Rincon

On Monday, March 16, our class took a field trip to the Rincon reservation. That afternoon, I began getting ready to go. I put on some clothes that I didn't mind getting dirty, since Deborah had told us ahead of time that we were going to be planting some native plants. I would have brought a shovel with me, but I didn't have access to one. After I got my things together, I left home and headed over to the school campus. I parked and walked quickly to ARTS 239 so that I could check out a camera. When I got there, Zane was also getting a camera. He got the last Canon, so I had to go with something different: a Panasonic. He waited until I was finished, and then Zane and I walked back to the front of the school. He was meeting with his carpool group and the turnaround, and I had to go meet up with Andrew in the lower parking lot. Andrew was already there when I drove down, so I parked and jumped into his truck.

The drive there took a little longer than we expected because of traffic, but we still managed to get to Rincon in time. Our directions were a little bit confusing as well. We didn't have too much trouble finding where to go because other students from our class were driving near us.

When we arrived, we unpacked and headed over to the site where we would be planting. After everyone showed up, we were given a brief introduction and instructions for how to design our landscapes. We were divided into groups, and then we began planning where to put our plants.

It really turned out to be a fun experience. I couldn't even remember the last time I had picked up a shovel before that day. Zane and I helped each other plant close to half of the plants that our group was given, and we had a really good time. Once our group had finished, Deborah took a few of us on a walk to look at native plants near the river, which was dry at the time. I am having trouble remembering all of the native plant names, but I know that we saw Mule Fat, Wild Mustard, and Tree Tobacco among others. There were also still some burnt tree trunks on the hillside left over from the 2007 wildfires.

Soon, it was time to clean up and head home. We were given mugs from the reservation as gifts for helping out. Andy and I got walked back to the car and headed back to the school campus. We were both exhausted and ready to go home to a nice dinner! All in all, it was a great trip, where I had the opportunity to do something that I'd never imagined I'd be part of.