Save Mount Diablo needs to raise $1.455 million to permanently protect the 98-acre Ginochio Schwendel Ranch. It’s a key parcel in the Marsh Creek watershed, with rare dacite volcanic habitat along Marsh Creek’s Dark Canyon section.
The Ginochio Schwendel Ranch features unusual geology and soils that support rare plants. Photo by Scott Hein
If we are successful, it will be the first property Save Mount Diablo is purchasing directly from Contra Costa County’s Ginochio cattle ranching family, which owns nearly 7,000 acres on and around Mount Diablo.
Protecting this land will additionally help preserve the habitat connectivity of the Marsh Creek watershed, which contains the second longest and most undisturbed creek in Contra Costa County.
Save Mount Diablo signed an option agreement to purchase the Ginochio Schwendel Ranch in December 2023, and it’s almost time to finalize the acquisition. We need your help to raise the funding that will go towards the purchase price and long-term management of this land.
The Ginochio Family
The Ginochio Schwendel Ranch. Photo by Mary Nagle
The Ginochio family is the most important landowning family in Contra Costa County. Their lands include some Save Mount Diablo’s top conservation priorities, including Arroyo del Cerro, sections 5 and 9, and the Ginochio Schwendel Ranch.
John Ginochio at Moonlight on the Mountain. Photo by Laura Kindsvater
“I’m pleased to make this deal with Save Mount Diablo. When you think of influence, people often think about big environmental groups. Personally, I think Save Mount Diablo is the most influential environmental organization in our area. I’ve worked cooperatively with them for over 50 years. . . . I’m happy to see this part of the Ginochio Schwendel Ranch go to Save Mount Diablo because they have always been a good neighbor,” said John Ginochio.
The Ginochio family has resided in Contra Costa County since 1867.
Over 158 years, they created and have stewarded the biggest cattle ranching operation in the county.
Save Mount Diablo’s history with the Ginochio family goes back decades.
In the 1980s, Save Mount Diablo was working to stop a freeway that would have cut through Diablo Foothills Regional Park, Shell Ridge Open Space, Mount Diablo State Park, and the Ginochio family’s land.
The freeway would have caused enormous ecological damage to the Mount Diablo region.
To stop this project, cattle rancher John Ginochio began working with Save Mount Diablo’s first employee, Seth Adams, who was hired in 1988 and is now our Land Conservation Director.
Save Mount Diablo staff hike through the trees at Ginochio Schwendel Ranch. Photo by Laura Kindsvater
Together they advocated against this disastrous freeway every time it was proposed, preserving the habitats and connectivity of the local parks that have been explored and treasured by generations of Contra Costa County residents.
Since then, John Ginochio has been a major conservation partner to Save Mount Diablo, supporting our work in numerous ways, such as practicing conservation grazing on several of our properties.
2018 BioBlitz at Arroyo Del Cerro. Photo by Al Johnson
In 2018, Save Mount Diablo partnered with John Ginochio to host our annual BioBlitz on the 2,000-acre Arroyo Del Cerro Ranch, which has been owned by the Ginochio family since the late 1800s.
It was a remarkable opportunity for scientists and naturalists to research one of Mount Diablo’s most biodiverse areas, cataloguing 419 species in just 24 hours.
Protecting the Ginochio Schwendel Ranch would deepen Save Mount Diablo’s relationship with the Ginochio family and open up the possibility of further land protection projects on and around Mount Diablo.
Protecting Rare Habitat
The Ginochio Schwendel Ranch rises from 530 feet to 1,140 feet—with dramatic views. The property is part of the Marsh Creek riparian corridor that connects Mount Diablo to the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. It’s also part of a wooded habitat corridor from Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve through East Bay Regional Park District’s Clayton Ranch south to Morgan Territory Regional Preserve and Mount Diablo State Park. Photo by Cooper Ogden
The unusual volcanic habitat that characterizes the Ginochio Schwendel Ranch supports numerous rare and native plants.
The ranch is a distinctive and important piece of Mount Diablo. As a part of the Marsh Creek watershed, and a major wildlife corridor, it is of very high ecological value.
“I learned more about its volcanic character from Save Mount Diablo as they sponsored research on their neighboring property,” said John Ginochio.
“I’m really happy we can help expand the protected volcanic habitat instead of more houses.”
Marsh Creek. Photo by Cooper Ogden
The property is directly adjacent to Marsh Creek 5, a 7.4-acre site that includes an undercrossing for wildlife and a 100-feet segment of Marsh Creek.
Permanently protecting the Ginochio Schwendel Ranch is another big step towards the preservation of the critically important Marsh Creek watershed.
Please help us save this key parcel. Donate today to help!
