We’ve reached 83 percent of our goal!
For decades, John Kiefer, “Papa John,” has supported conservation on Mount Diablo, bringing people together to support the protection of Mount Diablo’s wild lands.
In Lafayette, John helped create a popular trail system by both planning and directly building new trails throughout the area.
One of the trails that he created, a trail that provides access to the Lafayette Ridge, is even named after him, the John Kiefer Trail.
He’s spent decades hiking throughout our local open spaces; Mount Diablo and its water are particularly meaningful to him.
To John Kiefer, water is special. Whenever he saw a body of water outdoors on his hikes, he had to immerse himself in it. “If I see water, I want to be in it. . . . There are four elements: earth, air, fire and water, and Papa John is water.”
A Visit to Krane Pond
Krane Pond. Photo by Seth Adams
Earlier this year, John, his partner, and our Executive Director, Ted Clement, took a short hike to Krane Pond, eventually standing atop the ridge overlooking the water.
Sitting under the trees of his home bordering Lafayette’s open space, near Briones Regional Park, John recounts his recent trip to Krane Pond: a trip that may be his last-ever hike.
“I could see the east side of Mount Diablo . . . little creeks flowed into the pond,” he says. “There’s very few ponds on Mount Diablo.”
Red-shouldered hawk.
John’s group was treated to a very rare wildlife sighting. “As we were sitting on the ridge, we saw through the binoculars two hawks sitting quite a distance on an oak tree, they were sitting together, which is somewhat unusual for hawks. They flew out and headed towards us.
“We were a quarter of a mile away, and they kept coming, pretty soon we didn’t need the binoculars. We saw that they were red-shouldered hawks, and they circled around, and they flew back and landed in the same place. We kept watching them. Well then, we were invited guests to a mating ceremony! They mated on the branch, so what we observed was a courtship ritual.”
Of course, places like Krane Pond are wildlife hotspots, thanks to the water.
“Looking down into the pond and the two creeks flowing into it, it reminded me that the pond is a source of life for the northern section of Mount Diablo,” says John Kiefer.
“All life needs water, you think of the life that is in the water, fish, and you think amphibians, newts, salamanders, that are gonna be there. There are gonna be snakes and ducks and birds and of course all of the four-footed animals from the skunk up through the raccoon and possums and bobcats, the deer and the mountain. They all can’t survive without water.
“It made realize that this was an extremely important acquisition and essential for life to continue because what would the other option be if we didn’t buy it. It would be developed and that might suggest a fence that would keep a lot of the wildlife from accessing the pond.
“At 89, having made it to the ridge and back again, I know that I won’t visit the pond again, but I will remain connected.
“And so I ask all who are friends of Save Mount Diablo and appreciate the fact that we need to protect the property from development to join me in raising the remaining funds so that the property can be purchased, because it’s simply essential for life to continue on Mount Diablo and it’s also an important piece of the wildlife corridor,” he says.
Illustration of wildlife that could benefit from Krane Pond. Illustration by James Wood Marshall
Save Mount Diablo has $82,593 left to raise towards the permanent protection and stewardship of Krane Pond. Thanks to our amazing donors, we’re getting closer to our goal. Please help us reach the finish line!
