Coachella Valley National Wildlife Refuge

It Seems Unlikely that I'll get to this one in my travels, so I thought I'd throw in some pictures from Jess and families travels.  These palms are amazing. I don't know how they manage to keep all the fronds on.  When we had palm trees in our yard they fell in every wind storm.

Coachella Valley Preserve 

BLM - Coachella Valley Preserve 

Thousand Palm Oasis  

 

Tuffets

 

Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet.....what is a tuffet?  Well it turns out it's a stuffy low stool. 

I made two from Greg's old ties, one people size, that one sits in Andi's home office.  The other is doll size and it holds the doll Grammy made for me.  I made another with some children's fabrics and it currently is occupied by the doll that Maura made for Mom at the same time that she made similar dolls for Jess and Andi.

 

Joshua Tree National Park

I barely remember visiting Joshua Tree as a child.  Sorting through pictures I found various pictures of Joshua Trees in the Madden collection. I'm not sure if these were actually taken in the park, well in fact they couldn't have been as it wasn't designated a park until 1994.  However, it was designated a National Monument by Roosevelt in 1936 so perhaps they were taken at the monument, or perhaps somewhere in the Mojave Desert.

Joshua  Tree National Park is part of the Mojave Desert and has multiple ecosystems within the park.

The Carbullido family visited Joshua Tree National Park in 2024 and shared their pictures here.

Joshua Tree National Park

Yucca Brevifolia (Joshua Tree)

More Pictures

CSP - Trione-Annandel

 Another great Sonoma County Park

located in Santa Rosa it appeared to be well used.  A flock of turkeys greeted me as I drove down the road.

Trinoe Annandel State Park

 

 More Pictures

Red Hot

 Some Like it Hot!  

Digging into the red and black scraps some more.  Ended up getting a few more peppers to add.....but even then just enough, not a scrap of any of these remains!

SMCP - San Pedro Valley

 

Located in the foothills above Pacific, San Pedro Valley Park  consists of 1,052-acres along the middle and south forks of San Pedro Creek.  area embracing the middle and south forks of San Pedro Creek.

San Pedro Valley Park

 

Visit Pacifica - San Pedro Valley Park

SMC Parks Foundation - San Pedro Valley Park

SM - Coyote Point Recreation Area

King Tide Bird Walk for San Mateo County Parks

 

 

42 species

 https://ebird.org/checklist/S126754864

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  65

American Wigeon (Mareca americana)  8

Canvasback (Aythya valisineria)  5

Greater Scaup (Aythya marila)  7

Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)  2

Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)  9

Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)  1

Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus)  7

Eared Grebe (Podiceps nigricollis)  5

Western Grebe (Aechmophorus occidentalis)  1

Clark's Grebe (Aechmophorus clarkii)  4

Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))  6

Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna)  1

American Coot (Red-shielded) (Fulica americana (Red-shielded))  11

American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana)  40

Black Oystercatcher (Haematopus bachmani)  2

Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)  30

Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)  4

Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus)  1

Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa)  50

Red Knot (Calidris canutus)  5

Surfbird (Calidris virgata)  6

Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla)  8

Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)  2

Willet (Tringa semipalmata)  30

Short-billed Gull (Larus brachyrhynchus)  1

Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  1

Western Gull (Larus occidentalis)  5

California Gull (Larus californicus)  4

Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri)  25

Black Skimmer (Rynchops niger)  2

Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum)  15

Brown Pelican (California) (Pelecanus occidentalis californicus)  2

Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)  1

Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) (Colaptes auratus [cafer Group])  1

Merlin (Falco columbarius)  1

Black Phoebe (Northern) (Sayornis nigricans [nigricans Group])  1

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  15

European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  50

American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  1

White-crowned Sparrow (pugetensis) (Zonotrichia leucophrys pugetensis)  8

Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) (Setophaga coronata coronata)  3

Pinwheels

I actually was envisioning two separate quilts as I did the pinwheel and border sections here, but somehow they worked well together and now the yellow, orange material box is in much better order!

I think I need a sunflower, or perhaps a sun pillow to go with this.

 

CSP - Sugarloaf Ridge

 

A pretty park tucked in the Mayacamas Mountains above Sonoma, just northeast of Kenwood, Sugarloaf Ridge has an accessible creek trail as well as other trails and an observation point..

Sugarloaf Ridge State Park Org

Sugarloaf Ridge State Park

Sweet as Sugarloaf

All Trails - Best of Sugarloaf

More Pictures

NHP - Klondike Gold Rush

                                                                                                                            

The Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Park was establish in 1976 as the US Portion of an International Historic Park celebrating the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897.  In 1998 the joint venture with Canada to create an International Park came to fruition, but each kept the name of their already established portions. 

In 2007 the Madden Family gathering was a cruise to Alaska.  One of the stops was Skagway.  A number of buildings in the town are part of historic park.  We wandered through the town for a while visiting museums and other fun places including the Red Onion which also dates back to the Gold Rush.

We took a hike up the Chilkoot Trail thru the cemetery and up to Lower Reid Falls. 

Klondike Gold Rush NHP

NHP - Klondike Seattle

Klondike Gold Rush International Historic Park = Canada

In Seattle we visited the Washington component of the historic park.  A museum was established there on the waterfront in 2006.