Hello Friends,

I hope you all had a fantastic Pacific storm experience.  Wasn’t as epic as storms I remember from my youth but we still have a couple months to go yet.  Thanks to the volunteers who came out for tidepool shifts/monitoring; I saw you interact with visitors and dance in the rain.  Now, the Sun is shining, the weather is sweet.  Another tome for your collection.

VNC Meeting Saturday March 8th 10:00am

You are all encouraged to attend a meeting to see how the volunteer committee is paving the way toward excellence, or to get involved and contribute your skills to the committee.  The minutes from the last meeting are attached on this email.

Dusty Socks Club Hike, March 22nd 11:00am

This one is going to be out at Torrey Pines State Reserve.  Come on out and learn about San Diego’s native plants as you breath in the beautiful views of Torrey Pines.  The group meets up top at the visitor center.  TP is a state park and you need to pay to get in.  However, you can walk in or ride your bike in for free.  For more information about Torrey Pines Sate Reserve, here is their website.  The hike will last about an hour and is rated easy.  If you want to make it more challenging (and beautiful) you can continue down to the beach after the guided hike.

http://www.torreypine.org/parks/basic-information.html

Calling WWII Living History, April 1st

On April 1st, 1893 the U.S. Chief Petty Officer was established.  With that a group of Chief Petty Officers from 32nd street would like to come to Cabrillo to celebrate their 121st birthday.  We plan to get a volunteer project organized for them, a tour of the bunkers and a BBQ.

Parks and Open Spaces Saturday June 7th

It is back again and we are gearing up for another festive event.  Along with our standard booth set up and presentations we are having a group of pre 1916 cars coming out to park around the lighthouse.  If you would like to help out for the event you can sign up on volgistics.

Lecture Series

Flora Fantastica

I am hoping we can book for April 16th or 17th.  No word as of yet.  I will keep you posted.

 Herps and You, Friday June 13th 6:30

SDSU Evolutionary Biologist Stephen Rice is loaded with slithering stories of snakes and salamanders.  He has a lot of field experience throughout San Diego County and is ready to share his world with us. Learn about the reptilian world at Cabrillo and hear about Stephen’s genetics study on rattlesnakes.  There is a full moon so we can enjoy that.  We also plan to take a walk to one of our arrays to see what might be waiting for us.

Your VIP Voice

Alright we are closer at becoming cyborgs up here at the Monument.  Next step. Full robots. The pink variety.

Check out our VIP blog on wordpress:  https://vipvoice.wordpress.com/

I encourage you to subscribe so you can get updated on the Cabrillo VIP program and help populate it with your stories.

We also have a twitter account you can subscribe to. You can get up to date posts on weather, ship traffic and things going on at the Park:  @CNM_VIPVoice

Featured Volunteer Section:  We would love to highlight a volunteer monthly on the blog.  If you are interested, let me know and we can go from there.  Information we would want to include, your background, what you do at the Park, why you volunteer at the monument, what you think is special about Cabrillo and a picture of you!  Interested?  You can be as creative as you would like.  Send me an email with “Mary Kathrine Gallagher” in subject line.

Volunteer Tales:  You can also log on this link from the home page and share your VIP stories with us.  I ask your professionalism when telling your stories.

If you would like to be a contributing writer/editor/manager to this forum, hit “Contact Us” link above and let us know your interests.

Healthy and Sustainable Parks Day, August 9th 

More info to come.  We are working on the details of this event.  Keep your calendars open for this new and fun event.  More information to be sent out shortly.

Continuing Education

American Cetacean Society, 7:00pm March 12

They are hosting Dr. Wayne Perryman to be part of their speaker series.  He presents “North Pacific Gray Whales:  New Questions, New Techniques and some New Results”.  Location: Summer Auditorium-Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Dr.  Perryman is currently with NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center.  For the last decade, his research has focused on the development of aerial photographic techniques.  These techniques allow for determining the number of marine mammals in large aggregations, as well as determining the size and shape of individual animals.  This information is used to estimate abundance for populations of dolphins in the eastern tropical Pacific and for seals and sea lions from the California Bight to the Aleutian Islands.   Changes in the condition of individuals within these populations have also been monitored through these developed techniques.  In addition, Dr. Perryman is also very involved in monitoring reproduction in the California gray whale based on data collected from the Peidras Blancas, CA research station.

SDSU Coastal and Marine Institute Laboratory (CMIL) Open House

Gadgets and Gizmos: The Tools we use for Science

The open house is a yearly event designed to showcase SDSU’s marine laboratory.  This event provides educational and outreach activities related to marine science and conservation in local marine ecosystems.  Visitors have the opportunity to interact with SDSU faculty and students and learn about local research being conducted at SDSU and CMIL.

Event Details
Date: March 9th 2014
Time: 10 am – 4 pm
Location: CMIL, 4165 Spruance Rd., San Diego CA 92101
Event Website: http://mebsa.wordpress.com/annual-cmil-open-house/

Event Schedule: Throughout the day there will be interactive exhibits, research talks given by students and faculty, games, a marine life touch tank, SCUBA gear demonstrations, raffles, and much more!

10 am              Doors Open
11 am              Student Presentations, 11:30 Raffle
12 pm              Faculty Presentation, 12:30 Raffle
1 pm               Student Presentations, 1:30 Raffle
2 pm               Faculty Presentation, 2:30 Raffle
3 pm               Student Presentations, 3:30 Raffle
4 pm               Doors Close

Ever wonder what goes on inside a marine research laboratory?  Ever wonder what gadgets and gizmos scientists use to study the marine environment?  Come visit the SDSU Coastal and Marine Institute Laboratory (CMIL) and find out! Meet marine biologists and scientists, interact with local sea creatures, and learn about San Diego’s diverse marine ecosystems.

As a collaboration of students and faculty at SDSU we are thrilled to invite you to our third annual Open House at the SDSU Coastal and Marine Institute Laboratory (CMIL) to occur on March 9th 2014 from 10 am to 4 pm. This a once a year opportunity where CMIL has opened its doors to the public and is a rare chance to experience what goes on at a working marine research laboratory.

The Open House is free and geared toward students, teachers, families and people of all ages and backgrounds. Our goal is to introduce the research conducted in San Diego’s own backyard.  The theme of this year’s open house is: Gadgets and Gizmos: The Tools we use for Science. Interactive activities will showcase the tools scientists at SDSU use to answer important research questions about local marine ecosystems.  Come find out how simple tools can help scientists tackle complicated questions!  Learn how to make artificial seagrass, measure kelp forest microbes, survey kelp forests using SCUBA, and much more!

Get to know SDSU scientists by attending presentations from graduate students and faculty members held every hour. Join the fun and even get the chance to walk away with great prizes from one of our many raffles like snorkel gear, museum tickets, and kayak excursions.

Our Friends and Support

Cabrillo National Monument Conservancy would like you to visit their website and have a look. Send them a letter if you have any suggestions on it.  They want to hear from you.`

http://friendsofcabrillo.com

Cabrillo National Monument Foundation Tickets for this event closed on Feb. 28th.  If you already  have your tickets.  Have fun.

http://www.cnmf.org/images/Cabrillo_Invite_Final-cropped.pdf

Gotta fly, Gotta fight, Gotta Crow,

Tavio

tdr/dz