SAVE MOUNT DIABLO LAND TRUST
This organization has been protecting lands in and around Mount Diablo since 1971. They saw a need for a local voice to protect our open spaces. Local action is critical to attracting public funds that might otherwise go elsewhere. SMD steps in to purchase properties that later can be integrated into EBRPD or Mount Diablo State Park.
My involvement with Save Mount Diablo goes back to around 2009 when my wife and I began substantial contributions and I joined the Land Committee. We liked the SMD balance of priorities.
ACQUISITION
Acquisition and protection of land is the heart of a Land Trust. Know the local landowners, their family, their goals and become a partner of sorts by offering preservation as a family planning option.
ADVOCACY
Advocacy means having a seat at the table when local development threatens sensitive lands or when a voice for land protection needs to challenge local developers or city planners. This is not an easy job but one that tries to create a better outcome within the development process.
STEWARDSHIP
Stewardship has always been defined as restoring properties to a more natural state, providing trails for recreational opportunities, and encouraging volunteer involvement in stewardship projects.
TRAILS ACTIVITY
In the early 2000s, Save Mount Diablo purchased an important 430-acre property called the Silva Ranch. Knowing that this property needed public trail access, SMD secured the help of an organization called the East Bay Trail Dogs to help build trails. Joe, an important member of the Trail Dogs explains:
We have to thank Save Mount Diablo and Mount Diablo State Park for this important connector trail.
Why Connectivity?
Connectivity of open spaces is critical to public enjoyment of these beautiful properties. Connectivity is also environmentally important, offering corridors for travel by humans and wildlife. Game cameras show the active use of single track and fire roads by wildlife. Well-designed trails protect the surrounding areas and natural environment.
Save Mount Diablo is an Important Trail Advocate
The following is a key paragraph from the Stewardship Section of the SMD 2014 Strategic Plan.
We need Land Trusts like Save Mount Diablo to lead efforts to connect lands. The regional and state park bureaucracies have become unwieldy and constrained regarding trails due partly to regulatory hurdles. An intermediary like SMD can purchase properties and selectively improve the existing land by removing and restoring damaged areas and creating connections that can more easily be maintained by whichever agency eventually ends up with the property.
Acquisition and advocacy are both opportunistic activities. Land is not always available to preserve nor is development always a threat. These two legs of the SMD stool are feast or famine, they can be active or dormant. But stewardship and trail issues are constant.
Two trail related contributions from SMD that literally benefit trail users on a daily basis:
MOUNT DIABLO REGIONAL TRAIL MAP
Now on the fifth edition, this trail map is the most comprehensive map of Mount Diablo and surrounding parks with clear representation of trails, fire roads and park boundaries. The most impressive tool for open space users is the electronically downloadable version of this map that is Geo Referenced. After downloading this version of the map, it remains on your phone and can be accessed at any time. Open the App and Map, press the arrow button and it will “Geo Find” your location without the need for WIFI or Cell coverage. Lost at a trail junction, open your SMD Map and find your location. Every hiker or biker should have this valuable tool. Just head on over to the SMD website, look for Trail Map, provide your email address and request the Electronic Geo Referenced Map.
TRAIL DOG TRAIL CREW
In 2010 Save Mount Diablo provided the East Bay Trail Dogs with a home, essentially sponsoring their activities and providing insurance coverage. Then in 2021 the name was changed from East Bay Trail Dogs to the Save Mt. Diablo Trail Dogs. While this was an administrative change, Save Mount Diablo offers the Trail Dogs a home and the support of a large organization as the Trail Dogs maintain, build and restore new properties. (See Love The Trail Dogs in the Trail Connectivity Section.)
Consider donating to SMD
We live in a community that cares about open spaces. We appreciate the beauty of the hillsides, the wildflowers and the seasonal grass changes. Whether you personally appreciate the surrounding open spaces from afar or from trail exploration, I urge you to consider donating to Save Mount Diablo.