Since 1986, Walker Creek Ranch has been protected by MALT with a conservation easement. These 1,720 acres along Walker Creek are not only home to grazing cattle, as in previous centuries, but they are now an outdoor classroom for over 5,000 students annually from 12 surrounding counties.
The ranch was deeded to the Marin County Office of Education in 1982, along with a $2 million grant, by the Marin Community Foundation to start the Marin County Outdoor School. The school’s mission is to immerse young folks in this unique learning environment to inspire an appreciation for the natural world.
The environment is stunningly beautiful, with grasslands and oak-bay forests surrounding the stretch of Walker Creek that winds through the valley. But well before the land became a conservation project, land management practices pre-1950s had caused high sedimentation in Walker Creek, restricting its ability to support its plant and animal inhabitants.
Now, with a MALT easement in place and 30 years of partnering on ongoing creek restoration with organizations like the Marin Resource Conservation District (MRCD), the Marin Municipal Water District (MMWD) and Point Blue's Students and Teachers Restoring a Watershed (STRAW), the stretches of the creek on protected land like Walker Creek Ranch are thriving green riparian zones with clear flows and an abundance of fish and wildlife, including endangered coho salmon, golden eagles, bobcats, badgers and river otters.
“The creek was barren when we took this place over and now it’s a lush, beautiful riparian habitat. It’s glorious, and that has a lot to do with the planting and fencing that was done,” said ranch manager George Stratman. “I think our stretch of Walker Creek is maybe one of the most pristine along the whole waterway.”
