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45-643: California Native Plant Society was founded in 1965 by professional botanists and grassroots activists who, after saving an important native plant garden in Berkeley's Tilden Regional Park , were inspired to create an ongoing organization with the mission to save and promote the native plants of California. For 50 years, professional CNPS staff and volunteers have worked alongside scientists, government officials, and regional planners to protect habitats and species, and to advocate for well-informed environmental practices, regulations, and policies. The organization works at

90-423: A capacity of 50 people and Gillespie Youth Camp and Wildcat View with a capacity of 75. Es Anderson Equestrian Camp offers equestrian camping. Regional park A regional park is an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, recreational use or other reason, and under the administration of a form of local government . A regional park can be a special park district covering

135-779: A means of vegetation reduction, with a herd of goats grazing each summer in Tilden. AC Transit bus line 67 from the Berkeley BART station runs into the park on weekends. The bus line stops at the Tilden Nature Area/Little Farm, Lone Oak Road, Lake Anza/Merry-Go-Round, and the Brazilian Room/Botanic Garden before returning to Berkeley. Prior to being a public park, the lands that are now Tilden Park were ancestral lands of Ohlone Indians. Spanish explorers and Mexican ranchos drove

180-601: A region crossing several jurisdiction boundaries, or a park system of a single jurisdiction, such as a province, county, or city. There are 101 regional parks in Saskatchewan. All parks are operated by volunteer boards. Regional parks in Italy are administered by each region in Italy , a government unit like a U.S. state. Distinguished from National Parks in the Republic of Ireland , which are owned and run centrally by

225-426: A triennial conservation conference every three years which hosts over 1000 attendees from across California and beyond, and an annual conservation symposium every September. Besides books, bulletins, and posters, the society publishes the academic journal Artemisia (previously Fremontia ), devoted to botany, horticulture, vegetation science, land management, CNPS projects, and related native plant topics, three times

270-744: A year, and the CNPS Bulletin , a quarterly newsletter. Tilden Regional Park Charles Lee Tilden Regional Park , also known as Tilden Park or Tilden, [ tɪldɨn ], is a 2,079-acre (841 ha) regional park in the East Bay , part of the San Francisco Bay Area in California . It is between the Berkeley Hills and San Pablo Ridge . Its main entrance is near Kensington , Berkeley , and Richmond . The park

315-399: Is a rideable miniature (15 in (381 mm) gauge) train. Established in 1952, its 1.25 mile track offers about a 12-minute ride and carries 160,000 passengers per year. The Brazilian Room is an event venue and banquet hall of 1.728 square feet with a patio at 1,896 square feet located in the central portion of the park. Peter Bruno, a pioneer rancher originally from Italy, previously leased

360-691: Is contiguous with Wildcat Canyon Regional Park . The park is managed by the East Bay Regional Park District , created from the first land the District purchased in 1936. Tilden Regional Park was named in honor of Charles Lee Tilden , a Bay Area attorney and businessman who served on the first Board of Directors of the East Bay Regional Park District. Tilden Park is largely located within unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County , while parts of

405-510: Is just off Central Park Dr. At the top, Meadows Canyon connects with Curran trail which meanders downhill to Wildcat Gorge trail. To the left, it is a short walk to Lake Anza . To the right, the trail returns to take a right on Wildcat Gorge trail, it returns to the Lone Oak parking area. The total distance is a little under 3 miles (4.8 km). East Bay Skyline Ridge Trail (or Seaview Trail) - This trail provides views of San Francisco Bay to

450-481: Is used on a daily basis by scientists, land planners, and agency officials. CNPS also created A Manual of California Vegetation publication and online database, the standard vegetation reference now relied upon by state and federal agencies. Both of these resources are recognized as the most advanced available for identifying and managing critical habitat in California. A popular project in collaboration between

495-597: The Cold War as a result of the opening of the Nike missile base in adjacent Wildcat Canyon Regional Park . The land was returned to the East Bay Regional Park District in 1959. The Army Camp area of the Redwood Valley Railway is the former location of the installation's barracks and mess hall. A large concrete bunker still exists and is used as a Tilden Park maintenance facility. The post-war period saw

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540-577: The Department of Conservation or territorial authorities . In the United States, a regional park is sometimes referred to as a 'Metropolitan Park (Metropark)' or as an open space reserve . The terms region and metropolitan can have different meanings in U.S. local government agencies. Regional parks can be administered by a regional park board, a state , county or other units of local government . A special authority can be set up, under

585-557: The East Bay Municipal Utility District on June 4, 1936. The 2,162 acres purchased included land for Tilden Park (then called Upper Wildcat Canyon), Lake Temescal and Robert Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve (then known as "Roundtop.") Upper Wildcat Canyon was officially named "Charles Lee Tilden Regional Park" on July 16, 1936. At the June 4, 1936 board meeting of East Bay Regional Park District ,

630-730: The National Register of Historic Places . The Tilden Park Golf Course is an 18-hole public golf course. It was designed by architect William Park Bell and constructed by WPA workers . It formally opened to the public on November 11, 1937, although there were preview openings starting on November 6 up to the November 11 opening for various groups including the WPA workers, golfing professionals and local notables. The park contains numerous trails , providing facilities for hiking , horseback riding and bicycling . While most of

675-760: The Three Rivers Park District in Minnesota . In Ohio, under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1545, metroparks such as the Cleveland Metroparks Park District, Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks have their own Police Departments with sworn police officers . The Toledo Metroparks , and Dayton Five Rivers Metroparks are also in the state. The East Bay Regional Park District and Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District have extensive parklands in

720-675: The Education and Rare Plant Programs is the " Rare Plant Treasure Hunt ", or RPTH. In the first five years of the RPTH project, between the 2010-2014 seasons, volunteers and staff successfully updated over 2,500 occurrences of rare, threatened, and endangered species to both the California Rare Plant Ranks and California Department of Fish and Wildlife 's California Natural Diversity Database (CNDDB). Over 1,000 of these recorded occurrences were new to science. A new offshoot of

765-646: The Ohlone off the land as ranching became the dominant activity in Wildcat Canyon. American ranchers of the late 1800s and early 1900s included the Curran family ranch and the Sweet Briar Dairy. The eucalyptus plantations within the park were planted around 1910 by Frank C. Havens ' Eucalyptus, Mahogany, & Land Company. The first parkland was purchased by the East Bay Regional Park District from

810-969: The RPTH is the California Rare Plant Seed Rescue Project, in which volunteers will collect seeds and tissue from every population of rare plants in California, and seed bank them in long-term storage facilities to protect them against future extinction. In 2010, the California Native Plant Society was successful in having the state legislature designate the third week in April each year as "California Native Plant Week" . The legislature recognized that "California native plants, being perfectly suited to California's climate and soil, require far fewer fertilizers, soil amendments, or pesticides, and use 60 to 90 percent less water than conventional landscapes". The California Native Plant Society also organizes

855-828: The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge, both of which were opened in 1937. In 1942, at the onset of World War II , 72 acres (29 ha) of southern Tilden Park was leased to the United States government to construct the Grizzly Peak VHF Station. Beginning in 1944, the radio site served as headquarters for the San Francisco Control Group (411th Army Air Forces Control Group) that oversaw command and control for air defense radar sites across coastal Northern California. The site

900-704: The West and Mt. Diablo to the East. It can be an out-and-back from the parking lot near the Steam Trains off of Grizzly Peak Blvd. accessed via Seaview Trail or from the opposite end off of Wildcat Canyon Road's Quarry parking area via Seaview Trail. It is approximately 2.7 miles (4.3 km) end-to-end. South Park Drive - The road that runs between Wildcat Canyon Road at the Botanic Gardens to Grizzly Peak Blvd. closes from 1 November to 31 March annually to protect

945-683: The Works Progress Administration (WPA) approved. The grant allowed construction on the Wildcat Canyon Road to commence, which was a 7 mile scenic road connecting Berkeley and Orinda. Works Progress Administration (WPA) crews built the Lake Anza dam and stone buildings including restrooms, the original Lake Anza beach house, and the exterior of the Brazilian Room. The WPA crews also contributed to

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990-490: The addition of pony rides, model airplane field, tennis courts, trout fishing pond, Tilden Park Merry-Go-Round in 1948, and the South Gate & Pacific Railway (precursor to the Redwood Valley Railway ) in 1952. With these attractions joining the already existing golf course, Botanic Garden, Brazilian Room, and Lake Anza, Tilden Park became a quintessential East Bay experience for the thousands of families that flocked to

1035-620: The area in the years during and after World War II. In addition to major areas of wilderness, the park includes several developed features, including environmental education areas, extensive botanical garden, swimming lake, golf course, model farm, miniature train, merry-go-round, and event venue. The Environmental Education Center and the Little Farm are just south of the Tilden Nature Area. The Environmental Education Center hosts educational programs and permanent exhibits about

1080-576: The area of Inspiration Point, spreading wild flower seeds, during the time he and his wife lived in Oakland at the Claremont Hotel and later at a residence in Berkeley . In 1952, the U.S. Army opened Grizzly Peak AAA Site No. 3 at the site near Vollmer Peak as an anti-aircraft installation. Two locations had a 90mm four-gun battery. The anti-aircraft installation was decommissioned during

1125-472: The crest of the Berkeley Hills . Parts of the park land had previously been cleared for agricultural use. In many places, exotic trees such as eucalyptus were planted. There are also some relatively recently planted stands of giant sequoia . However, current conservation efforts are aimed at restoring native vegetation as much as possible, and significant parts of the park are covered in native coastal scrub. The East Bay Regional Parks District uses grazing as

1170-502: The east. Unknown to most of the folks who travel this trail, the two-mile section that is in Wildcat Canyon Regional Park was a Nike missile base which was decommissioned in the 1970s. Today there are few signs of the missile silos and military housing that used to populate these hills. Meadows Canyon-Curran-Wildcat Canyon loop - A 1.43 miles (2.30 km) steady, but not steep, climb from Lone Oak Road which

1215-530: The eastern edge of the park and heads north along the ridge of the hills, crossing into Wildcat Canyon Regional Park about two miles (3 km) in and ending at a peak above El Sobrante . Nimitz Way is very popular with hikers, runners and bicyclists, in part because it is paved and not very steep. From Nimitz Way there are excellent views of the San Francisco Bay to the west, EBMUD’s San Pablo & Briones Reservoirs , along with Mt. Diablo to

1260-662: The ecology of the area. The Little Farm is a model farm with a vegetable garden, shorthorn cattle, sheep, goats, rabbits, pigs and poultry. Visitors can feed the animals and learn about the working farm from farm staff. Lake Anza is located in the central portion of Tilden Regional Park and is open for swimming from April to October. Water testing is done every week while the lake is open. Nearby hiking trails and picnic areas are open year-round. The Regional Parks Botanic Garden has an extensive collection of California native plants, laid out over 10 acres, and includes many rare and endangered California flora. The Redwood Valley Railway

1305-740: The horticultural uses of native plants at the local level. Membership is open to everyone, and chapter activities ranging from field trips, restoration activities, meetings, symposia, public garden maintenance, plant sales, and more are open to the public. At the state organizational level, CNPS has five core programs in Conservation, Rare Plant Science, Vegetation Science, Education, and Horticulture. Each program has dedicated CNPS staff supported by volunteer committees consisting of experienced botanical experts, conservation advocates, professionals, educators, and community activists. Chapters of CNPS organize many events of local significance. In keeping with

1350-455: The interior for Tilden Park's Brazilian Room. The East Bay Regional Park District also purchased used trash cans and benches once the World's Fair had closed. The event attracted a staggering seventeen million visitors from across the globe and was considered to be the first time a World Fair sought inspiration outside of Europe. Along with the championship cricket games, the exposition celebrated

1395-677: The joint jurisdiction of two or more government bodies or as an independent park district to administer parks. Individual parks may or may not cross governmental boundaries. The park district holds the authority, similar to fire protection districts, to manage and raise taxes to cover park acquisition and management costs. Examples of large regional park systems are the Cleveland Metroparks in Northeast Ohio, Huron-Clinton Metroparks in Southeast Michigan ; and

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1440-610: The land on which the Brazilian Room was constructed to raise cattle. Its name is attributed to the charity of Brazil when they contributed to the Golden Gate International Exposition. The designer of the Brazil Pavilion, Gardiner Dailey, conceptualized both the inside and outside of the building to have massive murals while the exposition was being held. The Tilden Park Merry-Go-Round is an antique Merry-Go-Round, built in 1912, and listed in

1485-463: The local level through the various regional chapters, and at the state level through its five major programs, board of directors, Chapter Council, and state office. CNPS continues to be a grassroots organization, with nearly 10,000 members and volunteers in 35 chapters covering the state of California and northwest Baja California . Chapter volunteers promote CNPS’s mission to conserve California’s native plants and their natural habitats, and to increase

1530-520: The migration process for a Newt. It is available for hiking. There are 13 reservable picnic areas and many non-reservable picnic areas within the park. They vary in amenities (potable water, grills, bathrooms) and in capacity (from 35 to 150 for reservable sites). In addition to the official picnic grounds, there are benches on most trails; many have excellent views of San Francisco and the Bay. Tilden Regional Park offers three group campsites: New Woodland with

1575-433: The option of extending their service. The CCC crews built much of the park's earlier infrastructure and features including roads, trails, bridges, picnic areas, and golf course. The CCC also did work in the park related to fire and erosion prevention, insect and pest control, and geological work.  In 1935, California Congressman John H. Tolan, who represented Alameda County helped get a $ 1.5 million dollar grant request to

1620-480: The park are within the cities of Oakland and Berkeley . Its steep valleys and dense stands of timber offer a rare wilderness experience so close to the city. Its high ridges and peaks give wide views over the San Francisco Bay and inland across other preserved land to Mount Diablo . The eastern limit of the park is approximately at the crest of the San Pablo Ridge . The western boundary nearly follows

1665-479: The park from north to south generally following the ridgeline of the hills, was named in 1955 in honor of Admiral Chester W. Nimitz , former U.S. Pacific Fleet Commander. Originally built as an access road for the World War II and Cold War-era anti-aircraft gun and missile batteries in the area, Nimitz Way is now closed to motor vehicles and has been redeveloped as a multi-use path. Nimitz was known to hike in

1710-509: The public outreach and education mission of the society, these events are generally free and open to the public. CNPS maintains the online Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants, or Inventory , which catalogs the California Rare Plant Ranks (known as "CNPS Lists" prior to 2010). The Inventory and its ranking system remain the most widely adopted source of information about California’s special rare plants today and

1755-478: The reforestation of Tilden Park after the eucalyptus was removed. CCC and WPA workers assisted in the replanting of redwoods in the park that were shipped down the California coast from Fort Bragg. The aesthetic of the park today is directly derived from the original work performed by the CCC and WPA. The Brazilian Room, restroom buildings, stone monuments, and stone road ditches all remain in the park today. The stone that

1800-582: The same meeting that authorized the land purchase, the Board appropriated $ 63,428 in local funds for park development. In doing so, they met their matching fund obligation in order to qualify for $ 1 million in federal relief funds for park development. From 1935 to 1941 a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp, "Camp Wildcat Canyon" was located in what is now the Tilden Nature Area. In the six years of “Camp Wildcat Canyon”, more than 3,500 men from eighteen states passed through for enrollment terms of 6 months, with

1845-687: The state's National Parks and Wildlife Service , Ireland's regional parks are managed and operated by individual local authorities in Ireland . Examples include Ballincollig Regional Park (managed by Cork City Council ), Millennium Regional Park ( Fingal County Council ), and Malahide Demesne Regional Park (also Fingal County Council). A law to establish regional parks in Lithuania took effect in 1992. As of 2022, there were 30 such regional parks ( regioniniai parkai ). In New Zealand , regional parks are administered by regional councils rather than

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1890-558: The thousands of workers and families of the Kaiser Richmond Shipyards . The event spanned the entire park offering a golf tournament, diving contest, band concerts, and dancing in addition to picnicking and sporting events. The event went from 8am-10pm, allowing all shipyard shifts to attend the picnic. Attendance was 10,000 people, making it the largest event in Tilden Park history. Nimitz Way, which traverses

1935-500: The trails are dog-friendly, dogs are not permitted in the Tilden Nature Area to the north of the park. Some of the main trails include: The Tilden Nature Area is the northern, undeveloped region of the park. It is a 740-acre preserve with 10 miles of hiking trails. These trails include a climb to Wildcat Peak and a trail and wooden boardwalk around Jewel Lake . Nimitz Way, a four-mile-long (6 km) paved trail (named after Admiral Chester W. Nimitz ) that begins at Inspiration Point on

1980-509: Was also a VHF station for Hamilton Air Force Base . While the site was named after nearby Grizzly Peak on the border of Tilden Park and Oakland , the actual antennas were located atop Vollmer Peak. Camp Wildcat Canyon was used for convalescing soldiers during World War II. On September 7, 1942, the Richmond Shipyards Athletic Association put on a large scale Labor Day company picnic at Tilden Park for

2025-589: Was used to build all the structures in the park were quarried in-park near the Big Springs trailhead on South Park Drive. The Golden Gate International Exposition , a two-year long world's fair, held during 1939-40, was a championship cricket games were conducted in the Meadows field in northern Tilden Park. Brazilian hardwood from the Brazilian Pavilion at the World's Fair were used extensively as

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