San Bruno Mountain Watch

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San Bruno Mountain Watch

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Explore the Mountain in the City! Colorful grasslands, thick woodland canyons, trickling creeks, and scrubby hills grace the mountain's fascinating terrain.

San Bruno Mountain State and County Park, one of the largest public parks in urban America, is home to over 13 rare and endangered plants and 3 endangered butterflies. San Bruno Mountain Watch protects these rare species and unique habitats while helping local communities explore and learn about the mountain. We also grow the mountain's native flora at our Mission Blue Nursery.

10/30/2026

Please join us for planting and gardening event tomorrow morning 10/31 at the San Bruno Mountain Botanical Garden! We’ll give you candy 🍭 Halloween costumes are welcome; we’ll be dressed up for the occasion! 9:30am at San Bruno Mt State and County Park! Sign up on our website. We will also have a storytelling circle featuring spooky San Bruno Mountain stories from our historical archives

10/22/2026

Be the first to see a new documentary film about San Bruno Mountain!

The film is titled Wild Presence and is by Elena Fava Emerson.

Elena is a photojournalist and filmmaker.

The film duration is about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

A Q&A session will follow with Elena and members of the San Bruno Mountain community. There will be other mountain exhibits and activities set up in the event space.

The venue, 99 Leland Avenue, is a community space generously hosted by the owners of Mission Blue Cafe, Kellie and Ken— Mission Blue | San Francisco Coffee Shop is up the street at 144 Leland. Leland Avenue is the heart of San Francisco’s Visitacion Valley neighborhood.

This will be a cozy premiere with room for 25 people, so please get your required ticket below as soon as possible! Tickets are free but donations are welcome.

Street parking on Leland Ave and parking in the surrounding neighborhood is available but can be challenging; please plan to arrive with enough time to find a parking spot or take public transportation.

The film features: Volunteers and students in action, the mountain’s ecology, histories of saving the mountain, and interviews with David Schooley (co-founder of San Bruno Mountain Watch), Candace Low (Biology professor at San Francisco State University), Mike Vasey (Emeritus professor at San Francisco State University and co-author of Field Guide to Manzanitas), Doug Allshouse (co-author of San Bruno Mountain: A Guide to the Flora and Fauna), David Schmidt (author of San Francisco Bay Area: An Environmental History), and Paul Bouscal (a hike leader and docent on San Bruno Mountain).

10/03/2026

New butterflies have emerged from their paper chrysalises—pipevine swallowtail, variable checkerspot, and the San Bruno elfin are ready for your collection, in addition to the classic mission blue and callippe! Come fold yours tomorrow at Day in the Park in Brisbane!

09/23/2026

The "Meet the Mountain Fair" this Saturday is going to be so much fun!!

Please join us at the Mission Blue Center at 475 Mission Blue Drive in Brisbane (not the Mission Blue Nursery). It's free!

This community gathering will be a celebration of San Bruno Mountain, with opportunities for everyone—from new park visitors to long-time mountain explorers—to learn more about its ecology, history, and stewardship, and be creative together!

There will be:

-Over 100 exhibits of mountain art and photography, the mountain's flora, fauna, history, and restoration projects

-talks and presentations plus short film screenings

-Botanical illustration activities with science illustrator Sami Chang from 11am to 3pm

-display of ikebana flower arrangements made from native plants

-microscopes for close observation of natural materials and pressed plants from the mountain

-cyanotype plant printmaking

-birding activities led by the SF Bay Area Feminist Bird Club and the Golden Gate Bird Alliance's Bird Curious bird curious group

-We'll also be joined by the San Mateo County Parks interpretive team and the CNPS Yerba Buena Chapter

-Acoustic concert at 1pm! Featuring songs from the upcoming record Of This Earth, written in the ecosystems of the UC natural reserves (Guitar/Fiddle/Singer/Songwriter: Jashvina, Mandolin: Chris, Bass: Aspen)

-food and drinks!

-native plant displays from Mission Blue Nursery—and free plants!

Thank you to the City of Brisbane, CA for co-sponsoring this event by providing the Mission Blue Center facility! We also appreciate the SMC Office of Arts & Culture for providing financial support for this event! Food donated by BiRite Foodservice Dist. and others!

09/19/2026

See the mountain like never before—at our microscopy station during the “Meet the Mountain” Fair on 9/26! We’re excited to unveil our mobile mountain herbarium full of pressed native plants as well as our mini mountain library full of curious items. We’ll have a dozen stereo microscopes set up for your to journey into the mountain’s microscopic worlds. Get your free ticket on our website at www.mountainwatch.org/upcomingevents and see what other activities and exhibits we’ve prepared!

09/08/2026

Native Plant Sale this Saturday! This is a great time to plant natives before the rains come!

08/14/2026

Learn about the art of Japanese flower arranging using native plants from San Bruno Mountain! Hosted at the Mission Blue Nursery

Registration required. Space limited! Buy your ticket on our website.

Containers, bowls, vases, and kenzan will be provided—or bring your own!

Plants sourced from our nursery and garden

$25 workshop fee

Live demo followed by arrangement session with instructor feedback

You will have the opportunity to lend one of your ikebana arrangements to be displayed publicly at the “Meet the Mountain Fair” on September 26th!

Instructor:

Laura Cohen is an all around artist who has been studying and making ikebana in the Sōgetsu-ryū style for the last 7 years. They are an active member of Ikebana International, Chapter 31, while taking classes in horticulture and floristry at CCSF since 2019.

After years of exploring the art of flowers under Thanh Hosui Nguyen, who holds a Riji level diploma, the highest level of teaching offered within the Sogetsu School, Laura is just beginning their career as an ikebana instructor and aims to educate other ikebana enthusiasts about the importance of choosing ethical and local materials.

08/13/2026

There is still time to apply to the Watershed Stewardship Training Program for Colma Creek!

Participants will engage in a series of paid workshops focused on restoring Colma Creek, protecting local habitats, and advancing environmental justice efforts.

People who live, work, or study within the Colma Creek watershed are especially encouraged to apply.

Deadline: August 24th, 2026 by 11:59pm.

Application link: https://forms.gle/xzrEgXhyipPgBKYF7

We are excited to be hosting this program with Rise South City and with the support of a Measure AA community grant from SF Bay Restoration Authority!

07/31/2026

San Bruno Mountain is a bayside mountain—how can we protect and care for the shorelines at its eastern base?

We're excited to take part in the City of South San Francisco's “Day on the Bay” this Saturday. Join us for a family-friendly community event with opportunities to learn and give input about the SSF Shoreline Protection and Connectivity Study.

We'll have powerful scopes on hand for birdwatching and other fun activities to learn about the ecological and cultural connections between the mountain, its watersheds, and its adjacent shorelines.

Saturday, August 1, from 10:00AM – 12:00PM at Oyster Point Park (95 Harbor Master Rd 1 )

RSVP at EventbriteProtectConnectSSF.eventbrite.com or visit www.ssfca.gov/protectandconnectssf

07/28/2026

Very Happy Birthday, David! And here is to many more!

Address

44 Visitacion Avenue Ste 206
Brisbane, CA
94005

Website

http://www.mountainwatch.org/

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