To the Crew,

Good views up at Cabrillo.  Reptiles are on the move so you have chances to appreciate their iridescence.  We had the pleasure of observing a rattlesnake eat a lizard outside the break room last week.  Be aware of their presence when you are out and about the Park.  Hope you are all having fun “Going Wild” during National Parks Week. I am going to be out of town for the next couple of days, returning on the 29th of April;  Heading down to go smell some Mexican mimulus.

National Park Weeks, April 19-27, 2014
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Come bleed gray and green with us during this week.  We have hikes and programs scheduled throughout the week. Spread the word. Any of you check out that rad video?

Volunteer Appreciation Dinner, Friday May 30th, 2014, 6:00pm

Please join us for an evening of Us.  The dinner takes place at the San Salvador build site and should be a blast.  Its also an opportunity to check out the progress of the ship if you haven’t been down there in a while.  This is our last opportunity to be able to sit under the San Salvador collectively.  It is scheduled to be in the water this summer and sailing by the end of the year.  We might have the opportunity to walk around the decks and smell all that wood.  We have the mains provided.  If you would like to bring some type of dessert feel free to do so.  Also feel free to bring a guest with you as well.  To RSVP for the event put “Don’t let the Cat out of the bag” in the subject line.

Volunteer Recruitment, Saturday May 31st 3:00 to 5:00

Please spread the word.  If you would like to help out for the event please let me know. For more info reference:

http://www.nps.gov/cabr/supportyourpark/volunteer.htm

Artist-In-Residence 2015 Application

April is the month we accept applications for the AIR program at Cabrillo.  Please spread the word to anyone you think might be interested.  Here is the link to our flyer with information regarding the application process:

http://www.nps.gov/cabr/supportyourpark/artist-in-residence.htm

Dusty Socks Club Hike, Ornithology, May 17th 10:00am

Head to the Living Coast Discovery Center (LCDC) in May for the next DSC hike.

http://www.thelivingcoast.org/

1000 Gunpowder Point Drive
Chula Vista, CA 91910

This month’s hike focuses on our avian friends and we get a chance to observe them in their natural element.  The LCDC has a nice hike around its grounds for us to explore.  It is located in the Sweetwater Marsh Wildlife Refuge and offers a great chance for us to witness animals and plants.  We will get a chance to see Ospreys and Terns and many more water fowl.  It’s a peaceful spot.

The hike starts at 10:00am and we recommend you get there early for you have to take a tram into the center.  They run every 15 minutes from their parking lot.  The hike is rated easy.

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.  If you would like to do a presentation, lead a hike or juggle on that day for the public please send me an email with “I joculari” in the subject line.

June 14th 10:00am to 2:00pm, Tidepool Education Table Training

If you are interested in staffing our table during the summer or the year, this is a good training for you to attend.  Even though we don’t have good low tides during park hours over the summer we do get a lot of people visiting the tidepool area.  It is a great opportunity to teach them about the tides and tidepool ecology.  If your interested send Bonnie (bonnie_phillips@nps.gov) an email with “Table Top Stuffing” in the subject line.

Move to Improve Challenge (2014): Elevate Your View, August 9th

So this is the name of our healthy and sustainable parks day.  You like? Keep your calendars open for this new and fun event. During this day bicycles and walkers get into the Park for free. There are also plans for an evening program too! Once we hammer out the logistics, positions will be posted in volgistics for you to sign up and help.  More to follow.

Lecture Series

May 14th, 6:30pm:  “The Natural Environment of the San Diego Region upon U.S. Annexation in 1848″

Imagine walking around San Diego County in the 1830’s as a naturalist, when 90% of the population were Native Americans and just a few Americans had been in the territory.  Was there a perfect state of nature then?  A few famous naturalists came and saw, and kept records of their visits.  What they found helps us imagine how it would have been.

Please join us for a wonderful presentation from James Lightner regarding this topic. He is the author of San Diego County Native Plants (3d ed. 2011) and long-time supporter of Cabrillo National Monument. The lecture focuses on two new publications from SanDiego Flora:

1) San Diego County Plants in the 1830s: The Collections of Thomas Coulter, Thomas Nuttall and HMS Sulphur with George Barclay and Richard Hinds.

2) Parry’s California Notebooks, 1849-51: With Letters to John Torrey.
I attended a version of this talk last year and I am excited this presentation is part of our lecture series.  If you would like to attend please email me with “Coulters romunilairis” in the subject line.

June 13th 6:30pm, Herps and You

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. Please RSVP with “descent of species” in the subject line

August 7th, 6:30pm, Cabrillo Geo

Engineering geologist Michael Hart takes us on a virtual geologic tour of the peninsula.  We are set up for a birds-eye geological overview of the formations that make up the sand we stand on.  Also, learn about land uplift rates and how faults and landslides affect buildings/complexes.  If you would like to attend please RSVP with “horst block” in the subject line.

VIP Voice

Do your friends know what you do up here at Cabrillo?  Reference them to our blog so they can check out what volunteering at Cabrillo is all about:

https://vipvoice.wordpress.com/

We also have a twitter account or view these updates on the wordpress site.  These posts are good ways to live vicariously at Cabrillo when you’re not here.  You can find out weather, cloud formations, ship traffic and things going on at the Park:  @CNM_VIPVoice

Our Friends, Support and Partners

FLOWER MOON, CABRILLO NATIONAL MONUMENT MAY 14, 2014 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm

May is the month when flowers are in full bloom. Join us on May 14 for a ranger-led hike through the grounds and a chance to see the flowering native plants along the trails. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to enjoy the park in the evening, to take advantage of a multitude of incredible photo opportunities,and to watch the sunset and moonrise at the most spectacular viewing spot in San Diego.

Above the Fireworks, July 4th

It is great to see this event happening again.  Hopefully this will become a tradition and another cool event we can offer to the public.  If you would like to help out for this event please send me an email with “2nd Annual?” in the subject line.  Duties include traffic control, roving, helping set up and break down the event.  Job openings are filled on a first come first served basis.  A confirmation email will be sent out to you May 31st.  Also tell your friends about it.  You can see over a dozen firework shoes from up here.  You can get tickets here:

http://friendsofcabrillo.com/calendar-events/#4thofJuly

Deadline: Let’s Knock it out of the Park!

I also forgot to mention that the Padres will make a monetary donation to support the Cabrillo Volunteer Program based on how many tickets we can buy/sell.  Please send an email by May 3rd if you would like to attend or have friends and family that would like to catch a ballgame to support Cabrillo or think you can sell ‘x’ amount of tickets. If we are able to muster up a good size group we can get good seats at a really great price.  Also the more people we get the greater support the VIP program gets from the Padres.  Please send an email with “5.5 Hole” and the amount of tickets you can commit top by May 3rd. If I get a good response we might be catching us a ballgame.  We are looking sometime in July to do this. Also if you have any other questions about this event let me know

Rails to Trails

Do you remember when you used to hop?  When things were E.P.I.C. in California and Guthrie was thinking about the Garden of Eden?  Well, Cabrillo is taking the lead to head up the Pacific Surfliner Rails to Trails program.  This means we jump on trains and interpret southern California history.  Sound interesting?  We are looking for a couple of volunteers that might want to help with this program.  We need a longer term commitment from you and participation in a variety of training is required.  If you can commit to this and are interested please send me an email with “Don’t throw Mama” in the subject line.

Live, Raw and Funky,

Tavio

tdr/dz