Branch Out with Wildflowers
Riddell Preserve, Healdsburg 
Saturday, April 6th 2024 

10am to 2pm 

Description:

Join LandPaths, Ag + Open Space District, and Positive Images for a hike around Riddell Preserve and experience the reawakening of nature as seen on the amazing forest floor! This outing is apart of LandPaths' new Branch Out series, centering LGBTQ+ community members with the purpose of creating a sense of belonging and inclusive spaces in the outdoors. Allies are welcomed! Get a close at what happens on the forest floor after the winter rains pass and spring sunshine helps the seedlings to make their way out the ground and into the world. You'll be sure to leave this hike with an understanding of the beautiful flowers, plants, and ferns that make up the Riddell forest. If were lucky we can see some early spring flowers beginning to sprout. This hike is open to all and and we welcome all level of knowledge to join! 

Details: 

• We will ask you to sign a waiver of liability

• There is no potable water on the property

• We ask that you leave your pets at home for this event.

• There is no smoking allowed on the preserve. 

Difficulty:

Expect to do a 1.5-mile round-trip hike up a steep but well-graded narrow trail to Steve's Cabin. We'll then go to another trail across moderately steep, sometimes narrow trails to inspect the forest floor. Be prepared for hike for at least 1 to 1 1/2 hours total. This will be a slower hike focusing in on looking at what is sprouting and popping up around the property. Lots of breaks and time to rest! 

About the area:

The Riddell Preserve is a 400-acre nature preserve located 5 miles northwest of Healdsburg, California. It is within the Dry Creek watershed and the Crane and Kelley Creek sub-watersheds.  It is an ecologically diverse landscape, with steep ridges alternating with riparian drainages, rock outcrops, meadows, redwood groves, chaparral, and hardwood forests.  Riddell has magnificent native grasslands, pure madrone stands, redwood fairy rings, and perennial springs. Hike miles of oak-dotted hills, moss-coated rocks, and swaths of ferns. The preserve is almost entirely undeveloped, with only a barn, a cabin, a shed, solar panels, piping, and 3 water tanks to deliver water to the cabin.  The preserve was donated to LandPaths in 2007 by the Riddell family for conservation purposes.

What to bring: 

• Bottle of water, snacks, and lunch for the day

• Comfortable clothing to protect from the sun (hat, sunglasses, sunscreen)

• Comfortable walking shoes (that can get dirty and waterproof if possible)

• Optional: Hand lens and plant ID books

Where we will meet you: 

Meet LandPaths' staff in the parking lot of the Healdsburg Corporation Yard at 550 Westside Rd, Healdsburg, CA 95448. Once everyone arrives we will caravan to the preserve. Please arrive on time. 

Directions: 

From Highway 101 North, take the Central Healdsburg Exit. and make a slight left on Healdsburg Avenue.  Turn left onto Mill Street.  Continue under the highway overpass as Mill Street turns into Westside Road. The Corporation Yard parking lot will be on the left immediately before the bridge crossing at the intersection of Westside Rd and Lucius Way. There is a "Corporation Yard" sign at the entrance to the parking lot.           
   
From Highway 101 South, take the Westside Exit and turn right on Westside Rd.  The Corporation Yard parking lot will be on the left immediately before the bridge crossing at the intersection of Westside Rd and Lucius Way.

Staff: 

Our staff is certified in the minimum of CPR and First Aid, and they have training and years of experience working in outdoor spaces. All staff has had their backgrounds checked through fingerprinting.

Additional details:

Scholarships/work trades
Don't have the funds? reach out to us about sliding-scale scholarships.

Accessibility:

If you have accessibility questions, please call or email us with any questions or concerns you may have.

Same-day cancellations:
Please call 707-544-7284 (then press 1) after 7 am the morning of the day if you wish to confirm. If you don't hear a cancellation notice in the highlighted voicemail, the day hasn't been canceled.

How to sign up: 

Click here!

Do you need help registering?

• call Roxy at 707-544-7284 ext 103 or

• email her at roxy@landpaths.org

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