This beautiful Chico weekend had me… and most everyone else… outdoors and enjoying the sun with friends, family, and dogs. On Friday my wife and I took our mini-wiener to one of Chico’s “best kept secrets”, the Tree Farm (aka, Chico Tree Improvement Center and, most formally, Genetic Resource and Conservation Center) to let the dog run and to take a break from the hustle and bustle. It was a visit that I haven’t made for quite a while and what I discovered is that this place is no longer the “secret spot” I remembered. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. I had heard that it had become a popular place for people to take their dogs for off-leash walks. But, seeing just how popular it has become was a real eye-opener.

Back in the day (am I really saying that?), I spent many, many days during the Spring, Summer and Fall months stationed at the “Tree Farm” doing all sorts of odd jobs in between fire calls. Yep. In a previous life, I was a firefighter. At that time, I worked on a crew called, Chico Max (a Hotshot or, wanna be Hotshot hand crew-depending who you asked). I had some of the best times of my life back then, starting in 1988, and much of it was spent at the Tree Farm, which was like a second home to many of us. We ran its’ trails, swam in its’ creek, worked, slept, complained a lot, and had lots of fun. And, apart from the folks who worked for the Forest Service full time, working the orchards and seeding trees, hardly anyone used the 209 acres of various plants, trees, and fields.

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