On Saturday April 8th, approximately 20 people from El Portal and from the Bay Area braved the break in a late spring storm to take stock of the organisms that live just outside of Yosemite's western gate along the Merced River. The National Park draws researchers from all around the world interested in studying the organisms of one of the United States most iconic parks, however very little research has been done on the area just outside of the park where development and invasive weed management practices could pose a threat to organisms.

At the end of Incline Road on the north side of the Merced river is walking trail on BLM land that is open for anyone to explore. The old road hugs the river and has tremendous seeps along its rocky walls that fill with a diversity of flowering plants and other organisms. Below are a few images from the day. Anytime you are in the area, remember to take some observations of the organisms you see and upload them into iNaturalist so there is a record of what exists there as this data helps developers, landscapers, etc make better decisions about how to mange the land. To see whats been documented so far and get a look at what was seen at the Bioblitz, go here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=120034