November 26, 2020
Dear Friends,
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Happy Thanksgiving from the ancestral home of the Coast Miwok, the first people to steward what is now Point Reyes National Seashore. Below you’ll find a lovely reflection from retired National Park Service Ranger Loretta Farley on gratitude for the season. I am grateful for you and all you do to support our bountiful park.
November is Native American Heritage Month. Point Reyes National Seashore’s Kule Loklo exhibit is closed due to hazards associated with the Woodward fire impacts. Even before the fire, the space was being re-imagined with leadership from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. We look forward to supporting the amplification of the voices of the park’s First People in the coming months and years.
I'm inspired by the National Education Association’s Ed Justice Team guide, “Ring in Justice this Holiday Season." It includes a section on learning about and giving thanks to Indigenous People on whose land we live and enjoy. Another part of the guide I love is a series of questions to spark conversations as we move through the holidays about how to make the world more just.
#OptOutside
As we slow down today to mark the holiday of gratitude, my expectations have shifted to an acceptance of the unusual year. I’m letting memories fill the seats at my table that a necessarily smaller gathering requires this year to protect our community. While I’ve switched up the menu a bit, the simplified day offers more time and I will join others in a movement to spend the day outside. Hitting the trails is good for your health and, despite the closures still in place in the Park due to the Woodward fire, there is still much to explore. Outside continues to be the the safest place to visit with friends in small groups. I'm inspired by REI's list of 95 ways to enjoy the outdoors.
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Welcoming New Leadership
2021 promises new leadership not only at the national level, but also at Point Reyes National Seashore. I so look forward to welcoming Craig Kenkel in January as he assumes the post of superintendent at our park. I’ve been happy to receive messages from National Park Service staff, park partner representatives, and volunteers who congratulated us on gaining such a skilled and committed partner in our work. Read more about Craig in the Marin Independent Journal and stay tuned for the virtual welcome party!
Transitions are always bittersweet and I am very grateful to Acting Superintendent Carey Feierabend, who has managed the park through a most challenging year. We will miss her and know through her work we are stronger and more connected to our partners at Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
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Virtual Celebrations and Exploration
One thing I am thankful for this year is how we have been able to adapt to the challenges of a pandemic and fire through our free Park In Place virtual programs. Please tune in as we celebrate the Point Reyes Lighthouse 150th birthday and take a guided tour with naturalist and PRNSA Council of Advisors Member David Wimpfheimer’s to discover the many birds that spend winter in the park. If you missed our monarch program, it’s worth viewing to learn how you can support this fragile species.
Again, Happy Thanksgiving and start to the holidays. Stay safe and see you outside soon.
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Donna Faure
Executive Director
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WINTER REFLECTIONS with Loretta Farley |
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The daylight wanes and days darken early, mornings are chilly with frost as winter approaches. It is the season of rest for much of life at Point Reyes, a moment to stop and breathe. As the cold closes in, we retreat indoors much like the first people of Point Reyes, the Coast Miwok. Their communities would have spent long summer days amid the bounty of the coastal sea foods provided by daylight low tides and as the seasons shifted, they returned from the coast to warmer drier inland valleys to overwinter much as many of us may in normal times travel back to ancestral homes. The landscape that sustained them is much same.
On land, the rainy season touches off new cycles as coho salmon and steelhead trout are heading up local creeks and mushrooms sprouting. At sea, the winter cycle brings the annual southern migration of Pacific gray whales and the return to land of Northern elephant seals. As the cycle continues, the days will lengthen and Coast Miwok will gather in gratitude over the first seeds of spring and the promise that the earth renews itself for another year.
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Conservation Actions for the
Western Monarch
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Did you miss our recent Monarch webinar with Mia Monroe? No worries! You can view the recording and we have summarized some action items we can all take in our coastal communities and beyond to support these beautiful and fragile butterflies. Read more here.
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Point Reyes National Seashore is now PARTIALLY OPEN.
Hazardous conditions exist. Conditions can change rapidly.
Visitors are reminded to respect trail and road closures. All trails that go into the Woodward Fire burn area remain closed. Keep yourself and park personnel safe by staying out of the closure zone. go.nps.gov/pore/woodwardfire
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Point Reyes Lighthouse:
150 Years of Light
Tuesday, December 1, 6 pm – 6:30 pm
FREE WEBINAR
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Celebrate 150 years of light at Point Reyes with a virtual birthday bash with the park rangers! Built in 1870 and first lit on December 1 of that year, this beacon was an important signal for the guidance and safety of mariners who traveled up and down the Northern California coastline. The National Park Service has preserved this historic building and original Fresnel lens since 1975, and continues to tell the story of the light to visitors from far and wide today. Join us for a special virtual birthday celebration for our favorite lighthouse, and learn about this coastal treasure.
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Winter Birds of Point Reyes: Abundance and Diversity |
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Thursday, December 10, 6pm – 7pm
A Park In Place Webinar Series
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Point Reyes National Seashore has a large diversity of birds in the winter. Our mild weather conditions are much more favorable to birds compared to colder interior areas. Over 200 species have been monitored over the past decades, including several that have not been seen anywhere else in the country. Come learn with David Wimpfheimer on population trends that have been observed over many years on our seashore and have a chance to ask your birding questions with an expert. Register for this free webinar today.
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Drawing the Colors of Winter
Saturday, December 12, 10am – 12pm
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Autumn is the perfect time to explore colored pencil techniques with all the beauty of the changing leaf colors, seed pods, gourds, and berries. Their unique colors provide the opportunity to practice mixing and layering color. Learn to create rich reds, browns, and purples. We will explore a variety of colored pencil techniques including layering, blending, and burnishing. |
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This class will be held online, via Zoom. We will spend time mixing colors, drawing your leaf or fruit, and coloring with demonstration and time for questions and answers. All drawing levels are welcome. A supply list will be provided.
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Select title of class for more information on these and other upcoming classes. |
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Saturday, January 9, 10am – 2pm
Friday, January 15, 9:30am – 3:30pm
Saturday, January 16, 10:30am – 5pm
Saturday, January 23, 10am – 4pm
Sunday, January 24, 9am – 4pm
A Five-Part Series: Tuesdays, January 26 – February 16, - 7pm – 9pm
Saturday, January 30, 10am – 2pm
Sunday, January 31, 10am – 4:30pm
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We partner with the National Park Service to create opportunities for all people to experience, enhance, and preserve Point Reyes National Seashore for present and future generations. |
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Point Reyes National Seashore | (415) 663-1200 x 310 | [email protected] | www.ptreyes.org |
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