will concentrate on Fish Creek Wash and the Vallecito Bad-lands and the western Salton Basin.

Our own Photographer and Naturalist Paul Johnson will present Palm Oases of Anza-Borrego from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Satur-day, February 25. You will discover the unique personalities of four different palm oases in the southern portion of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and see elephant trees, palm trees, a wide variety of cacti and possibly Peninsular bighorn sheep.

For more information on ABF programs or to register, call (760) 767-4063 or visit ABF at www.theabf.org.

http://www.theabf.org/

Colorado Desert District 200 Palm Canyon Drive Borrego Springs, CA 92004

TRACKS

TRACKS Colorado Desert District Newsletter

Gail Sevrens, Acting District Superintendent Colorado Desert District Leslie Bellah, TRACKS Editor Borrego Springs, CA 92004 (760) 767-4037 Fax: (760) 767-3427 E-mail: [email protected] Anza-Borrego Sector……………………………………….....…….....Kathy Dice, Superintendent Anza-Borrego Desert State Park® Montane Sector……………………………………………..……..Nedra Martinez, Superintendent Cuyamaca Rancho State Park Palomar Mountain State Park Salton Sea Sector……………………………..……...………Paul Reisman, Acting Superintendent Indio Hills Palms Picacho State Recreation Area Salton Sea State Recreation Area

Three of our parks make the San Francisco Chronicle

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