FOOTHILLS NATURE PRESERVE
Located in the upper San Francisquito Watershed within the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, this 1,400-acre preserve serves as part of an important wildlife corridor connecting the Pearson-Arastradero Preserve with the Los Trancos Open Space Preserve. The preserve is owned and managed by the City of Palo Alto.
Our focus since 2013 has been to enhance wildlife habitat along Buckeye and Los Trancos Creeks that flow through the preserve, as well as targeting invasive plants scattered throughout the park.
OUR VOLUNTEER PROGRAMS AT FOOTHILLS NATURE PRESERVE
OUR RESTORATION WORK AT FOOTHILLS NATURE PRESERVE
Lawn Replacement
In 2010 we began to transform a part of the large turf lawn that covers Las Trampas Valley within the park into a diverse plot of native plants. Volunteers helped us remove the turf by sheet mulching the area, prep for planting, install native plants, and now help us maintain the area.
The lawn replacement area in spring of 2020
Interpretive Center Native Plant Garden
You can find our native plant garden at the Preserve’s Interpretive Center. The garden exhibits the diversity of locally native plants that can be found throughout the preserve. Over the years, many volunteer groups have helped us install and care for this garden, including our high school and middle school Youth Stewards.
Invasive Removal
Our invasive removal at Foothills focuses on French broom and yellow starthistle, and stinkwort that invade areas of naturally occurring native plants, and use up resources like space, water, and nutrients from the soil. Volunteers have helped us remove these plants to give natives a better chance to grow and reproduce.
Native Plant Nursery
Our Native Plant Nursery has operated at Foothills Nature Preserve since 2003 and plays a fundamental role in our efforts to create healthy natural habitat across Silicon Valley. A 7.7 acre parcel of park land adjacent to our nursery serves as our testing site for differing restoration seeding techniques. The area was previously a staging zone for construction projects, and the ecological health is poor relative to the rest of the preserve. The parcel area was recently opened to the public in 2018, and we now work to control invasive weeds there as well with the hope to facilitate a more complete restoration effort in the near future.
VISIT FOOTHILLS NATURE PRESERVE
11799 Page Mill Road, Palo Alto, CA 94022
Foothills Preserve is open from sunrise to sunset, and has a small entrance fee (not applicable to volunteers). Parking is available at many locations throughout the preserve, please be sure to park only in designated areas. The roads to the preserve are paved winding through the foothill mountains, and there is no public transportation available. There are bike racks available, but getting to Foothills by bike is only recommended for strong bikers.
Our work areas are not necessarily in shade, but shade is available nearby. Be prepared to walk up to 3 miles on paved and dirt trails depending on the worksite location. Some work sites are up a steep slope, but there are benches near many of the work areas. The whole preserve offers fifteen miles of dirt walking trails that wander up and down hillsides, through wooded and unshaded areas. The preserve also features Boronda Lake, many picnic areas, and a campground.
There are four areas in the preserve with flush toilets: Oak Grove, Orchard Glen, the entrance, and the interpretive building. ADA compliant restrooms and wifi are available at the interpretive building. Come prepared to explore with water and a hat, and be aware of rattlesnakes, ticks, and poison oak.
OUR TEAM AT FOOTHILLS NATURE PRESERVE
Project Lead Tyler Feld manages our work at Foothills Nature Preserve, along with two Watershed Stewards Program Members Dmi Rodriguez and Sawyer Porter. Any questions about our work at Foothills Nature Preserve can be directed to Project Lead Tyler Feld.
