Friends of Five Creeks

Transforming neglected natural areas, one step at a time.

A little of our recent volunteering: 

Interns install new signs on Codornices Creek

Above: Boy Scouts from San Ramon Troop 621 removed flammable coteaster and French broom in the El Cerrito Hillside Natural Area.

Below: Weed warriors and interns continued our 20+ years of controlling perennial pepperweed on the Berkeley Shoreline. 
Installing Owen McMurtrie banner Codornices

Above: Weed Warriors help rehabilitate the Fire Safety Demonstration Garden on Tunnel Road.

Below: F5C interns removed highly invasive Crofton Weed from the steep bank of Cerrito Creek north of Albany Hill.

Removing broom in the Hillside Natural Area, with great view

Above: Weed Warriors and interns cleared re-sprouting French broom at Quarry Picnic Area, another long-term project.

Helping Nature in the East Bay – Hands On

All-volunteer Friends of Five Creeks has worked hands-on for 27 years for clean water, healthy watersheds, and natural areas that welcome both wildlife and people. We work from Berkeley to Richmond on the urbanized east side of San Francisco Bay.

JoGumplant blooming above North Basin Strip beachin us Sun., Oct. 20, at Schoolhouse Creek and the North Basin Strip -- volunteer and think about the future as planning begins

Remove invasives, pick up trash, and enjoy a guided nature walk Sun., Oct. 20, 10 AM - 12:30 PM, as planning begins for the future of the "North Basin Strip" and the mouth of Schoolhouse Creek. This 20 acres on the Berkeley shoreline between the restored Berkeley "Meadow" and Tom Bates Sports Fields was a WW II-era dump; the pipe at its south end carried Berkeley's raw sewage to the Bay. For the past 20+ years, as part of now-huge McLaughlin Eastshore State Park, the strip had been tended mostly by volunteers. Along with fire-prone weeds, you'll find a rare shoreline not rocked with unfriendly boulders, a "glass beach" and miniature lagoon, a rich and unique gallery of native plants, a popular urban mountain-biking course, oak and willow groves, and native-grass meadows. Friends of Five Creeks hopes to see the creek freed from its pipe -- reducing flood risk in West Berkeley. The East Bay Regional Park District is expected to hold public workshops and an on-site Open House in November.. Read much more on history, nature, and possibilities in our October e-news.

Meet at 10 AM at the gate at the strip's north end on the shoreline, reached via the West Frontage Road between University and Gilman (map here). From the parking lot at the south end of the Tom Bates Sports Fields, follow the short dirt trail to the shoreline. Better, bike or walk via the Bay Trail, now easy via the pedestrian-bicycle bridges and Gilman or University.

Dress to get dirty, with layers for sun and wind protection. Bring a re-usable water bottle. Gloves, tools, and light snacks provided. Groups of 5+ please email F5creeks@gmail.com so we'll have enough. Please also email with questions!

Tuesday morning Weed Warriors and other opportunities:

Orange crowned warbler near Cerrito CreekJoin our informal, friendly group maintaining varied natural areas: Our "Weekday Weed Warriors" gather Tuesday mornings 10 AM - noon. Email f5creeks@gmail.com for more information or to get weekly email notification of locations.

F5C would love to find creative, tech-savvy volunteers to help in several ways. Email f5creeks@gmail.com if you are interested.

F5C recent and current-interest handouts, slide shows, and reports

  • New: Intern Paulina Lara's guide to how native plants and animals "get along" on Codornices Creek (helpful for other local creeks as well) -- her senior honors project at CSU East Bay. Click here for English or Spanish versions. (These are large files. Please be patient.) It's on display now on the Codornices Creek trail at the net at Sixth Street. See more of our displays on the Codornices Creekside trail: A schematic map of the creek between San Pablo and Tenth Street done by Berkeley High student Evan McMurtrie, "tree trolls" and "tiny things" designed by our interns, at the creekside meadow across from the Little League ballfields, between 10th and 8th Streets, on the Berkeley-Albany border.
  • See our flyer on how to de-clutter the environmental way and Saving Water -- Rain or Shine.
  • New! See our native-plant signs, linking species to their roles in history and the environment. Free to all to download, modify, and use!
  • Click here to see our slide show: Codornices Creek, Chapters in an Unfinished History
  • Do-it-yourself Nature Treasure Hunt for families with young children. Print out these two sheets back-to-back for fun aimed to engage young children in nature -- along with queries designed to intrigue and challenge adults. This hunt focuses on Codornices Creek, but is easily adapted to other places. You can even use it on a cell phone!

F5C letters to agencies

  • F5C is strongly interested in the two-year process to write a new plan for Berkeley storm-drain system, much needed given 100-year-old infrastructure and coming climate change. Our June 17 letter here called for much more public input into write a new plan for Berkeley storm-drain system, much needed given 100-year-old infrastructure and coming climate change. Pulic input plans have since been greatly improved. Our earlier, July 2023, letter supporting the contract to carry out this plan is here.
  • F5C's detailed comments on El Cerrito's draft plan for the Hillside Natural Area are here. For earlier comments:  Friends of Five Creeks' January input on what this plan should include is here. A short slide show is here. An earlier handout is here.
  • Need for toileting and RV sewage pumpout for unhoused in Berkeley: Read F5C's June 2023 letter on the need for portable toilets and sewage pumpout for the unhoused, for human dignity, public health, and pollution prevention.
  • Considering likely effects of climate change in Berkeley's plans for development in its Marina area: Read F5C's May 2023 letter on the draft Waterfront Specific Plan.
  • Protecting Codornices Creek as part of re-paving the Hopkins-Gilman corridor in Berkeley: Read F5C's February 2023 letters on the importance of including green amenities, pollution reduction, and protection for Codornices Creek in a "complete streets" project for Hopkins Avenue, which follows the creek a half block away. The project was shelved.