Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation

Check here for information on changes to activities and for open space status.

You may have read that Muir Heritage Land Trust is acquiring about 23 acres of open space on Acalanes Ridge adjacent to Walnut Creek's Acalanes Open Space.  The Open Space Foundation has been active in working with neighbors on Acalanes Ridge, the City of Walnut Creek. the East Bay Regional Park District and Muir Heritage Land Trust to make this acquisition happen.  The Cities of Walnut Creek and Lafayette and the East Bay Regional Park district have each contributed about $400,000 in funds provided by Measure WW which area voters passed in 2008.  Muir Heritage will be raising $450,000 to close the funding gap.  This acquisition will be owned by Muir Heritage but it will be open to all area residents.

This land is important to us for its unparalleled views and its wildlife corridor that strengthens the connection between the existing Acalanes Open Space and other open space lands in the area.  The image to the right shows a small part of the 360° view from this property. The Open Space Foundation will contribute from our Land Acquisition Fund toward this purchase.  We are asking our members, Walnut Creek residents, and the general public to contribute to ensure that this acquisition can be completed and that it is opened and managed for the enjoyment of all.  If we do not raise the money, the land will be developed.

Please contribute generously to help us preserve this valuable open space on Acalanes Ridge.  Send your check (payable to Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation) to

    Walnut Creek Open Space Foundation
     P.O. Box 309
     Walnut Creek, CA 94597-0309


We can use your help as a volunteer in our activities.  We are checking oak seddlings, controlling weeds, building our plant nursery and doing other priojects. Look at the list of events below or on the calendar page and pick an activity and date that suit you.  Contact us and sign up!

Volunteer Opportunities on Weekdays

Many of our activities are held on weekends to fit the schedules of people who work or attend school on weekdays.  We now have regular activities during the week for volunteers who are free during the week,  Click on the underlined group description for more information.

• Our regular Tuesday morning group has openings for activities through early February.
• A new group is meeting on the first and third Wednesday mornings.  Both groups perform a variety of taks related to habitat restoration.

The next four images on the right are taken from walks around our open space.  Click on the spider image to see more pictures of bugs we've seen on wildflowers.  Click on the butterflies image to see those pictures and pictures of wildflowers.

These links take you to photo galleries on the SmugMug website where some of our members display their photos.  We have links to other galleries and information on viewing images at SmugMug here.

If you haven't visited SmugMug before, here are some pointers:

You can view images in several styles: as a page of just thumbnails (All Thumbs), several pages with thumbnails on the left and a single larger image on the right side of the web page (SmugMug style) or as a slide show.  You can change the style using the Style control.

You can also view images at the original size to see all  the details.  Slide the mouse to the right side of the large picture in the SmugMug view.  A menu will slide out and you can click on "original" or other sizes.  When you are finished viewing the original size image, scroll to the top of the web page and click on "close".

We will be adding more links to SmugMug galleries as we get them organized.

 In cooperation with the California Bluebird Recovery Program (www.cbrp.org), Foundation members including Brian Murphy and Bob Brittain have been constructing, installing and monitoring nest boxes for bluebirds in our open space. Western bluebirds and several other species of native cavity-nesting birds have been raising their young in these nest boxes. Click here for a pictorial essay with photos of nests, eggs, chicks, and parent birds! If you are interested in adopting a bluebird trail in Walnut Creek, please contact Bob at bobbrittain@astound.net or at 925-938-5831.

 

Other New Material

We have added three items to the website. First, there's an article on our riparian habitat projects. Second, we have a new gallery called Out of Sight which shows the clues animals leave to their presence. And third, there's a list of wildflowers seen on a late March walk in Acalanes Open Space. We hope to create a series of these which will cover the whole wildflower season. One of the treasures in Acalanes is baby blue eyes, an enormously appealing wildflower, blue with a white center.