Park Stories

Just as it is for the home gardener, spring means planning and planting seeds for our park nurseries. See how we’re gearing up for another big season of growing plants for restoration projects in the Golden Gate National Parks.

“Leaves of three, let it be. If it’s hairy, it’s a berry. If it’s shiny, watch your hiney.” That famous rhyme can help you pick out poison oak—for part of the year. But, because Toxicodendron diversilobum is deciduous, what about the other seasons?

It seems remarkable that we can pinpoint an exact date—November 4, 1769—when Europeans first caught sight of San Francisco Bay. Afterward, nothing would ever quite be the same, ecologically or anthropologically, in this grand watershed. Or would it?

It’s time to head out to your nearby national parklands for lots of spring cleaning and restoration. Celebrate Earth Day, National Volunteer Week, National Youth Service Day, and National Park Week by pitching in for your Golden Gate National Parks. There’s something for everyone!

The Institute’s Food for the Parks program convened food service leaders in New York last week to expand the healthy and sustainable food options in parks and other establishments across the country. Read on to learn how the Institute made an impact.

Spring has arrived, and while the flowers are blooming and the birds are chirping, we have a new arrival of our own: the Roving Ranger. Learn more about the Golden Gate National Parks’ “mobile trailhead”—rolling to a park near you!

On April 20 and 21, 2013, Bay Area teens will participate in Backyard Bound, the outdoor summit organized by the Center’s I-YEL youth leaders. This year’s theme is “How to Connect Youth to Their Environment.” Watch a video to see what this summit is all about.

Grab your cameras and head for the coast—it’s sunset season! With Daylight Savings coming on March 10, soon we’ll have an extra hour to capture those late-winter sunsets. One of our talented photographers shares his must-visit locations in the parks for any photo enthusiast.

While the East is still buried under 3 feet of snow, harbingers of spring have begun to bloom all across the Golden Gate National Parks. What can you expect to see in March, as you explore one of our many park trails?

Have you been dreaming of those beautiful granitic rocks in Yosemite? Well, don’t worry! You don’t have to wait for summer to make that trek. We’ve got our own wondrous boulders right here in the Golden Gate National Parks—at Rancho Corral de Tierra.

Follow the trials and triumphs of a Golden Gate Raptor Observatory intern, as told through several encounters with a particularly mysterious species of raptor—the Northern Harrier.

Think you know the ins and outs of the Institute at the Golden Gate? Prove it with this quiz. If you’re the first to submit the correct answers, you’ll win an Institute gift pack—featuring a Parks Conservancy fleece vest, tote bag, and more!