Please join me and Rondia for a potential once-in-a-lifetime event: a Full Moon Sunset Nature Hike and Total Lunar Eclipse with complete visibility on Sunday evening, May 15, from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. The next time a total lunar eclipse will be visible in Ventura County before 1 a.m. or later at night is August 6, 2036.

We’ll gradually walk about 1.5 miles on a well-used dirt road with gradual elevation gain to a vista point above the Ojai Valley where we can watch the sunset, moonrise, and total eclipse. By the time the moon rises, it will already be in partial eclipse, reaching maximum total eclipse at 9:11 p.m.

Visit this link to read more and sign up for the hike.

Metric tons of White Sage ( Salvia apiana) are being poached from Southern California's public lands to supply an international demand for smudge sticks. This plant is deeply rooted in the cultures and lifeways of the Indigenous communities of Southern California and northern Baja, the only region where white sage naturally occurs in the world. 

On Earth Day, April 22, the California Native Plant Society premiered  Saging the World, a short documentary produced by Rose Ramirez, Deborah Small, and CNPS to foster awareness and inspire action for white sage. The screening included a panel discussion with Native advocates from the film.

Please become aware of this situation and find out how you can become part of the solution instead of the problem. Visit this link to learn all about it and sign up for future screenings of the documentary. Thank you!

The Wetland Wednesday Herb Walk in April was a hit so we're doing it again. Please join me and Rondia for the second outing in this new series on Wednesday, May 18, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. The pond and native plants are still looking good and serve as testaments to the vision of the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy, creators and stewards of the Ojai Meadows Preserve. 

Visit this link to read more and sign up.

Are you ready to immerse yourself in wild nature? Join me Sunday, May 22, for a Nature Hike on Potrero John Creek, deep in the Sespe Wilderness of the Los Padres National Forest. Beginning at 9 a.m., a 20-mile car caravan will take us from Ojai to the trailhead. We’ll return to Ojai about 3 p.m.

Starting our hike at an elevation of 3700 feet, we’ll meet a diverse group of plants representing the upper Chaparral and Riparian Woodland plant communities of Southern California. This will be an easy-to-moderate hike of about 3 miles round-trip with sections of mild elevation gain and a few short creek crossings.

Visit this link to read more and sign up.

In December 2017 the Thomas Fire swept through Harmon Canyon in East Ventura, leaving a barren landscape of ash and black sticks. Now, thanks to the Ventura Land Trust, Harmon Canyon Preserve, established in 2020, is Ventura's first large-scale nature preserve. And it's made a remarkable comeback since the fire.

We'll return there for a 2-hour Edible & Medicinal Plant Walk on Saturday, May 28. We will be on a wide, level, dirt road with virtually no elevation gain, making this walk suitable for physically fit beginning hikers with the proper footwear. 

Visit this link or click on the photo above to read more and sign up.