Spend the morning searching for the very hungry caterpillars with Docent Naturalists Roberta and Jaime Cavazos and Catherine Xun. As you hike along the Alpine Loop and Ipiwa trails, you’ll look for these small insects and learn about how they prepare to undergo one of nature’s most well-loved metamorphoses. It’s the season for a species called variable checkerspots to be munching on host plants such as sticky monkeyflower and California bee plant, but you may see other kinds of these awesome larva as well. Bring a light snack to enjoy if you get hungry, too, along the trail.
For this activity at Skyline Ridge Preserve, meet at the Russian Ridge Parking Area on the northwest corner of the Skyline Boulevard (Highway 35) and Page Mill/Alpine Road intersection (across Skyline Blvd. on the right). Those traveling from I-280 on Page Mill Rd. should allow approximately 40 minutes travel time.