Help stop the destruction of the preserve

The preserve manager made a visit to the Mare Island Preserve this morning. This is her words coming from her broken heart. A mile and a half of total devastation. Cutting back trees, shrubs and grasses along the main roadway makes sense. For years we did a really good job of it. Then, the place was sprayed and my heart just wasn’t in getting on the tractor to expose myself to it like Barbara Morris got hit with it. Mowing so freshly sprayed that she didn’t even know. No notice or details of what it was for a week. Today, I drove and walked through varying degrees of basic mowing and tree trimming to the extremes of etching off irreplaceable tree limbs of glorious specimen trees in very visible locations such as the Rowser Garden. The wanton destruction of a beautiful old, very old and ancient rose in the original Rowser Garden prior to the 1934 house move. The beautiful oak near the end of the trail between the two lower bunkers overhanging the roadway. The sole monkey flower growing below its reach. Gone. Along my journey I delighted in the vibrant stands if tarweed blooming along the entry to the visitor center. I was confounded by the senseless mowing of the field near our parking where snakes and frogs live. I was infuriated by the mowing back of the just ready to pick mass of blackberries some 30 ft from the main road. Assured by the Fire Marshall In our predecessor through that there was indeed no reason to cut. Left in piles. Then, to the 85-95 year old CA pepper sliced to the earth. Identified by a tag visible on it as part of the Naval Ammunition Depot National Register Historic District. I was promised by the Fire Marshall and the tree specialist that it would receive a light trim. Around the corner to the Rose where I began to weep. Then, glancing up at our precious landmark cultural landscape contributor CA Coast live oak, I began to lose my breath and shriek uncontrollably. I called the Fire Marshall. I called the Councilmember. I called the Public Works Director...my sole point of contact for this project who hasn’t responded to correspondence since July 5. On along the Rowser Garden, I stop to wonder where all our rather expensive Christmas lights are. Sawed off, thrown in the dumpster? The promised two foot mowing boundaries along the road are now widened to 8-10 ft. A two acre plot is scalped to the earth inviting future erosion and ready access from the golf course. Even this action has startled City staff. No one knows when or why who did it? Down through the oak forest in the ravine we go. Limbs cut off high. Chips poured into the multi trunk bases of the ancient oaks below the road. These chips have been dumped at multiple spots along the Trail. On our primary field of CA poppies. On the naked buckwheat and other natives growing on the point st the turn of the trail below the spirit ship. And all in bloom. Now to get out our rakes to try to recover. Do you get the picture? Carnage and mutilation and brutality in the name of fire protection. Now, they’ve set my heart and soul ablaze. If you care a bit about this previous Preserve. Don’t turn away. Don’t give up. Write a letter to the editor. Call your favorite newscaster. Come to the Preserve and help us heal it. Going to need a lot of repair. Pruning. Mowing. Yes. Pruning and mowing to repair. And mostly, lots of love. Plan a picnic under a tree who just got an arm or foot cut off. Tell her thank you. Tell her you love her. Tell her that while you had not much to do with what happened except paying taxes for this awful thing, that her presence here, this Preserve she lives in, matters to you. Tell her you will do all you can to fight for her forest to be a place of simple peace and tranquillity forever. Did I say fight?! I found this stone near the end of the Trail. I’ve sat here and prayed and silently succumbed to what is. And, now grateful for what is left and the passion to go on, let’s get to work.

now we need your help we need funds for trail camera so when this happens again we will have proff of who did it. We also need funds to hire an attorney. The city of Vallejo needs to be stopped and help accountable for their action. 

Please help with a donation even if its just $1.00. Every dollar helps so please give what you can. Please also share this post daily. Help get the word out. Thank you all so much.