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Save Mount Diablo has revealed a robust lineup of outings on the mountain and its surrounding area this year for its Discover Diablo program, with the first in the series serving as an annual event aimed at celebrating one of the conservation organization’s founders.
Following the cancellation of their first planned hike on Jan. 7 due to wet weather conditions, organizers are crossing their fingers for cooperative weather on Jan. 27 — the day of the next adventure in the series.
It’s been two years since organizers and participants took to the Mary Bowerman loop trail near the mountain’s peak to celebrate the late Save Mount Diablo founder’s 116th birthday on Jan. 25. (Last year was canceled due to wet weather conditions and road erosion throughout the state park.)
“Every year we do the Mary Bowerman loop,” said Haley Sutton, land steward associate for Save Mount Diablo and leader of the upcoming hike. “It’s a one-mile trail near the summit that’s got both paved and unpaved sections, and you get 360-degree views. There’s a lot of cool geology that can be featured near the top, a variety of different habitats that you can see as we do this loop, and it’s also a way to honor one of our co-founders.”Bowerman, who died in 2005, was a key figure in the organization’s inception in 1971 and its conservation work for decades to come, with her direction for the organization continuing to be visible on the mountain today.
Several years after the organization was launched, one of the largest fires in the mountain’s recent history burned more than 6,000 acres on its northern slopes between Aug. 1-5 that year, with one of the conservation group’s first orders of business early on being a decision about how to allow the area to best recover.
“There’s the fire that swept over there in the ’70s that you can see some of the effects of,” Sutton said. “I think there was some conversation about how to respond ecologically after the fire, and Mary Bowerman had replied by saying ‘let’s not plant and let’s just let the area be and let the land recover itself.'”
While the land has recovered over the course of the nearly 50 years since, effects of the fire are still visible from the loop trail, Sutton said, contributing to the diversity of habitats and visible natural history near the mountain’s peak.
“You can see areas where there’s maybe less overstoried growth because there was fire there like 50 years ago, so it’s just a really unique way to get a variety of different ecosystems on that walk,” Sutton added.
The mountain’s summit and surrounding area also showcase a rich geological history going back much further than 50 years, Sutton noted, despite it being intuitive to think of the upper parts of the mountain consisting of newer rock with the bottom slopes consisting of older rock.
“The way the plates pushed together created an uprising of rock that then led to the summit that you have on Mount Diablo,” Sutton said. “What’s cool is that rock is really old and that rock was formed generally underwater.”
The rock near the summit therefore contains a complex geological history dating back more than a million years and including exoskeletons of marine life and other prehistoric species, along with a variety of species that make up its present-day ecosystem and the variety of habitats on the mountain.
“I think it’s a unique trail because you get the views and the history and the ecological history of the mountain,” Sutton said. “I think this trail is a great place to be able to learn about that or see it firsthand because of the route.”
In addition to showcasing the history and ecology of the mountain, the hike showcases its present-day relationship to the surrounding community via its panoramic views, Sutton noted.
“You can look down and see the properties that Save Mount Diablo has protected, and you can see where there’s development and you can slo see where there’s natural land,” Sutton said. “You get to understand that relationship between the urban world and the natural world.”
The relationship between the natural world in Mount Diablo State Park and the surrounding developments is one that this year’s programming overall seeks to showcase from a variety of angles and perspectives throughout the Discover Diablo series.
“It is the goal of the Discover Diablo program to build connections between people, Save Mount Diablo, and the land, helping our communities develop a strong sense of place and a deepened appreciation for our collective backyard,” Executive Director Ted Clement said. “Most importantly, we want to cultivate a love of the land in participants, as that is what it will take to ensure the precious Mount Diablo associated natural areas are taken care of for generations to come.”
With no programming scheduled for February, the Discover Diablo series will pick back up in March starting with an excursion to the former Concord Naval Weapons Station on March 2, a property dedication for the recently acquired Krane Pond Property on March 14, a rock climbing outing in Pinnacles National Park on March 23 and a wildflower hike at Chaparral Spring on March 25.
Later in the spring, highlights include an additional wildflower hike at Mitchell Canyon on April 20 as well as a medicinal herb walk in the same area on May 4, and a joint venture with Mount Diablo Bird Alliance for a birding hike at Curry Canyon on April 27, with an additional opportunity to explore Curry Canyon for a “Reptile Ramble” on May 6.
The first mountain biking excursion of the year is set for May 17 for the trails connecting Mangini Ranch and Lime Ridge Open Space in partnership with Walnut Creek Open Space, with a property dedication set for Smith Canyon the following week on May 23.
The warmer months are set to feature an additional rock climbing opportunity with a beginner-friendly climb on the Boy Scout Rocks of Mount Diablo on June 1, followed by the first of three plein air painting hikes in the series on June 7.
Additional relaxing activities are scheduled alongside regular hikes and more physical excursions in the summer months, including yoga at Curry Canyon Ranch on July 14 and a meditation hike at Mangini Ranch on Aug. 3.
As summer transitions to fall and tarantula mating season on the mountain ramps up, two “Tarantula Treks” are on the lineup — a family event on Sept. 1 and an adult event on Sept. 15.
An additional rock climbing excursion is set for Oct. 19 at Pine Canyon, with additional hikes in October that include a Halloween hike at Black Diamond Mines on Oct. 27.
The series will continue through the transition from fall to winter, with additional hikes scheduled through December and the final plein air hike of the series set for Nov. 15.
While Save Mount Diablo is a conservation rather than a recreation organization, the free opportunities in the Discover Diablo program are aligned with the organization’s goals of conservation and community outreach and education, as well as seeking to foster an appreciation and understanding of the region in its surrounding community members.
“We encourage people to look at all these different outings that we have and find something that speaks to them and sign up,” Sutton said. “I think the Discover Diablo program comes from a place of wanting to get more people to connect to the outdoors and have a love for the outdoors, because that’s how we can have the support of people who are passionate about this work.”
Despite being free and open to all, attendance at events in the series is limited and advance registration is required.
Registration and details about each of the 36 events scheduled in this year’s series are available via savemountdiablo.org.
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