Field journal

San Domingo Creek running in midwinter

San Domingo

  • Aerial view of a creek running fast and white over rocks between banks of bare, leafless trees and brown brush, with a narrow track along the right edge.

    San Domingo Creek in winter flow, between banks of bare trees and brush.

  • Aerial view down a narrow valley: a ranch track runs between bright green grass on the right and pale, flattened dry grass on the left, with oaks and forested hills on both sides and distant mountains.

    The valley meadow along the creek in midwinter, with new green grass beside last season's dry stems.

On the afternoon of February 15, 2025, a drone flight at San Domingo Arbory found San Domingo Creek running fast and white over its rocks, between banks of bare winter trees and brush. In the valley meadow nearby, new grass was coming in bright green on one side of the ranch track, beside pale, flattened stems from last season on the other.

The creek runs dry for about three months of the year, so winter flights like this one record the wet half of that cycle. Set beside dry-season views of the same valley, they show how the creek and its meadows change through the year.

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