More than fifty-five years ago Earth Day was officially recognized as a day of stewardship and community engagement throughout the United States. Born because of the dedication of countless people who cared about the Earth, Earth Day continues to be a day in which people carve out time to engage in countless actions that help create vitality in the landscapes around us, inspire hope, and spark joy.
Hope can be a hard thing to hold onto, however, when we are faced with personal and societal hardships. Earth Day was inaugurated and continues to be observed during an era of environmental catastrophes. Habitat loss and climate change stress local and global environments as we witness greed and injustice threaten people and places and weaken sustainability efforts and environmental laws.
Hope may seem like an impossible thing in the face of so much chaos, but we must hold onto hope. Hope can be a gateway through which we acknowledge what is happening yet still find ways to persevere. Hope can be a way to engage within the core idea still held within our Earth Day traditions: to commit to restoring the land and sustaining life for all current and future earthlings.
On this Earth Day, San Bruno Mountain Watch welcomes you to join ecological restoration fellow Emily Martin in Owl and Buckeye Canyon for a guided walk and reflection session. Emily will lead participants in an exploration of how we can engage in land-based caretaking and revolutionary land-based connections that go beyond a single day on the calendar. How can we hold onto hope considering the uncertainty within these times?
Please sign up using the form below to receive further directions to the meeting location. Dress according to the weather and wear close-toed shoes. Pants and long sleeves are recommended as there is poison oak present at the edges of some trails. Light snacks will be provided but it is recommended to bring your own bottle of water.
If you haven't already signed our volunteer and hiker agreement form, you can do so here.
Link to Google Map: San Bruno Mountain Ecological Reserve-Owl Canyon
1) From Bayshore Blvd, turn onto Valley Drive, the entrance to Crocker Industrial Park in Brisbane.
2) Drive down Valley Drive and turn left at the stoplight at the intersection of Valley Drive and South Hill Drive
3) Drive a very short distance on South Hill Drive; as the road begins to curve, immediately after a pedestrian crosswalk, you'll see a steep driveway on your left with potholes. Turn into that steep driveway and drive up to reach Quarry Road
4) At the top of the driveway, keep driving down the road. The first canyon on your left is Buckeye Canyon—continue past that on Quarry Road until you reach the base of Owl Canyon. Park parallel on the side of Quarry Road.
