James Reserve


We had no problems procuring supplies for the next four days, and settling in; the Trailfinder’s Lodge is deluxe. We arrived in time for lunch. There was snow on the ground but it was patchy, and the road was clear. Grouping together into the vehicles, and to purchase foods at the Food4Less in Beaumont, Ca. had given us opportunity to get to know each other. The impressive lunch spread proved our success in completing a task as a group, and set the mood for the rest of the trip. We had climbed more than 5000 feet in elevation and it was colder, but there were patches of blue sky visible above.
	Next came our introduction to the reserve. Professor Walter began by introducing us to the reserve staff, Kevin and Cathy, and the director Mike Hamilton. Mike is a technology wizard. The lodge has bird feeders stocked, and cameras watching. These video cams and more can be seen, and controlled online. http://www.jamesreserve.edu/
In addition, weather stations and nest boxes can be seen from the porch. Last year the class climbed UCLA hill, but the snow encouraged exploration via the 4- Trail. We grabbed pens, notebooks, water and hats. We hiked from the Trailfinder’s lodge, 5650 ft., to the top of the peak, 6390ft. View a .pdf of the James Reserve Brochure- please don't print-8 pages:-) The mixed oak-conifer contains a distinct community of conifers, oaks and shrubs. We observed each of these community members, as Professor Walter described in his introduction, and I have organized the 3 oaks, 6 pines and 3 shrubs into the table below to include field identifications.

Ceanothus leucodermis

Last updated: April 12, 2004.