A wealth of local history is buried at the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery, along with many other stories that may never be told.

Although it is surrounded by the city now, the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery was at the edge of town when it was established in the early 1850s. But  volunteer and docent Brett Gripe says that's not why it's called the "rural" cemetery.

 Read a brief history of the cemetery here.

From the war in Iraq back as far as the War of 1812, veterans from every major military conflict can be found in the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery. Brett Gripe explains why they are so well represented.

There are numerous ongoing volunteer opportunities, and a regular series of public events are staged at the cemetery throughout the year.

Defenders of California's State Parks say closing them in response to the budget crisis would wind up costing more than it would save.

The list of popular public parks in the North Bay that are slated for closure under the Governor's proposal includes such popular regional destinations as Armstrong Grove (left) , Salt Point, China Camp, Annadel Park, Angel Island, the Marconi Conference Center, and Jack London State Park, where the ruins of his Wolf House (seen below) remain a strong attraction. Here is a list (pdf, 7 pages) of all the parks throughout California that are facing closure --the official term is "caretaker status"--under the Governor's proposal.   The list of economically self-supporting parks that would remain open is much shorter.

In determining whether or not to close the majority of the state parks, as Gov. Schwartzenegger has proposed, Traci Verardo-Torres, Vice president of Governmental Affairs for the California State Parks Foundation, says it is important to weigh both sides of the economic equation, which the list of cuts alone fails to do.

California's State Parks (such as Salt Point, left) are an invaluable resource, one that could be degraded or damaged if they are closed, warns Traci Verardo-Torres.

We tend to think of history as a record of human activity, but a natural landscape also has a history all it's own, which is what is studied in the new field called historic ecology.

The San Francisco Estuary Institute's study of the Napa River ecosystem  was a project that brought together a wide alliance of stakeholders, notes Robin Grossinger (right), and developed information that could be used for multiple purposes.

A little-seen watershed near Occidental, informally known as Waterfall Park, may be moving toward actually becoming a real park.

Conservation consultant David Katz, who is representing the property owner in talks with the Sonoma County Ag and Open Space District, says that while the waterfall there may be the most unusual aspect of Bohemia Ranch, it's really just part of a larger array of natural resources.

There is an element of urgency in the renewed effort to see Bohemia Ranch acquired by the county, not just because the property is already legally allowed to host six future homesites, but also, David Katz adds, because a long-term permit for logging is also in place there.

 As a representative of the current owner of Bohemia Ranch, Katz has also developed a website to market it, which features photographs and a video of the property.

The Community Clean Water Institute says about this property:

The property is on Bohemian Hwy. about four miles from Occidental and
fourteen miles from Santa Rosa. Most of the site is moderate to steep
sloping ridges covered with forest or grassy meadows. The ranch is drained
by three creeks that flow into Dutch Bill Creek, which is just off the
property. The famed waterfall is on lower Duvoul Creek.

Over the past 8 years extensive clean-up and restoration work has occurred
on the ranch. All debris has been removed, roads re-graded and resurfaced,
new roads developed, numerous erosion sites repaired, extensive biologic
evaluation and documentation accomplished, and many new water sources
developed.

A conservation easement on the ranch is held by the Sonoma Land Trust, but
the possibility of subdivision into six separate home sites still exists on
the ranch.

The property is 862 acres, with about 400 acres in fir forest with some
redwoods. The forest has an approved Nonindustrial Timber Management Plan in place, which means that it can be commercially harvested without additional approvals. As a result of quantifying this timber resource a great
opportunity exists to sell carbon credits to raise funds for supporting the
proposed park while simultaneously preventing any further cutting of trees.

The creeks that drain Bohemia Ranch flow directly into Dutch Bill Creek at
the very heart of its watershed. Bohemia Ranch cover approximately 17% of
the entire watershed of Dutch Bill Creek. Dutch Bill creek supports
federally listed endangered species coho salmon and threatened steelhead and has been the focus of considerable restoration expenditures over the past
few years.

The Dutch Bill Creek Watershed Council, the Watershed Institute at
Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, Westminster Woods, and the Goldridge
Resource Conservation District have supplied leadership in implementing
restoration activities on the creek. The Sonoma County Water Agency, CA
Dept. of Fish and Game, NOAA Fisheries, and the University of California
have been actively engaged in restoration on Dutch Bill Creek. Many other
organizations are also involved and are supporting the restoration work on
the creek. All of these organizations support protecting the watershed by
protecting Bohemia Ranch.

The Sonoma County non-profit Land Paths, founded a dozen years ago to help connect urban residents to the natural world around them, is finding that goal taking them in some unexpected new directions.

Landpaths' mission is "to foster a love of the land in Sonoma County," a broad goal that underlies their many day-to-day activities. The common thread among them, observes Executive Director Craig Anderson, is a shared appreciation for the natural world, and a willingness to listen.

 LandPaths offers both a busy list of hikes and other activities , and a wealth of volunteer opportunities such as creating new hiking trails (below).

They also have a lovely online photo gallery of scenes from Sonoma County's outdoors.