Written by Haley Sutton, Land Stewardship Associate and Kendra Smith, Education & Outreach Coordinator
Mulch Madness
AXA XL crew at Ginochio Schwendel Ranch. Photo by Haley Sutton
AXA XL joined staff for a volunteer stewardship day at Ginochio-Schwendel Ranch to chip woody debris along the fire road through the property.
We had an enthusiastic bunch who endured through the heat to help us clear piles of tree branches along the road. Thank you, AXA XL, for your hard work!
Staff have been gathering mulch to add to our pollinator garden at Marsh Creek 7 and picnic area at Mangini Ranch Educational Preserve with volunteers later this summer.
Join our summer watering crew! This year we will be convening on Wednesday mornings to water all our native plantings.
Monitoring Milkweed
Monarch Joint Venture monitoring technicians surveying milkweed plants. Photo by Haley Sutton
Monarch Joint Venture staff conducted California milkweed monitoring at Curry Canyon Ranch as part of their training for their monitoring season throughout California.
They surveyed three of the four planting sites from this past winter and spotted a total of 45 plants!
Staff also explored around the property where additional naturally occurring milkweed has been observed and found an additional 20 plants in bloom, some of which were already forming seed pods.
Weed Warriors
Save Mount Diablo and East Bay Regional Park District staff with bags of pulled oblong spurge. Photo by Sean Burke
Stewardship staff finished up fire abatement before this year’s May 12th deadline.
Staff completed line trimming at the following properties: Lot 25, Anderson Ranch, Marsh Creek 4, 6, 1, 7, Big Bend, Thomas Home Ranch, Thomas Kirker Creek, Oak Hill Lane, and Smith Canyon.
Our caretakers at Balcerzak and Wright Canyon completed mowing and line trimming too.
Staff line trimmed a large patch of invasive Italian thistle (Carduus pycnocephalus) at Curry Canyon Ranch and joined East Bay Regional Park District staff at Diablo Foothills Regional Park to pull invasive oblong spurge (Euphorbia oblongata) from the creek banks in Pine Creek.
Wilderness First Aid
Hiking during our wilderness first aid/wilderness first responder course. Photo by Sean Burke
Save Mount Diablo staff and volunteers gathered at Curry Canyon Ranch for a wilderness first aid/wilderness first responder refresher course with Backcountry Medical Guides.
The instructors taught valuable emergency skills and tested everyone’s knowledge throughout the course by running scenarios out on the trail.
Wilderness first aid training at Curry Canyon Ranch. Photo by Mary Nagle
It was a fun and interactive way for the team to learn these essential skills and be well prepared to support the safety of anyone participating in a Save Mount Diablo program.
Thank you to Backcountry Medical Guides for sharing their expertise!
Two-Week Public BioBlitz
Barn owl spotted in the Diablo Range during our two-week BioBlitz. Photo by Kendall Oei
We’re celebrating another successful year of citizen science with our 2025 two-week BioBlitz, which spanned all 12 counties of the Diablo Range!
Save Mount Diablo’s BioBlitz events offer a unique snapshot of biodiversity within a specific place and time, providing valuable data that helps shape stewardship and land management decisions across the region.
White globe lily spotted in Henry W. Coe State Park during our BioBlitz. Photo by Frenchy Hendryx
This year, we surpassed last year’s numbers for both observations and species recorded. Nineteen dedicated observers contributed an impressive 1,398 observations, identifying 474 species.
Among them were several rare and charismatic finds, including the California condor, California whipsnake, American badger, Crotch’s bumblebee, and foothill yellow-legged frog.
Participants also spotted many beloved species such as golden eagles, Mount Diablo globe lilies, gray foxes, and mule deer.
We’re excited to continue expanding our efforts throughout the Diablo Range, with the goal of increasing protected lands and preserving this vital wildlife corridor.
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who participated and helped make this year’s BioBlitz a success!
Discover Diablo
Mitchell Canyon wildflower hike. Photo by Jim and Sharon Lawrence
Mitchell Canyon Medicinal Herb Walk, May 3rd.
Canceled.
Wonder Hike, May 4th.
A fun outing was had by all on this hike through Save Mount Diablo’s Curry Canyon Ranch. The weather was perfect and everyone embraced the theme of “wonder” by sharing thoughtful observations of the plants and animals seen on this outing.
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Spring Forest Immersion Walk, May 10th.
Participants got to experience the serenity of slowing down and enjoying a calmer pace in nature on this forest immersion walk.
The hike leader guided everyone through meditative activities along the way and ended with a picnic of snacks and tea, leaving us feeling more rested and peaceful at the end of the outing.
Spring forest immersion walk. Photo by Alex Mistuloff
Las Trampas Oaks, May 11th.
Folks looking for a bigger adventure enjoyed the challenge of hiking one of the East Bay’s most spectacular ridges. East Bay Regional Park District Naturalist Kevin Dixon shared about the oaks and their importance in the ecosystem and found wildflowers and other fun plants along the way.
Knobcone Point hike. Photo by Emily Sherwood
Knobcone Point and Curry Canyon Road Trail Dedication, May 15th.
Participants were excited to celebrate the new trail connections in the Mount Diablo backcountry between Curry Point and Morgan Territory.
Led by Executive Director Ted Clement and Land Programs Director Sean Burke, everyone enjoyed a six-mile loop utilizing these new trails, one of multiple loops now available to explore.
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Wildflower Hike – Mitchell Canyon, May 17th.
Mariposa and Mount Diablo globe lilies were the stars of this beautiful wildflower hike in Mount Diablo’s Mitchell Canyon. It was lovely for everyone to see the wildflowers still abundant on the slopes as we get closer to summer.
