Life on the Watershed: Summer's Youth

It’s summertime, the season of renewal and regeneration, and new, young life is thriving on the watershed. Watershed keeper Sarah Lenz has spotted half-grown foxes and bobcats—both reclusive nocturnal species that keep to hollows and other remote spots during the day. So any sighting of a cub is particularly lucky.

Flowering shrubs are in full bloom and sure to proliferate, alive as they are with bees, hummingbirds, and other pollinators. 

Plump young songbirds are everywhere, and the resident bald eagle pair has reproduced again. This year's three juveniles are just about

to fledge, and people on the trails might start seeing them too, high in flight above. 

The 17.5-mile Crystal Springs Trail—consisting of the Sawyer Camp Trail, the San Andreas trail to the north, and the southernmost Crystal Springs segment—is managed by the County of San Mateo Parks Department and open to the public every day.

For a more solitary watershed experience, the SFPUC’s Fifield-Cahill Ridge Trail is open by reservation for docent-guided hikes and bike rides on selected Saturdays and Sundays. To find out what's coming up over the next few weeks, visit sfwater.org/ridgetrail.

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