Twilight Walks

The rains continue to drench Castro Valley, but on two successive late afternoons Your Boulevardier has been able to get out and walk the town. On Monday night he ventured onto Castro Valley Boulevard, first passing through residential neighborhoods as area residents rolled their trash carts to the curb. This evening he braved the post-work grocery store rush at the Lucky supermarket. It's a wonderful time to walk, as the town transitions from the workday world to the home and hearth. Lights glow in windows, but shades are not yet drawn; neighbors are chatting as they haul groceries or check mail; yes, people are eager to get home, but the pace seems gentler, more restful, than at mid-day.

A walker sees that a certain amount of post-storm detritus litters the sidewalks and clogs the gutters. But from what little he saw, Your Boulevardier believes that the town has come through the weeklong-plus deluge in good shape.

There are exceptions, of course. The interchange construction at Redwood Road and I-580 is shut down -- and flooded, on the east side. (A FOB who works for the firm doing the project says that, currently, just 1% of the company’s heavy equipment is in active use statewide.) Just up the road, the demolition of the Center Street offramp from I-580 has paused as well, due perhaps to the creation of a sizeable temporary lakelet next to the freeway.

Your Boulevardier has not checked on how the rains are affecting the other big construction project in town, the building of a new Eden Hospital. However, he was impressed by the seven-phase construction plan recently posted on the hospital’s website by civil engineer Jeff Moore of the Castro Valley-based firm Greenwood & Moore. Reading it is recommended.

And frankly, Your Boulevardier was surprised -- and very pleased -- to read that a local firm is so intimately involved in the hospital project. And he is surprised that Sutter Health has not made a bigger deal out of the fact. Your Boulevardier has walked past the Greenwood & Moore offices on Castro Valley Boulevard hundreds of times and never knew what went on up there. Now the veil is lifted, however slightly. (Not that the firm is mysterious; rather, Your Boulevardier does not have need of civil engineering in his daily life, and has precious little knowledge of what a civil engineer does.)

Continuing our survey of storm effects, Your Boulevardier has not traveled to Lake Chabot to see the precipitation’s impact on the town’s main waterway. If readers have reports, please consider adding them to the comments. (One can do so anonymously.)

But back to the rain’s effects on local business establishments. The enterprises Your Boulevardier visited did not have telltale buckets catching roof leaks. Restaurants seemed fairly busy; bowlers and barflies were practicing their arts; hot coffee was being dispensed with caffeinated vigor; young people danced and kicked and chopped while their parents waited, sometimes impatiently, for after-school classes to finish. Pete’s Hardware seemed to do a brisk business in tarps, galoshes, and other rain-related retail items. Perhaps the hair-and-nail salons were a bit slow, but they always seem to have empty chairs when Your Boulevardier peeks through their windows.

Skies are forecast to be cloudy but dry for a couple of days, with a chance of rain returning on Friday. (Your Boulevardier will again be hosting the Subcompact Loaner this coming weekend, so walking weather is hoped for.) One should not put away the slicker just yet, but we should all attempt to enjoy the respite from the damp while we can. Perhaps another evening walk is called for.

More Lakeside Running

Your Boulevardier knows several people who participated in the recent Run To The Lake, sponsored by Eden Medical Center.

However, he does not typically rub elbows with the sorts of folks who will run the Skyline 50K, described on its website as "a championship event in the 2009 PA/USATF Ultra Grand Prix Series." The race begins at Lake Chabot at 7:00 a.m. this coming Sunday.

If anyone out there participates in, or sees any of, this race, please do post a comment.

Photogenic Lake Chabot

Lake Chabot is, as Castro Valleyans know, a remarkable resource very close to town. Your Boulevardier enjoys kayaking on the lake - he's seen one of the lake's elusive bald eagles - and can recall taking Red Cross canoeing lessons there as a youth. The lake's cirumnavigating trails have provided many hours of jogging and hiking fun, picnickers mob the place on sunny days, and fisherpeople flock to its waters.

It's also a wonderfully photogenic spot, and local photographer (and Friend of Your Boulevardier) Terry Vanderheiden will lead a photo walk at the lake on Saturday, July 18 starting at 7:30 a.m. The event is free, but one must pre-register at the World Wide Photo Walk website.

Readers who attend and take pictures are invited to send a link to Your Boulevardier, so that others can see your work.

Lake Chabot Boat Fees

An article in today's Daily Review reports that Lake Chabot will start charging fees for zebra mussel inspection on personal boats launched in the lake. The fees will also be charged at Del Valle and Contra Loma. Per the article:

The fees at all 3 recreation areas will be $6 for boats brought in on trailers and $3 for boats fastened to car tops. A vehicle bringing in two kayaks will be charged $3.

The inspection program has been in effect for a while at Lake Chabot. Your Boulevardier's limited experience has been that the inspectors are hard to find, and one can wait quite a while at the launch dock waiting for them to arrive. It's hoped that the fee will be coupled with more efficient procedures.

Nesting Instinct

It's an ideal time of year to get out of doors and look up. The deciduous trees in town are leafless, making any nests they host (vacant, for the most part) much more visible. Your Boulevardier noted dozens of nests, ranging from tiny hummingbird cups to large aeries for big birds unknown, all around Castro Valley on a walk this morning. When the trees leaf out these nests will disappear into the foliage, but spotting them now can give viewers a clue as to where to look for birds come spring and summer.

In a related note, on a kayak outing to Lake Chabot yesterday Your Boulevardier noted one heron staking out a residence high in the rookery tree near the lake's northeast corner. This is always a good birdwatching show later on in the spring and summer. Subsequent reports will be posted.