LandPaths

Thank you to everyone who joined us to welcome spring & celebrate the impact of Omar Gallardo at Rancho Mark West on Saturday! Special thank you to @sonomaopenspace for making this day possible! We also appreciate Danza Xantotl, Sonoma County Pomo Dancers, members of Rasquaches, @infinitelearningcentersoco , @farmtopantry , @socomeatco , our land partners Jim and Betty Doerksen, Emma Zavala and her students at Santa Rosa High School, and the Wappo people on whose land since time immemorial sits Rancho Mark West. ¡Gracias a todos los que se unieron a nosotros para dar la bienvenida a la primavera y celebrar el impacto de Omar Gallardo en Rancho Mark West el sábado! ¡Gracias especiales a @sonomaopenspace por hacer posible este día! También apreciamos a Danza Xantotl, a los bailarines de Pomo del condado de Sonoma, a los miembros de Rasquaches, @infinitelearningcentersoco , @farmtopantry , @socomeatco , nuestros socios de tierras Jim y Betty Doerksen, y el pueblo de Wappo en cuya tierra desde tiempos inmemorias se encuentra Rancho Mark West.

In the closing day of LandPaths’ Queer Forestry and Fire (QFFP) Program last Saturday, the 28 participants in the 2026 cohort, along with the program leads myself and Dimitri, sprinkled native grass seed collected from Ocean Song preserve into the pile scars and patch burn areas they had brought fire through in the week’s prior. We shook grass seed from paper bags onto the ashy earth and bent in awe to see new tillers growing from large old bunches of Idaho fescue (festuca idahoensis), and between bunches, the new sprouts of forbs greeting spring. After re-seeding the burn scars, we said our goodbyes and some stayed to jump in the pond together after (to swim in a fresh body of water, feeling safe and affirmed in your own body, I believe is an act of joy and liberation). The program took place six consecutive Saturdays 2/28-4/4 and included three active burn days, two forestry and grassland ecology days, and one incredible potluck. QFFP attracts a group of people from diverse backgrounds who all have different knowledge and experience working outdoors, and the program allows us to all learn from each other and expand the way we think about this work. Queer people need the opportunity to steward the land in community, but also stewardship needs queerness, there has always been queer people tending land. There is a lot we cannot change in this world, but bringing people together to return good fire to the land builds a sense of agency, resilience, and belonging. -Story by Senior Stewardship Field Specialist Lara O’Herlihy Photos 1,2& 3 of @commonthreadyoga by @fotografia_nisa Photo 4 by @lost_in_forestville All other photos by Lara

Should we have taken more photos? Vamos Afuera con LandPaths hike at Rancho Mark West last Saturday! Check our Calendar to sign up for an upcoming bilingual outdoor adventure with us! Link in bio. Rancho Mark West is located on the ancestral homeland of the Mayacamas Band of Wappo people since time immemorial. This outing was funded by the Outdoor Equity Grants Program, created through AB 209 and administered by California State Parks, Office of Grants and Local Services. Thank you for the support! ¿Deberíamos haber tomado más fotos? ¡Vamos Afuera con LandPaths caminata en Rancho Mark West el sábado pasado! ¡Consulta nuestro calendario para inscribirte en una próxima aventura bilingüe al aire libre con nosotros! Enlace en la biografía. Esta salida fue financiada por el Programa de Subvenciones de Capital al Aire Libre, creado a través de AB 209 y administrado por los Parques Estatales de California, la Oficina de Subvenciones y Servicios Locales. ¡Gracias por el apoyo! #santarosa #sonomacounty #sonomahike #caminata

Today, we say goodbye to Laura Revilla, who has contributed an immense amount to LandPaths as our Bilingual Volunteer and Community Hub lead for the past five years. Laura is making a big move to Spain with her partner and dog, a courageous leap that has been on their bucket list for years. Laura has contributed in countless ways to the organization, from reviving our docent program to establishing a friendly, welcoming presence to every new person who decides to volunteer with us. Laura embodies LandPaths' values and inspires us with her dedication to the mission of fostering a love of the land. If you have participated with LandPaths as a volunteer, then you know Laura! Please join us in sending a tearful goodbye to our dear coworker and warm wishes for the next steps in her journey! She will be missed!! Hoy nos despedimos de Laura Revilla, quien ha aportado inmensamente a LandPaths durante los últimos cinco años como nuestra Líder Bilingüe de Voluntariado y del Centro Comunitario. Laura emprende una gran mudanza a España junto a su pareja y su perro; un salto valiente que ha figurado en su lista de sueños por cumplir desde hace años. Laura ha contribuido a la organización de innumerables maneras: desde revitalizar nuestro programa de guías voluntarios hasta brindar una presencia amigable y acogedora a cada nueva persona que decide unirse a nosotros como voluntaria. Laura encarna los valores de LandPaths y nos inspira con su dedicación a la misión de fomentar el amor por la tierra. Si has participado en LandPaths como voluntario, ¡entonces conoces a Laura! ¡Por favor, acompáñennos a despedir con emoción a nuestra querida compañera y a enviarle nuestros mejores deseos para los próximos pasos de su viaje! ¡¡La extrañaremos mucho!!

Looking for a bit of rest and meditation in nature? We still have spots left in this Saturday's heart walk at Bohemia Ecological Preserve in Occidental 💚 Sign up at the Calendar link in bio!

After a 40-minute bus ride, 69 students from Santa Rosa Language Academy (formerly Cesar Chavez Language Academy), a Title I school in the Roseland area of Santa Rosa, chatter excitedly as they step off the school buses into the parking lot at Shell Beach. The sky is grey but the fog has lifted and the air temperature feels perfect for tidepool explorations with LandPaths’ staff. Watch the video to get a sense of what happens on a field trip! “I liked seeing the sea stars!” says Eileen. Other students love exploring a small cave on a rock outcropping, a big hit with the group. Still others, like Emiliano, enjoy walking solo on areas of the beach, listening to the sound of the waves crashing onto the sand. The field trip is part of LandPaths’ Inspired Forward, which launched in 2012 as a way to build positive relationships, leadership, and an earth steward ethic aligned specifically with the developmental needs of our teen population. Funding from the California State Coastal Conservancy’s* Explore the Coast grant makes it possible to get students, teachers, and chaperones out of the four walls of the classroom and into nature for hands-on science learning. The program introduces teens to the outdoors, offering the joyful and restorative benefits of time in nature while teaching coastal ecology based on Next Generation Science Standards. LandPaths partners with Title 1 schools and other schools in low-income neighborhoods to provide the program at no cost. Thank to the Explore the Coast grant from @ca_coastal for making these field trips to the Sonoma Coast possible! #sonomacounty #sonomacoast #fieldtrip

We still have spots left in Camp Trillium and Paddle with Pride this summer! Scan the QR codes to learn more and register!

We're pleased to welcome a new cohort to our thriving LandPaths' docent community! This amazing group of volunteers just completed a two-day training with our staff on the ins-and-outs of docenting at Bohemia Ecological Preserve and Lafferty Ranch. Docents are vital to building our capacity to offer free and sliding scale outings, allowing many more people to connect with the land. Through their enthusiasm, knowledge, and local connections, docents also serve as important volunteer community ambassadors for LandPaths and the preserves that we steward. We currently have docent programs at Lafferty Ranch in Petaluma and Bohemia Ecological Preserve in Occidental. Currently, there are more than 50 active docents between the two preserves! Go to LandPaths.org > Participate to learn more about the perks of being a docent at LandPaths. And keep an eye on our calendar at landpaths.org for free and sliding scale outings cooked up by this group over the coming months!

We 💚 Grasslands. Sign up for upcoming grassland restoration days with LandPaths starting May 9th at Ocean Song Preserve! All ages welcome. Register at the calendar link in bio! #sonomacounty #lovetheland #volunteer #grass #californianativeplants

Only 96 hours left in our 2026 Camps Campaign! Thank you to everyone who has already donated to get more kids outside at nature camp. If you haven’t donated yet, there’s still time. Your gift helps grow and sustain scholarships, providing 19 weeks of nature camp for new and returning campers. Donate today at the link in our bio! $450 sponsors a camper for one full week of camp. Our goal is to raise $300,000 by May 4, which will ensure that we’re able to provide scholarships to 60% of Owl Campers. That’s 408 youth who might otherwise not be able to attend nature camp with LandPaths! So far, we’ve raised $265,000. Which leaves $35,000 left to go. Will you help us get there? A gift in any amount gets us closer to reaching our full scholarship goal.

Come on out for a pond stewardship day at Rancho Mark West this Saturday, 5/2, from 10am - 2pm! We'll be prepping the pond for summer camp swimming and canoing by getting out on a canoes ourselves to remove azolla and other invasive plants! Or rake up from the shore! 🐢Plus, food, swimming and water games, and maybe even turtle sightings! This event is family friendly and open to participants of all ages. 📍Rancho Mark West is located east of downtown Santa Rosa about 25 minutes into the Mayacamas off Saint Helena Road. Address will be sent upon registration. 🔗Sign up at the Calendar link in bio!