Fruits of Eden: Preparations for the Release!

My book Fruits of Eden: Field Notes Napa Valley 1991-2021 is about to be released, so I contracted with Janna Waldinger of Art & Clarity to take some photos. This is one of my favorites. Each day some of my dear animals walk with me. (Here, Petunia, the goat, and HIjo, the llama.)  For almost 30… Read more »

Phase One of Implementing Our Forest Management Plan

My friend Norma says the forest looks like a painting with its lithe, dark trunks of oak and madrone silhouetted against the sunlight. The crew has thinned out young bay laurel and the bushy, tall stands of poison oak and invasive Himalayan blackberries. Yes, I always thought of the forest as verdant, but the over-the-top… Read more »

Tending Trees

When I spoke with Charlie Toledo last week about the forest on our ranch, she said she was always concerned about the overgrowth. First People would have kept the forest thinned with cultural burning so the stream would be accessible to deer and coyotes, so there would be reeds for baskets and the acorns, healthy. … Read more »

Thinking Like a Mountain: Aldo Leopold

Hairy Woodpecker Cornell Lab of Ornithology The Saturday afternoon of the Geography of Hope Conference on Aldo Leopold sponsored by Point Reyes Bookstore last weekend, offered field trips. I chose the Mt. Wittenberg hike because it was strenuous and one of my favorite hikes in the world. As it turned out, to use one of… Read more »