Natural Curiosity

10/31/2026

Happy Halloween! 🎃 If you're looking for a terrifying real life story from our natural world this Halloween, look no further than these shocking revelations about how some walruses have adapted to be highly efficient serial seal killers instead of harmless bottom feeders.

Spoiler Alert: they might be real-life sea dementors, whatever you do, don't let a walrus kiss you...

Walruses Are Terrifying... Here's Why explores the hidden predatory...

10/23/2026

Would you stay in a 130+ year old historic adobe hotel in a ghost town all by yourself during the spooky season? Aren't you curious what you might see & hear? 👻🎃🦇🕸️🕷️

10/06/2026

If you're curious about the geologic timeline of the Hillsboro area, check out this free presentation at the Black Range Museum on Saturday October 10th at 10AM. Saturday mornings are a great time to visit Hillsboro because of the Pickers Circle live music, Farmers Market, and many of our unique local businesses (General Store Cafe, Hillsboro Tradin' Post, and PINTO) are open!

09/30/2026

FS Road 157 at Hermosa where South Palomas crosses the road the day after we got 1.6" of rain associated with Hurricane Polo. Creek flow is holding steady today, so it likely won't be safely crossable with a vehicle until Thursday or Friday. We won't have any info on the rest of the road between Hermosa & Winston until we can cross S Palomas.

09/30/2026

Sierra County Teachers, you are invited to join us October 6th from 5-7 PM in the Grotto of the T or C Brewery to learn more about our organization, our education programs, and develop new ideas for Sierra County kids!

Feel free to register if you plan to attend using this link: https://forms.gle/btUYV9XwGWmtekGB8

Registration not required!

09/30/2026

We received 1.65" of rain at Hermosa yesterday and the South Palomas is flowing!

09/25/2026

One more week before registration for the Burro Race closes. Don't miss out!

09/15/2026

Hey all, meet our new Wilderness Stewardship Director, Noel Gill.

With deep roots in New Mexico, Noel’s life and career have been shaped by a lifelong connection to public lands. After earning her B.S. in Earth & Planetary Sciences from the University of New Mexico, she spent 18 years with the U.S. Forest Service, ultimately serving as Wilderness Manager on the Apache National Forest.

Her experience spans wilderness management, trail crews, packing, saw instruction, forest protection, and mentoring. Noel is passionate about teaching primitive skills, from stock packing and crosscut saws to orienteering, wild plants, and friction fire, and helping others build meaningful connections with wild places and become lifelong public land stewards.

We warmly welcome her to our team!

09/08/2026

The clouds rolling in behind Hermosa were magnificent yesterday evening. Also a shout out to our historic barn renovation and all those who’ve been working on it. It’s a difficult project, but totally worth it!