The Trail Companion

Our first official day of trailwork at Castle Rock on January 9 was favored with great weather - not too cold, not too hot, and lots of dappled sunshine getting through the tree cover overhead. But turn the clock forward to January 30...

Ooooh, different color paper, different typefaces, even a different layout! I figured the first issue of the year would be a good one in which to make some changes. Actually, most of them are due to me using a different piece of software for layout. From the Editor, Scott Heeschen

If you have spent any time in California wildlands, you have undoubtedly run into yellow star thistle, pampas grass, broom, or any of a host of invasive non-native plants. These plants tend to displace native plant species, changing the structure and function of our local ecosystems, and resulting in a loss of genetic diversity or a decline in other "ecosystem services" upon which we and the animals that inhabit the ecosystems depend. by Geoffrey Skinner

Lyme disease (LD), an infection caused by Borrellia burgdorferi, a type of bacterium called a spirochete, is one of the hazards facing anyone who spends time in the outdoors in California and Oregon, as well as many other parts of the country (the highest concentration of incidence is the Northeast states). Vaccines against LD made the headlines in 1998 when SmithKline Beechem's LYMErix™ gained FDA approval. A second vaccine, ImuLyme™ (manufactured by Pasteur Meriuex Connaught) is awaiting FDA approval. Both vaccines are based on recombinant Borrellia burgdorferi DNA and work to kill the spirochete from the tick before it enters the bloodstream. by Geoffrey Skinner

One of the closest hikes into the hills west of Santa Clara Valley is Villa Montalvo Arboretum and County Park. The Park is outside Saratoga off highway 9 on Montalvo Rd. From the Lookout Point loop hike, you can find a great view of the Valley spreading below; north, from San Francisco Bay, south to Almaden Valley and east to Mt Hamilton and the Diablo Range. This is a good spot for a break or lunch. by Bob Kelly

We didn't have space to run it before the holidays, so here it is now, our Wish List! The following items or help would be greatly appreciated in the Trail Center office: a folding table, a digital camera and help with the newsletter and activity schedule.

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