When I covered the Wild and Scenic Film Festival last January, I wrote a piece called “Occupy Confluences”. It’s about creating new systems, the blue lines on the map, and what inspired me to be a more active steward of the two watersheds that receive the run-off from our farm. The creek nearest the Middle Fork Yuba drainage is Bloody Run Creek, and in “Occupy Confluences” I pledge to get to know it better. Toward that end, I started a very unofficial organization called Friends of Bloody Run Creek. At first it was Friend of Bloody Run Creek, but my husband quickly joined. (There are no dues, no meetings, no anything but learning about the creek.) There are three of us now–our friend the Wilderness Wino signing up as well (except there is nothing to sign). Here on the blog we’ll follow our progress as we learn about Bloody Run Creek’s geology and history from its headwaters to confluence. If you’d like to help, email us at lightcapfarm@gmail.com, or leave a comment below. Here’s the link to “Occupy Confluences” if you want to start at the beginning.[http://lightcapfarm.wordpress.com/2012/01/16/occupy-confluences/]
Bloody Run Creek near Backbone Road
Hopeful cedar and Ponderosa pine along Bloody Run Creek.
For years now, my husband and I have indulged in what we call Back Yard Days. These are days when we happily turn left out our driveway, heading away from civilization as we’ve come to tolerate it. Because of the snow, Back Yard Days are usually three season affairs, but this winter there was so little snow we might have even made it to Graniteville to visit the Wilderness Wino. Instead we made our first pilgrimage to Bloody Run Creek as its (un)official Friends. Here’s the view heading home, near a strip of land that we folks up here call the Saddle Back.
Looking west from Backbone Road
Beautiful.
Back bone is one of the places that I can easily identify from Banner Mtn. lookout. I do a once a week shift up there in fire season. It’s lots of fun to orient myself by locating familiar landmarks and learning new ones. Visible from Banner lookout are The top of Sugar Loaf, the pasture at Coughlan’s,
part of the East Diggings below Coughlan’s, Malakoff Diggins and more. You should come up and visit this next season to look at your home from yet a different perspective.
I would like to do that, Penny. Thank you.
This is amazing! At the SYRCL office, we have been facilitating a program very similar to this ‘Occupy Confluences’ but called Watershed Guilds! You should come by to speak with Jessica Roberts or myself, Sarah Phillips so we can help support your endeavors with further information and ideas for gathering more neighbors in your group. Thanks so much for all that you’re doing! Knowing your creek’s watershed is priceless. Best wishes.
Sarah, that is where I got this idea. I heard the presentation that Jason Rainey and others gave at Wild and Scenic. SYRCL kindly put my “Occupy Confluence” piece up as its guest blog for a week, and in that piece I talk about how the idea of Guilds inspires me. Thanks for connecting–I’ll stop by when I’m in town. I want to get to the Doris Foley library to do some research on the creek’s history as well.
You know my favorite geology tours were led by a certain chosen brother of yours. Perhaps he could lead a group on an informative tour?
Great idea!