The foot bridge is a crossing over a moat, into a kingdom of feathers at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. In this regenerated, re-planted Bolsa Bay, bird calls and murmurs bubble up from the terns, Sanderlings, scoters, avocets, grebes, plovers, pelicans, sparrows, Willets and egrets who call this haven home. The marsh is barely shielded from…
The Saucy Sailor Boy
I have a weakness for bad lyrics, and 18th century sea chanties like The Saucy Sailor Boy probably take the prize. If you live here in San Francisco, you can take the kids (or just your own self) to Hyde Pier for monthly (and free) Sea Chanty Sing-a-Longs. You’ll get hot cider if you bring…
Where Old Docks Go to Die
Old docks smell, this much I can tell you. You’ll catch a whiff of decomposing mussels and sea greens long before you ever see the old boards stacked, as these particular boards were, in the parking lot of the Berkeley Marina. The Marina is renovating — replacing the old A-B-C docks with improved versions. And…
Triumph and Loss at the Albany Bulb
The Albany Bulb — long my favorite Bay Area example of decay and rebirth — is an artificial peninsula, created from years of dumping construction refuse into this part of the Bay. When the dumping stopped, nature took over.
