Letter from the Publisher
When I moved out to San Francisco from New York City in late 1973, it was mostly for love. But not for a person. I had fallen in love, pretty much at first sight, with the Bay Area. There was … Read more
Author Archives: David Loeb
David Loeb was the co-founder and Executive Director of the Bay Nature Institute and the publisher of Bay Nature magazine. Now retired, he continues to roam the trails and waterways of the Bay Area and points beyond and contributes occasional articles to baynature.org.
Letter from the Publisher
I was working at my computer at the Bay Nature office in Berkeley the other day when I was interrupted by a short, sharp jolt. I looked around at the others working in the office: “Did you just feel that?” … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
As we were considering articles for our fifth anniversary issue, which you are now holding in your hands, David Rains Wallace’s story proposal about early European naturalists visiting the Bay Area seemed very appropriate, given that those men (and they … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
Parking the car in front of my house a few weeks ago, I noticed movement across the street. It was a deer—a mature doe, I believe—walking up the sidewalk in the early evening twilight. Aware of my presence, but not … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
As I write this letter, it was exactly a year ago that I first felt a lump in my right thigh. Four weeks later, it was diagnosed as soft tissue sarcoma, a rare form of cancer. Now, 11 months on, … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
As I have worked these past months on the special report in this issue on the South Bay salt pond restoration project, I’ve become enormously impressed by the all-around good will, dedication, intelligence, and coordination that characterizes this ambitious, sprawling … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
Three summers ago, in late June, I took a hike at Purissima Redwoods on the Peninsula, a reserve managed by the Mid-peninsula Regional Open Space District (MROSD). While the redwoods there aren’t old growth, they are tall and deep enough … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
I wonder if the rest of you will be as surprised as I was to learn that the area around Fifth and Mission Streets in San Francisco used to be dominated by sand hills, some at least 40 feet high. … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
If you look down at street drains at certain spots in Berkeley, you’ll notice stenciled onto the curb words to the effect of “Do Not Dump. Drains to Bay.” Of course, virtually everything around here (except the Pacific-facing slope of … Read more
Letter from the Publisher
A landscape can hold many stories not immediately apparent to the casual visitor, even a thoroughly enchanted one. In January 1973, I came to the Bay Area from back East to visit a friend who had recently moved here. On … Read more
