BONSAI AND SUISEKI IN THE GARDENS AT LAKE MERRITT, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, Guest Post by Caroline Hatton

Bonsai Maple in the Gardens at Lake Merritt, Oakland CA.

My friend Caroline Hatton, a children’s writer and frequent contributor to this blog, took the photos in this post in March 2026, unless otherwise credited.

The Gardens at Lake Merritt, Northwest Gate.

During a visit to The Gardens at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, my favorite of the many themed gardens* within was the Bonsai Garden, especially because I learned about suiseki, a formal Japanese art new to me.

Bonsai Garden gate.

The Bonsai Garden entrance gate was designed and built by Hiroshi Sakaguchi, a craftsman in the ancient Japanese art of joinery woodworking, which uses no glue, nails or screws. Men in Sakaguchi’s family have practiced this tradition for over 600 years.

Bonsai.

Inside the walled garden, some regular-size trees provided leafy shade and others were in full bloom. The bonsai trees included diverse examples such as cedar, filbert, redwood, and several different maple species.

Bonsai maple.

But given the sun angle, my two favorite photos happen to be of Japanese mountain maple (Acer palmatum, above and at the top of this post).

Flowering plants in bonsai pots were on display. In the above photo, a metal sculpture of an ant of monstrous proportions is on guard duty.

A small, open shelter housed examples of suiseki, natural stones evocative of landscapes or other images. I have seen such in Japanese, Chinese or Korean art displays, but I didn’t know how widespread and sophisticated the Japanese art of stone appreciation is. In the following days, I read about the many esthetic criteria that guide the selection of stones: not only their shape, but also picky aspects of their surface, color, and other characteristics. More preferences include minimizing alterations and keeping wooden bases simple.

Rabbit.

Suiseki artist Hiroshi Suzuki found “Rabbit” in Northern California.

Winter in the High Mountains.

Suiseki artist Brent Meran found “Winter in the High Mountains” on the Eel River in Northern California.

Outside of the Bonsai Garden, some areas were charmingly disheveled. Others looked well maintained.

Alpine Rock Garden.

The tidy Alpine Rock Garden included a landscaped mound in the middle, surrounded by a dozen concrete planters, each one roughly the size of a coffee table. Rocks and plant arrangements suggested miniature mountain or desert views rather successfully.

Lake Merritt. Photo courtesy of A. Do.

From the gardens northwest entrance gate, walking across the gardens and out through the south gate leads to the shore of Lake Merritt, which became the nation's first formally declared wildlife refuge in 1870. A paved path goes 3.4 miles (~5.5 km) around the lake, with views of wild birds and small islands against the urban background. I liked spending half a weekend day visiting the area for the first time!

Footnote:

* Areas within The Gardens at Lake Merritt:

- Alameda County Master Garden

- Alameda County Master Trial Garden

- Air Bee N' Bee

- Alpine Rock Garden

- Bay Friendly Garden

- Bonsai Garden

- Dahlia Garden

- Entry Garden

- Firescape Garden

- Fukuoka Sister City Garden

- General Pollinator Garden

- Japanese Garden

- Lu's Garden

- Mediterranean Garden

- Merritt College Community Garden

- Merritt College Horticulture Community Gardens

- Palmettum

- Rhododendron Garden

- Riparian Garden

- Rose Garden

- Sensory Garden

- Succulent Garden

- Sun Dial Garden

- Toddler Garden

- Understory Garden

- Urban Edible Gardens

- Vireya & Begonia Garden

SPRING WILDFLOWER WALK on the Montclair Railroad Trail, Oakland, California

Allium triquetrum on the Montclair Railroad Trail.

One of our favorite walks near our house in Oakland is along the Montclair Railroad Trail. Once the path of a busy commuter rail line, it is now a mostly shaded, level path through a forest of California oaks, eucalyptus and redwoods. 

Montclair Railroad Trail (east end).

In spring, the edges and open areas are home to a variety of wildflowers. Here are some that we encountered on a recent warm, sunny weekend. 

Broom (an invasive species.).

Nightshade, sometimes called horse nettle.

Daisies.

Cow parsnip, a California native plant.

Lupin.

Forget-me-not.

The trail is 1.5 miles long. Along the trail are several information boards telling the history of the railroad and how local residents saved the land from being developed after the railroad stopped running. I'm glad they did.

"It is silent now, but long ago you would hear the shrill scraping of iron wheels along a track as a green interurban electric train would suddenly appear and pass along the very path on which you are walking. From 1912 to 1957, the popular Sacramento Northern carried passengers and freight between Chico and Oakland."

The trail is accessible from the parking garage in the Montclair village shopping area. A short climb up the hill behind the parking lot leads to the main path. It is a popular trail for walkers like us, but also for people with their dogs and bike riders. If you go on a Sunday as we did, between 9:00 and 1:00 pm, you can finish by stopping at the Farmer's Market just down the street from the parking garage where you can buy fresh vegetables, fruit, fish, or a wide variety of prepared foods (dim sum, bao buns, crepes, samosas, cornish pasties and more) to eat at picnic tables or take home.

MAP for parking and trail access.

Wood Sorrel (Oxalis)

MILLS COLLEGE, OAKLAND, CA: Nature Walk and Window Onto History

Mills College, Oakland, CA

In the middle of Oakland sits the campus of Mills College, an island of greenery around academic buildings and a place where local residents go to play sports on the playing fields, walk along tree lined paths, birdwatch, and generally enjoy nature. Established as a women’s college in 1885, Mills College will transform to a campus of Northeastern University in Boston in the fall of 2022.

Mills Young Ladies Seminary, about 1873. Mills Hall and students.

Mills College began as a Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, CA, moved to Oakland in 1871, and was chartered as a college in 1885. Juliet Fish Nichols (1859-1947), the subject of my new book, Keeper of the Light: Juliet Fish Nichols Fights the San Francisco Fog, was one of the first graduates. 

Olin Library at Mills College. 

Earlier this year, on a Sunday afternoon in June, Art and I took a walk on the Mills campus. I wanted to see Mills Hall, the building where Juliet had lived and attended classes when she was a student.

Mills Hall, 2022.

It is likely that one of the girls seated on the lawn in the 1873 photograph is Juliet, then fourteen years old. (The identity of the girls is not noted on the photograph.) At the time, Mills Hall was the only structure on campus. It contained classrooms and offices as well as housing for faculty and the young women who were the students. Now it is used as an administration building. 

The Bell Tower, designed by architect Julia Morgan. 

Gradually, the college grew, with facilities for the arts, sciences, music, sports and other disciplines. In 1904, the bell tower, El Campanil, designed by Julia Morgan was built in the southeast quadrant of the campus, across from Mills Hall.

A grove of California Bay Laurel trees on the Mills College campus.

In the first years the land around the new campus was quite open except for a few native oak trees. More than one thousand trees were planted, now grown to stately heights. As you walk around the campus today, you feel like you are in an arboretum, with trees and plants identified, and a nature trail along Leona Creek, which flows through the campus. 

A bridge crosses Leona Creek, which flows from the Oakland hills to San Francisco Bay.

The day I visited was shortly after graduation (chairs were still set up on the lawn) and few people were around. It was easy to imagine what it must have been like more than one hundred years ago when Juliet was a student.

Juliet Fish was born in Shanghai, China, where her father, Dr. Melancthon Fish, was serving as a medical missionary and United States consul. The family returned to the United States when Juliet was three. Juliet grew up in Oakland, California, and attended Mills Seminary for Young Ladies, where the goals were good health and a classical education. A daily outdoor walk of at least one mile was required. Students also worked out with dumbbells, Indian clubs and wands—so Juliet was well prepared for the physical demands of her later lighthouse work.

When Juliet was a student at Mills, she would have walked along shaded paths like this one lined with blackberry vines.

In 1888, Juliet married Commander Henry Nichols of the U.S. Navy, who became Superintendent of the 12^th Lighthouse District along the coast of California. They had no children. In 1899, Henry Nichols was sent to the Philippines during the Spanish-American War, where he died of heat stroke, leaving Juliet without financial support.

Angel Island Lighthouse and Bell Station, as it appeared when Juliet lived there.

When Juliet learned that the lighthouse keeper on Angel Island was retiring, she applied for the job. Juliet served as lighthouse keeper at Point Knox on Angel Island from 1902 to 1914. Upon her retirement, Juliet lived the rest of her life in Oakland. She is buried in the family plot at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland.

Except for her lighthouse log and official letters and reports, Juliet Fish Nichols left few clues to her personal life. As I walked around the Mills Campus, I felt that in a small way I was able to share Juliet’s experience as a student and get a bit of insight to her life.

I donated at copy of my book Keeper of the Light to the Olin Library at Mills College in honor of Juliet Nichols. 

For more about Juliet Fish Nichols and Angel Island go to my posts of September 2017 and July 2012.

Additional information about Juliet Nichols, her log, Angel Island, the Point Knox Lighthouse, 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and more is at https://carolinearnoldart.blogspot.com/p/extra-material-for-keeper-of-light.html .

HIKE IN THE OAKLAND HILLS, CA: Anthony Chabot Regional Park

Anthony Chabot Regional Park, Oakland, CA

Just a fifteen minute drive from our house in Oakland is one of our favorite places to hike–the MacDonald Trail in Anthony Chabot Regional Park. Designed for walkers, bike riders, and people with dogs, it descends gradually to the valley below on a wide dirt trail. The Parkridge trail head and entrance to the park are at the end of a residential street at the top of the ridge. 

MacDonald Trail

We set out on a cool afternoon in late December, the first sunny day after a series of rainstorms. The air was fresh and the skies so clear that we could see the tops of hills many miles away. Although the storm had made gullies in the path and left a few puddles, the trail was mostly clear. A sign along the path advised that the area is also used for grazing cattle, and although we saw a few cow pies, no live animals were evident.

View from the trail.

The late afternoon sun turned the new grass an emerald green and highlighted the live oaks dotting the hills. A bench located about half-way down was the perfect place to rest and admire the view. The total length of the trail from top to bottom is about one and a half miles. But our car was parked at the top, so when we reached the bottom we turned around and retraced our steps, making the total trip about three miles. (Actually, my husband and I stopped just short of the end, where the trail descends a steep hill to a bridge over a stream. The more energetic younger members of our family group hiked to the bridge and back.)

Parkridge Gate, Anthony Chabot Regional Park

A kiosk at the trail head provides information about the trail, including animals one might encounter (rattlesnakes in warm weather.) Brochures are available with a map of the park. The same brochure is available online at the park website. This is a popular trail for people with dogs because the dogs are allowed to run off leash. We passed several on our way down the trail.

View to the East from the top of the ridge. 

For more information go to the East Bay Regional Park District Anthony Chabot Regional Park website..

GLOFARI AT THE OAKLAND ZOO, CA: Spectacular Larger-Than-Life Animal Lanterns

Glofari at the Oakland Zoo displays realistically detailed larger-than-life animal lanterns.

Giant animal lanterns glow in the dark like creatures in a fantastical dream at Glofari, the magical night tour at the Oakland Zoo in California. I have been to the Oakland Zoo many times during the day, but Glofari provided a completely new experience. Lanterns and light displays line the paths, are tucked into the landscape, and sit atop the ridge at the end of the gondola ride. 

A giant praying mantis in the World of Bugs.

Each section of Glofari has a theme: Savannah Watering Hole, Winter Wonderland, Forests of Asia, Desertscapes and the World of Bugs. The real zoo animals are safely inside their indoor areas, keeping warm in the chilly night.
In late December, when our family was visiting for the holidays, we dressed in our warm jackets and made Glofari a family outing. (I had reserved tickets a month earlier.) It was the perfect Covid activity—all outdoors and masks required. Entrance is by advance ticket only and visitors come in at a scheduled time to limit crowding.

Lighted flamingos greeted us at the entry area and from there we followed the path down the hill through a colorful corridor, each arch decorated with the giant animal head. 

At the bottom of the hill elephants, giraffes, zebras and other animals spread across a field as they might be in real life at an African waterhole. Visitors can wander among them to admire them close-up.

At the Safari Watering Hole. The drama of the lights is enhanced by the blackness of the background—ideal for photographing the lanterns, but not for taking pictures of people, who appear as silhouettes against the colorful objects.

An animated peacock entertains visitors to the Savanna.

While the animal lanterns are fascinating simply for their artistry (painted cloth over wire armatures with lights inside) informative signs link them to facts about the real animals they represent. Many of the lanterns are animated. The peacock’s tail not only raises and spreads into a colorful fan, but blinking lights change color as the “feathers” move.

Plump pandas wander through a bamboo forest.

After spending time at the watering hole, we circled back up the hill past pandas, bighorn sheep, and other creatures of the desert before arriving at the gondola station for a ride to the upper section of the zoo. 

A condor flaps its wings along the path through the desert area.

Each enclosed gondola car accommodates eight people, perfect for our group. As we rode to the top we looked down at the lighted displays and the city beyond before arriving at the upper station and the Landing Café. There another amazing tour of amazing lighted lanterns awaited us—the world of bugs.

From the gondola station we emerged through the queen ant tunnel to a walkway through the World of Bugs.

Giant caterpillars, butterflies, spiders, and more sparkled beside the path leading to an overlook of the city above the bison enclosure--where one lone bison, snug in its furry coat, looked up at us from below as we admired the city of Oakland and lights of San Francisco across the Bay. It was truly spectacular!

At the overlook above the bison enclosure.

In addition to the animal lanterns, Glofari features lighted displays of flowers and other creations. Among my favorites was a tree hung with giant colored globes.

Colored lights become glowing sculptures.

Altogether we spent about two hours at the zoo. As we exited Glofari we stopped briefly at the amusement area next to the zoo, where children (and adults) can buy tickets to ride a train around the zoo or for other kid-sized amusement rides. Just for the fun of it, our three teen-age grandchildren rode the merry-go-round, just like old times when they were little. It was a fitting end to a special night at the zoo. Then we all went home for cups of hot cocoa. 

Due to the popularity of Glofari, originally scheduled to the end of January, tickets have been extended to February 6. 

For more information about visiting the Oakland Zoo, go to the Oakland Zoo website;

A giant crocodile at the Savanna Watering Hole.

Note: Glofari brought back memories of our visit to Philadelphia in 2016 when we went to the Chinese Lantern Festival at Franklin Square (near Chinatown) and saw dragons, giant lotuses, and other spectacular lanterns created from the same technique as the animals at the Oakland Zoo. 

ROSIE THE RIVETER/ WWII HOME FRONT Park and Visitor Center, Richmond, CA

52 Places to Go:  Week 29

Rosie the Riveter/WW II Home Front National Historical Park Visitor Center, Richmond, CA

During World War II, shipyards, factories, military bases, and businesses of all kinds around San Francisco Bay hummed with activity. At the Rosie the Riveter/WW II Home Front National Historical Park in San Francisco’s East Bay one can explore how American civilians, especially women, lived, worked and contributed to the war effort at home.

"I specifically didn't do anything...great, but I participated in something that was great."

I visited the museum with my family in 2018 when they were visiting us in Oakland for the holidays. I had passed the sign for the turnoff to the park many times before as I sped on the 580 Freeway from Oakland to the Richmond/San Rafael Bridge on my way to Marin County. This time we took the exit. The park is at the edge of the Bay, looking onto a distant view of Angel Island and the city of San Francisco.

The Visitor Center is in the restored Ford Building, an assembly plant for jeeps and other military vehicles during the war--the largest assembly plant on the West Coast. Now, as a museum, it is filled with exhibits about the history of Richmond's wartime industries and workers.

As we walked through the museum, it felt like a trip back in time. Life-size dioramas dramatize daily life for the thousands of workers who worked at various wartime industries, many living in crowded rooms due to the housing shortage.

Many workers were women, who took over jobs previously done by men. These were the “Rosie the Riveters.”

Who Was Rosie?
Even during World War II, the term “Rosie the Riveter” served as shorthand for the women workers flooding the industrial workplace. The first Rosie popped up in a popular tune released in early 1943. As the song put it, “She’s a part of the assembly line. / she’s making history, ‘ Working for victory, / Rosie the Riveter.”
Artist Norman Rockwell was undoubtedly aware of the song when he painted the May 29, 1943, cover of the Saturday Evening Post. His subject is a young riveter on break, with her lunchbox clearly marked “Rosie.” The one-two punch of the song and magazine cover made Rosie a lasting icon.

Child day care centers, funded by the government, solved the problem of the “eight-hour orphans”-- the children of working mothers. At home, people were encouraged to plant “Victory Gardens” as a way of contributing to the war effort by growing their own food.

Displays also told the darker stories of Japanese families forced to leave their homes to go to internment camps.

View of Angel Island and San Francisco from the front of the museum.

We watched a short film and listened to a talk by a very knowledgeable docent. We didn’t have time to fully appreciate all of the exhibits. We'll have to go back another day. As we returned to our car in the parking lot we passed the Rosie the Riveter monument in the center of the large park. The park is a popular spot for bikers and walkers. Next time we visit, we’ll allow more time to enjoy the fresh air and spectacular view across the bay.

This article was first published 10/8/18.

All text and photographs copyright Caroline Arnold.