Taylor Mtn Winter 2015 Range Class

As the instructor for the Santa Rosa Junior College Range Class, I give students an education about using livestock grazing as a tool in Sonoma County to manage resources; especially in our regional and state parks. I took my class to Taylor Mountain Regional Park to experience rangelands and the use of grazing. The following blog post was written by student Randy Mazzuca.

Recently, my classmates and I went on a hike through Taylor Mountain to learn about the multiple uses of rangelands for ranchers and for the public. As a professional whose whole job is to connect people with the animal world, I was taken by what a rare experience it was for so many people to see something so mundane as a cow.

I'm willing to admit that I am just as guilty as anyone for being impressed by this. When I first moved to the Bay and went hiking through Mount Diablo where cows were grazing I was just as bad as anyone. I asked myself questions like “Is that safe?” “Am I supposed to go in there? Did I read that right?” These are not quarrelsome charging water buffalo or wild deer, these are the standard of what livestock is but it seemed like a daring experience to go walking past them in an uncontrolled environment. I had no idea what the rules were for interacting with them but it didn't take much to learn them.

What does this say about society that seeing a cow is a noteworthy experience? Are we really that accustomed to city life and only seeing other human beings that this is considered daring? I've got a lot more exotic animal experience than most people but I found myself feeling rejuvenated by the glory of the animal world just by interacting with these “dumb cows.”

I dread the generations that are very quickly coming up where there will be no nature left, where it's not possible to take a break from the city and just walk through the blank slate of a hillside and feel yourself refreshed by clean air and rolling hills. I feel like just this one quick trip was enough to motivate me to keep preservation of rangelands in my mind and I hope other people will always have the opportunity to have the same experience.

This semester, I am teaching Range Management at Santa Rosa Junior College.  I have asked my students to give their impressions of what they are learning in the form of a blog. This blog was written by student Emily Kohl.

There are many wonderful activities and animals you can see and enjoy while visiting Taylor Park Regional Mountain in Santa Rosa. Taylor Mountain is a 1,100 acre fairly new public addition the city. It provides the community with bird watching, disc golf, equestrian trails, biking trails and wonderful hiking/walking trails that are shared with wildlife and livestock. Cattle have been spotted walking along the trails and grazing in the fields. This brings a whole new experience to those hikers who are used to hiking other Regional parks that do not incorporate agricultural/ranching land as part of the park. The grazing cattle help manage the land in a natural way and help the growth of the lands vegetation, which provides the hiker with a different kind of beauty while hiking these trails.

Before the land opened to the public, it was owned by the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District.  The Board of Supervisors transferred the title from the District to the Regional Parks, but still manages the land to make sure conservation and preservation are still its number one goals. They maintain and limit the use of how the natural resources are used and making sure the land is still protected while the public uses it for outdoor recreation and leisure. They also use continue to use the land for agricultural and educational purposes. This land consists of many different habitats that allow a vast array of experiences to those who visit. The habitats the public can experience while visiting Taylor Mountain are forests, woodlands, wetlands, and grasslands that all provide a home to many wildlife and livestock.

The reason this land is so amazing and different is how the city is able to manage an area that combines both agricultural conservation and public recreation. With this combination of activities comes even more planning and management to make sure this land continues to thrive in both areas. With the introduction of outdoor recreation and more human impact on the land, the park need to make sure that the area is monitored constantly, the public knows and is following the rules and the land and cattle are being respected. The park has done a wonderful job of making the visitors knowledgeable of  its history and the goals for sustaining the land. They provide an abundance of information on their website site. 

I highly recommend people visit Taylor Mountain and take the time to read the history and goals behind this amazing park.