Dear Friends:

Late this afternoon after the sun had dropped down behind the western hill, I walked around Jewel Lake and was rewarded with two pairs of Hooded Mergansers along with the usual Buffleheads.  On this balmy day, dozens of families were also visiting the Tilden Nature Area.

Along the trail on the west side of the lake in the shade of bays and oaks, the trail is damp and some places muddy.  You can almost pretend it's a normal year.  But in the open, the tangles of dry thistle and brown stubble tell you otherwise.

--Phila Rogers


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