Tom Schweich  

2025

January, 2025

Thursday, 2 January 2025

Walked the Cottonwood Natural Area with several residents and members of Stewards of Golden Open Space.

View to the north across Cottonwood Natural Area.	View to the southeast, high school at left, surge pond in center, Lookout Mountain Youth Services at right.	Berries of a Lycium, either L. barbarum or L. chinense, in Kinney Run.	View to the south across the Cottonwood Natural Area.	Golden High School as seen from the end of the social trail through Cottonwood Natural Area.

Friday, 3 January 2025

Kinney Run South

Continuation of Kinney Run Trail at the end of Tripp Drive.	Just the north side of the bridge.	Along the trail.	Coarse sediments over fine.	Winter scene in Kinney Run South.
Discarded desk chair in Kinney Run South.	Discarded bicycle in Kinney Run South open space.	Method of connecting a barbed-sire fence to the cliff.	View north through Golden Valley.	View south through Kinney Run South.

Monday, 3 February 2025

Wednesday, 5 February 2025

I made Fix-It report #32913

Planted the following seeds:

• Asclepias incarnata
• Arnica fugens
• Helianthus pauciflora subrhomboidea
• Senecio integerrimus
• Erysimum capitatum
• Astragalus drummondii
• Monarda pectinata
• Mentzelia muda
• Leptodactylon pungens
• Ipomopsis aggregata
• Eriogonum effusum
• Sphaeralcea coccinea
• Mirabilis multiflora
• Penstemon secundiflorus
• Penstemon virens
• Penstemon virgatus
• Achnatherum hymenoides
• Sporobolus cryptandrus

Thursday, 6 February 2025

Fix-It report 32943.

Someone has been riding their mountain bikes through the park and surrounding open space (creating new "social trails"). I think some simple signage, filling the hole, and blocking their current paths with simple "do not enter" held by a couple of wooden stakes tape would hopefully discourage further destruction of our park and open space.

Friday, 7 February 2025

Mountain bike jump and trails in New Loveland Mine Park.

Fix-It Report #32971.

Someone has been riding their mountain bikes through the park and surrounding open space (creating new "social trails"). I think some simple signage, filling the hole, and blocking their current paths with simple "do not enter" held by a couple of wooden stakes tape would hopefully discourage further destruction of our park and open space.

The response on Fix-It was:

Thank you for your report. Two previous reports about this trail were already submitted to FixIt! so staff are aware. Staff will be adding signage to that entire area identifying it a s sensitive area and asking to people to stay out. The signs will be located in way that would deter use of this specific trail. It is likely that additional steps may be required but are working to get the signs in place ASAP. Specific to the jump, this afternoon staff worked to remove or replace the material. ~ Parks Staff

Downhill runout from mountain bike jump.	Mountain bike jump.	Mountain bike trails in New Loveland Mine Park.

Sunday, 23 March 2025

Filed Fix-It Report #33832

On Friday, March 21, 2025, a contractor installed the footings for public art in New Loveland Mine Park. While on my way to the Community Center, I observed them setting up, and then working on the footing for the northerly art piece, and observed them again later in the morning digging out the hole for the footing. It was pretty clear they had run their little backhoe down the concrete trail. Unfortunately, after digging out the southerly footing, the contractor used the social trail to return their backhoe to the parking lot. This is evident in the attached photo as there are two new tracks that span the social trail. The damaged width in the natural area of New Loveland Mine Park is now at least 8 feet wide. This is not the first time a piece of equipment has been driven up the social trail. See Fix-It Report #32059, in which one of our own Stormwater guys drove a Skid-Steer up the the same trail. I had understood in your response to Fix-It reports #32913, #32943, and #32971, that there would be some signage placed around the natural area that "identifying it as sensitive area and asking to people to stay out. The signs will be located in way that would deter use of this specific trail. It is likely that additional steps may be required but are working to get the signs in place ASAP." So far there is no signage, and no other obvious attempt to protect the natural area from unnecessary damage. Since the city's contractors dug a pretty big hole and placed forms around it, I assume that concrete will be poured into the holes. Please direct the contractor not to drive a cement truck through the natural area.

Saturday, 29 March 2025

Walk through New Loveland Mine Park.

Signage at the mountain bike trail.

Sunday, 30 March 2025

Signage at lower end of mountain bike trail.

Monday, 31 March 2025

Golden, CO, to Richfield, UT

Tuesday, 1 April 2025

Richfield, UT, to Pahrump, NV

Old Highway 91

View south towards the pass through the Beaver Dam Mountains.	Joshua tree along Old Highway 91.

Red Rock Canyon

Cross-bedded sandstone at Calico I.	Blackbrush along the road.	Calico Basin seen from High Point Overlook.	“Mohave Yucca” — Yucca schidigera K. E. Ortiges in bloom at the High Point Overlook.	View south from High Point Overlook
Looking towards Red Rock Canyon from the High Point Overlook.

Wednesday, 2 April 2025

Pahrump, NV, to Bakersfield, CA.

Just out of Pahrump we drove west and through some small unnamed hills.

Death Valley

Roads in Death Valley Junction.	Last part of the road to Dante's View.	Floor of Death Valley from Dante's View (2025).	Panamint Mountains across Death Valley (2025).	Billie Mine across Furnace Creek Wash.
Ryan.	Manley Beacon from Zabriskie Point.	Diversion of Furnace Creek Wash into Gower Gulch.	Sea Level.	Tucki Mountain from the Sea Level sign.
View south towards Furnace Creek from the Sea Level sign.	Towne Pass, elevation 4956 feet.	Landscape beside the road at Towne Pass.	Looking back across Panamint Valley in the direction of Towne Pass.	Telescope Peak from the floor of Panamint Valley.
Panamint Valley and Panamint Range (2025).

Trona

Chemical plant in Trona.

Walker Pass

Woolgrowers Restaurant

Thursday, 3 April 2025

Bakersfield, CA, to San Luis Obispo, CA

Lost between McKittrick and Taft.

South side of McKittrick.

Carrizo Plain

Shell Creek

North on Shell Creek Road, April 2025.	South on Shell Creek Road, April 2025.	Castilleja exserta (A.Heller) T.I.Chuang & Heckard “Purple Owl's-clover” along Shell Creek Road.	A field of Goldfields.	North on Shell Creek Road.
Baby Blue Eyes, Goldfields, and Tidy-Tips.

Friday, 4 April 2025

San Luis Obispo to Avila Beach, CA

Sea otter and baby by the Port San Luis Pier.	Sunset at San Luis Obispo Bay.	San Luis Obispo Bay in the morning.

Saturday, 5 April 2025

Avila Beach, CA

Headstone for Grammy & Grampy Halter	Headstone for Frank W. Halter	Headstone for Beverley Jane Halter.	Headstone for Lloyd Wilson Halter.

Sunday, 6 April 2025

Avila Beach, San Luis Obispo, and Cambria, CA

Site of the former roundhouse at San Luis Obispo.	Interpretive panel for Terrace Hill.	View northeast from Terrace Hill.	Trail map for Terrace Hill.	City of San Luis Obispo, Open Space Rules.

San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum

Arch bar trucks of the older boxcar.	California, San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis Obispo County, San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum

Fiscalini Ranch Preserve Bluff Trail

Taraxia ovata (Nutt. ex Torr. & A. Gray) Small in the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve.	Skunk doing some daytime hunting.

Monday, 7 April 2025

Avila Beach, CA, to Las Vegas, NV

Tuesday, 8 April 2025

Las Vegas, NV, to Grand Junction, CO

Wednesday, 9 April 2025

Grand Junction, CO, to Golden, CO

Saturday, 12 April 2025

New Loveland Mine Park