“Being on Top of it all puts you in the Clouds”

Welcome to your first level! Level 1 is easy and should get you familiar with how to use GPS and how to start identifying plants. Remember to take YOUR time, enjoy the journey and trust the process. Your path to learning has been CAREFULLY and THOUGHTFULLY laid out. Don’t skip or rush through anything or you are just shorting yourself and your family of true and deep knowledge of our local wildlife. You may need multiple trips, not just for this level but for all of them. That is why you have ONE WHOLE year.

Level 1 is all about getting a large snapshot view from the top. Get ORIENTED with Orange County.. Where is the OCEAN, where are the MOUNTAINS, where are you in all of this?
By the end of these quests, you will connect Mountain and Sea, Gain the LARGER picture as well as learn to see the DETAILS.

GO TO THE RULES PAGE and WATCH THE RULES VIDEO WITH YOUR WHOLE TEAM BEFORE PROCEEDING ANY FURTHER.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Go through the Resources section below and acquire the

Knowledge you will need for this quest.
TAKE YOUR TIME TO GO THROUGH IT, REVIEW IT..
Going through all the videos and
“TO-DO” List AHEAD OF TIME will make the experience richer and more fun.

You don’t want to be on your phone watching videos while you are out in NATURE!

2. Download the Quest (click on the download quest button down at the bottom of this page) and get going on your adventure. Take a clipboard with you and a pencil or pen. Bring a phone (for google maps, iNaturalist, and photos). CHECK THE STANDARD WHAT TO BRING LIST.

3. Make yourself a FLAT STANLEY to put in every photo you take starting from LEVEL 1 and ending in LEVEL 6. This is to ensure that you didn’t grab the photo off the internet. Photos without a FLAT STANLEY will NOT count as real points. You may have yourself or your child in the photo as proof instead of a FLAT STANLEY.

What is a Flat Stanley?

Its basically a cutout of a character or photo on a Popsicle stick. You carry it around with you and insert it into every photo you take.

4. Report back to this level to upload your photos and answers.

5. Please remember to TAKE your time on these QUESTS. Some quests may need 2 or even 3 visits to complete. THESE are about learning, not “winning”. You are GUARANTEED to be environmentally LITERATE if you take the time to really absorb what you are learning and go through all the resources thoroughly with your whole team! You have a WHOLE YEAR to complete these quests for a REASON. For the best experience, try going to the same site multiple times. You will notice different things happening depending on wind, weather, time of day, and season.

6. In the summer, this site is MOST enjoyable at 6:30pm until Sunset is beyond gorgeous and magical. The downside is it gets crowded at this time. IF you want a similarly magical experience, go at sunrise. The trail closes at SUNSET.

NOTES: PLEASE REMEMBER That its easy to get carried away looking down at your phone trying to find where to go while also holding a clipboard… Its easy to forget to share the trail with others.

PLEASE BE MINDFUL OF OTHER TRAIL USERS

and stay off to the side.. MANY of these sites have mountain bikers and you will need to stay to the RIGHT to dodge them. Do so with a SMILE 🙂

WHAT TO EXPECT:

Roughly 1.5 miles roundtrip
NO SHADE- plan for cooler hours of the day
Downhill on the way there, uphill on the way back
Not very stroller friendly (easier to carry your infant on your back)
Lots of mountain bikers on this trail
The word “FIRE ROAD” is a basic term for a “WIDE TRAIL”. It is not the official name of the trail or any trail.
FOCUS:
Learning how to find your own GPS Coordinate
Learning how to type in coordinates into google maps
Plant Identification Skills- level 1
Orienteering skills
How to use iNaturalist
Ethnobotany (plant uses)
Get your eye used to spotting Animals and Plants and recognizing the DIFFERENCE between them

QUEST UPDATE BOARD
This board is to update you on any changes to any changes to this quest.
As you know, things may change, people may move things that
should stay where
they were placed and
although it is checked on frequently, if we are alerted to any changes,
we will post it here.