A long-running neighborhood feud in Sausalito over a home remodel and an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) has escalated into heated arguments, police calls, restraining orders, viral videos, and accusations from both sides.

Chronicle columnist Emily Hoeven has the full details on the saga: In 2017, Jake Beyer and Georgia Glassie bought a 1920s cottage and, in 2021, proposed a major remodel — adding a third story and an ADU under California’s housing laws encouraging new units. Despite multiple community meetings and design revisions, neighbors pushed back over blocked views and concerns about neighborhood character.

The Sausalito Planning Commission approved the project in late 2023, but the City Council reversed that decision in early 2024 after a tense meeting, requiring design changes including removal of rear decks and additional neighbor consultations. As the Pacific Sun reported last year, Beyer said he was “confused and disappointed by the lack of clarity” in the council’s decision, hinting at possible legal action.

Architect Michael Rex criticized Sausalito’s planning process as inconsistent, pointing to staff turnover and unclear code interpretations. “The department interpreted the code willy-nilly for this project,” he told the Pacific Sun. “The applicant was not instructed correctly.”

As the Chronicle reports, tensions spilled beyond City Hall, with police called twice to local businesses over altercations involving Beyer and neighbors — once about a thrown food item, and another over a middle finger allegedly directed at the couple’s children.

The dispute also played out online with competing Google reviews and heated posts on neighborhood forums. Beyer and Glassie produced a slick, documentary-style video and website to share their perspective.

Tensions continued at parks and community events, with accusations including spitting and intimidation. The couple says they faced harassment, were followed and filmed without consent, and reported dozens of incidents to authorities. Neighbors say they felt unsafe as well, leading to several restraining orders being filed — most of which were denied.

The Chronicle writes that in March 2024, the City Council unanimously approved a revised version of the project, calling for compromise and including changes such as larger setbacks and removal of decks.

Later that year, Beyer and Glassie sent open letters to Governor Newsom and state housing officials, accusing Sausalito of misapplying local codes to limit their ADU’s size. The city attorney disputed this, saying the couple chose a smaller unit to preserve backyard space.

By then raising four children, the couple argued that state housing laws allowed them to build a larger ADU without extra city review. State officials found no violation, though some housing advocates disagreed.

As the Chronicle reports, the main remodel eventually moved forward with approval in 2025. The couple later applied to restore the full ADU size but say the city unfairly delayed their application.

This dispute highlights the deep challenges Sausalito faces around housing reform. Despite state mandates and urgent affordable housing needs, local opposition remains strong, complicating projects like this.

Contributor’s Note: The original version of this post too closely matched the tone of the Chronicle article. We have revised it to better attribute the original reporting. We regret this oversight and sincerely thank the Chronicle for their thorough coverage.

Image: Screenshot via Vimeo

In this week’s Field Notes: A tween skate star, a giant whale sculpture, floating saunas, a community hub in the making, indie legends at the Greek, and kitsch in San Luis Obispo. Plus, opossum rescues, Fringe Fest weirdness, easy hikes, and Jane at SFMOMA.

One to watch on the ramp

At 11 years old, Oakland’s Anna Shea Reynolds-Madsen is making an impact on the skate world. She first picked up a board by borrowing her sister’s in secret. Within a year, she was skating vert ramps and learning to drop without any lessons or coaches — just trial, error, and a lot of determination.

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Vert skating is rare and demanding, especially for kids. But Anna loves the height, the speed, and the pure physics of it. She’s now competing in national events like Tony Hawk’s Vert Alert, catching air in massive arenas one week and skating DIY parks in the East Bay the next.

She’s got style, and she’s not afraid to be herself. According to a 2023 interview, off the ramp, she draws, plays piano, and crushes it in soccer. Her dream is to go pro, travel the world, and one day snowboard in Iceland. But for now, she’s just a Bay Area kid chasing the next drop-in, fearless and fully in her element. — S1 Helmet Co. / Old Bones Therapy

Golden hour sounds at the Greek

The Greek Theatre’s hillside setting and breezy eucalyptus canopy make it one of the Bay Area’s most atmospheric venues, especially on late-summer nights. This season’s lineup feels tailor-made for the grown-up indie crowd.

Father John Misty headlines there tonight with Lucinda Williams and Hamilton Leithauser — a mellow, melancholic triple bill that suits the venue’s golden-hour glow. Still to come: My Morning Jacket returns August 22 with their signature blend of psychedelic rock and Southern soul, known for long builds and explosive crescendos. On August 28, the Pixies bring their raw, off-kilter alt-rock to the stage alongside Spoon’s sharp, clean hooks and Fazerdaze’s dreamy fuzz-pop.

September 7 promises maximalist spectacle as the Flaming Lips and Modest Mouse team up for a co-headlining show likely to include giant props, bubble machines, and cathartic singalongs. And October 16 brings a long-awaited reunion from Rilo Kiley, with Jenny Lewis leading the band’s bittersweet indie-pop back onto the big stage for the first time in over a decade. — Broke-Ass Stuart

A 24-foot whale and the power of tools

A 24-foot wooden whale just surfaced at Berkeley’s Adventure Playground, thanks to 85 youth builders from Girls Garage. The climbing sculpture — complete with baleen mouth and 3D-printed handholds — was the centerpiece of a month-long summer camp blending carpentry, design, and confidence-building.

First-timers learned to use jigsaws and drills; returning teens mentored and imagined. Instructors say it’s about more than construction—it’s about showing young people their strength. And the whale’s just the latest. Girls Garage also builds free installations like garden beds and tiny homes for community orgs across the Bay. — Berkeleyside

Weird on purpose: The Fringe lives on

Theater veteran Christina Augello has been keeping San Francisco weird since 1983 — and at 77, she’s not slowing down. As founder of The Exit, she’s produced thousands of experimental, often chaotic, and occasionally brilliant shows in the Tenderloin. These days she’s down to just one stage, but her annual San Francisco Fringe Festival marches on from August 8–25, showcasing 15 original productions drawn by lottery.

Expect clown shows, pole acrobatics, spoken word, and a few total flops — because that’s the point. For Augello, creating space for small, strange stories is an act of resistance, and The Exit is still a place where something unforgettable might happen… even if you walk in expecting nothing at all. — Mission Local

Low-effort, high-reward trails near you

No need to trek too far from home for a great hike. This roundup highlights ten top user-rated easy trails, from San Francisco’s coastal Lands End and Oakland’s redwood-filled Redwood Regional Park to Marin’s Dipsea Loop and the peaceful Purisima Creek near Half Moon Bay.

Each trail offers something unique — whether it’s ocean views, towering trees, or quiet forest paths. Best of all, they’re all accessible for a casual stroll with plenty of payoff. — Chronicle

Opossum season in full swing

At Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue, it’s peak opossum season. The all-volunteer nonprofit, based in Oakland, is putting out the call for fosters — especially for babies who need care before they can be released back into the wild.

Volunteers should have backyard space for an outdoor enclosure, plus a little open-mindedness when it comes to these misunderstood marsupials. “They eat rats. They’re gardeners’ friends,” says founder Lila Travis. Between wildfires, fireworks, and summer disruption, the rescue often sees up to 60 opossums at a time, alongside a rotating cast of raccoons, squirrels, and hummingbirds. — KGO

Nordic heat, bay views

A new retreat in Richardson Bay blends Nordic tradition with Bay Area flair — Fjord, a pair of hand-built floating saunas, opens next month along Sausalito’s waterfront. Designed by Marin locals Alex Yenni and Gabe Turner, the twin cedar structures feature 190-degree Finnish-style heat and icy plunge decks—all bobbing gently in the bay.

Each sauna fits six people, with pre-sales now open for the unique “sea-spa” experience. Come for the detox, stay for the view. — Mill Valley Patch

A new Jane in town

SFMOMA is teaming up with local favorite Jane the Bakery to open Jane on Third, a new ground-floor cafe and brunch spot debuting this August. The menu promises fresh salads, quiche, sandwiches, and French toast — with indoor and outdoor seating available and no museum ticket required.

A new mural by Chelsea Ryoko Wong, known for her vibrant scenes of everyday joy, will welcome diners and museum-goers alike. — Secret San Francisco

Coffee, zines, and conversation on College Avenue

Opening this fall in a former Rockridge storefront in Oakland, Local Economy is part coffee shop, part general store, part community clubhouse. The brainchild of couple Alexis Madrigal, of KQED, and writer and editor Sarah Rich, the space will feature a Painted Leopard coffee cart up front, shelves of handmade goods by local makers, and a pair of 8-foot communal tables anchoring the room.

Events like zine workshops, food pop-ups, and author talks will unfold just steps from East Bay Booksellers. Inspired by La Peña and Womb House Books, Local Economy invites neighbors to co-create a shared antidote to Bay Area isolation — one conversation and one cup of coffee at a time. — Chronicle

Kitsch, castles, and light in San Luis Obispo County

Tide pools and sea lions by day, glowing hillsides and speakeasies by night — San Luis Obispo County (aka SLO CAL) has all the ingredients for an extended weekend destination.

Venture from the bubblegum pink fantasyland of the Madonna Inn to Pismo’s ocean bluffs, sip Edna Valley wines (maybe by sidecar), and wander Hearst Castle’s gilded halls before heading north to Paso Robles. There, a tapas dinner sets the stage for Sensorio, a surreal, 15-acre wonderland of light and sound best explored under the stars. — 7x7

Top image: Wayne Coyne and The Flaming Lips perform in support of the band's "At  War with the Mystics" release at the Greek Theater on July 22, 2006 in  Berkeley, California. (Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)

Previously: Field Notes: 'Black Spaces' at OCMA, East Bay Skyline Trail Hike, and Tenderloin Museum Turns 10

Within the past four months, at least six mega-properties – real estate with listing prices above $25 million – have gone on the market in Marin County. Among the many elite enclaves of the Bay Area where few can afford to buy, 50 zip codes made their way onto the list of the 100 most expensive median sale price for real estate in the USA, according to PropertyShark. Marin County accounted for eight of them, including Ross, which edged out every other zip code in Northern California except for Atherton and was #4 in the country, overall.

In 2020, Ross had a median sale price of over $3.6 million, but for better or worse, municipalities throughout Marin County achieved extreme median sale prices too. It shouldn’t be a surprise to see these numbers rise over the coming years. As tech workers age out of their twenties and look to start families, some may want to get out of the hustle and bustle of the city to venture north. Ross and Portola Valley have continued to attract high-profile athletes, entertainers and Silicon Valley executives because of its small-town, rural aesthetic coupled beautiful homes and easy access to the rest of the Bay Area.

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Below are six mega-properties currently or recently for sale in Marin County, so if you're one of those early Dogecoin investors who is now a billionaire, or just feel like dreaming, check them out.

Bluff Point, Tiburon

Bluff Point, located in Tiburon, is the largest undeveloped residential property on the San Francisco Bay waterfront in Marin County listed for $47 million, as originally reported by the Chronicle. The land comes with all the plans and permits for a sprawling estate with space for a 15,000-square-foot main residence, 2,200-square-foot guesthouse, and 700-square-foot “caretaker’s quarters.”

After years of getting the property ready, the seller has moved abroad, and it is now up for sale. The fact that the parcel comes with all the permitting and plans in place is a huge boon to the select buyers who are already interested. One of the biggest draws of the parcel is the plan and permitting for its eco-friendly, net-zero, carbon-neutral layout, according to Platinum Luxury Auctions. The residence would have space and is permitted for a four-car garage and private pool, plus it has a small private beach on the bay, which can be accessed from a walkway.

The interest is coming from all over the globe: They’ve had interested buyers get in touch from Hong Kong; Washington, D.C.; New York; Virginia; Miami and several within California.

King Mountain Estate, Marin County

Considered the "last real estate unicorn in the Bay Area", the 140-acre King Mountain Estate is going to auction for $25 million in May.

The King Mountain Estate would afford you panoramic views, immediate access to nature, and five water wells. Views include the San Francisco skyline, the Bay Bridge, Mount Diablo, the Marin Headlands, and Mount Tamalpais. Mavromihalis, Compass real estate broker, also said you could easily put a solar farm up and live completely off the grid.

Herbert Boyer, a co-founder of biotech giant Genentech, was once the owner. He envisioned a beautiful villa, something like you might find in the hills of Tuscany. This possible development plan, around 27,500-square-foot, has already been approved by the county consisting of swimming pools, guest homes, vineyards, stables, and tennis courts.

The auction is set to open May 12th and close on May 19th.

21 Canyon Road, Ross

This mega property was listed on May 5th, 2020 for sale at $43,000,000$ at 3,715 square feet. It's monthly cost goes for around $190,000 including principal interest, property taxes, home insurance, etc. The overall rent will put you back around $15,000 a month. The typical Zestimate for this ZIP code is $3,456,894.

The property is situated on a high hilltop overlooking the Ross Valley and Mt. Tamalpais near Quail Hill'. The private 20 plus acre enclave is private, secure, and aesthetically a mix of mid-century, contemporary Japanese architecture.

The multi-wing, 11,565 square foot home, comes with six bedroom suites on a single-level living cantilevering out into the native oak landscape. The look is both natural and extremely modern. The landscaping, designed by Nagao Sakuri, is integral to the overall design of the home, with countless moments, interruptions, controlled outlooks, and multi-season plantings.

Quail Hill offers the unique opportunity to acquire one of the largest and most private properties in Marin County.

74 Bellevue Ave, Belvedere, Tiburon

This property is sun-soaked and sprawling with completely finished hardwood floors to coffered ceilings. The front doors open to a double-height foyer complete with curved floating limestone staircase that will impress from first sight. The bay is right outside your window so, if you are a fan of fresh ocean air, this is the home for you and your family.

Lush gardens, established hedges, & limestone walls encase the estate for extra privacy and is only a short walk to Tiburon's shops, dining, & ferry building.

Currently, the estimated value is $25,444,338 with an estimated monthly cost of $110,987.

The property rests on the southernmost tip of Corinthian Island and offers the privacy of small-town living only a stone's throw from bustling San Francisco.

624 Ridge Road, Tiburon

Easton Point, also known as "the Martha Property," is one of San Francisco Bay Area's most iconic, pristine land located at the southern tip of the Tiburon Peninsula in Marin County.

The area is easily one of the most beautiful spots in the Bay with panoramic views of SF skyline, Golden Gate Bridge, Bay Bridge, Richardson Bay and beyond. An undulating hillside paradise - a mix of forested trails, golden meadows and breath-taking ridge-lines 590 ft. above sea level with endless vistas.

All utilities and green energy details are TBD but, it's only a matter of time before investors and contractors come in to utilize this unique space. For only $95,000,000, this 110 acre property can be yours to do what you will with it.

128 Ridgecrest Road, Greenbrae (Listing Canceled)

This since-canceled $25,000,000 140 acre property is going to auction between May 12th through May 19th. It's just  nine miles from the Golden Gate Bridge. The ridge top parcel, better known as King Mountain, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to build a legacy residential compound of unimaginable privacy, beauty, and sheer size in Marin County. If you're lucky enough to purchase this property, you will, ironically enough, be the king of the mountain.

The area offers 360-degree panoramic views of San Francisco, East Bay, Marin, as well as unobstructed views of the Bay. The property is fully vested and entitled with approved plans for the construction of a compound of 27,500 sf, including a main residence, guest residence, caretaker home, auxiliary buildings, vineyards, orchards, horse corrals, and more.

King Mountain Estate is the Bay Area's last real estate equivalent of the Tech Unicorn that entrepreneurs & investors dream of creating. If you're ready and willing, don't hesitate to turn this dream into your reality.

Yes, Marin County actually does have some public housing, but residents have filed suit because the county won’t do anything about the rats, exposed electrical wires, and general disrepair.

It’s something of a shocker to hear that notoriously white and wealthy Marin County has any manner of public housing, considering the locale is sort of a living caricature of limousine liberals, where Guy Fieri cruises about in a schoolbus yellow Lamborghini, doghouses are designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, and BMWs have “RASTA” license plates.

But there is a public housing complex in Marin City, the Golden Gate Village pictured above, which is even on the National Registry of Historic Places. The not-shocking part is how the 300-unit facility is in alleged disrepair, and the current renovation plan calls for the removal of some low-income units that would be replaced by market-rate (luxury) housing.

Golden Gate Village residents have been campaigning for years asking the Marin Housing Authority to address rats, mold, and general dilapidation, to little avail. Now the Marin Independent Journal reports that residents are suing the housing authority over what one tenant calls “mold, cracks in doors and the windows,” and “flooding,” and how the county has allegedly ignored their concerns for nearly a decade.    

“It appears [Marin County] intentionally did that, and it appears they are in cahoots with the Marin Housing Authority to keep property in disarray,” the residents’ attorney Stanley Goff told the Independent Journal. “We allege that this was done so the housing authority would be entitled to have certain parts of the property demolished for market-rate renters, which would displace a large amount of people, particularly African Americans.”

The place certainly has a fascinating history, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright disciple Aaron Green, and originally WWII-era government housing for a largely Black community of war-effort shipyard builders. It was apparently quite nice there during the post-war boom period, though the flip side being that Black families were pretty much redlined out of any other housing opportunities in Marin County. And the place apparently has not been kept up much since the post-war era either, with a redevelopment plan that residents fear is designed to drive off the primarily African-American resident community.

The Guardian has a great longform primer on the Golden Gate Village situation from January 2020, but one pregnant resident puts it best in just three sentences. “We live in one of the wealthiest counties in the world,” Malachia Hoover told the Independent Journal. “There is no excuse why our units have been so neglected. Is it because we are predominantly African American?

Related: Frances McDormand and Joel Coen Are In the Whitest of Feuds With Their Marin Neighbors [SFist]

Image: Google Street View

The successful rescue of Carol Kiparsky and Ian Irwin was looking grimmer by the day after the two vanished on a Valentine's Day hike together in the Inverness area. But after a week-long search for the couple, both were found alive yesterday.

Various news outlets — KRON4, SFGate, ABC7, etc. — shared the unexpected, joyous update on the MIA Palo Alto couple yesterday, the Marin County Sheriff's Office tweeting a photo of the couple recovering at Marin Health from minor scrapes, bruises, and mild cases of hypothermia — though giving "thumbs-ups," despite the fact that Carol was found sans shoes; Ian was even reported singing when the Sonoma Sheriff’s helicopter came.

Update from Carol Kiparsky and Ian Irwin. They are in great spirits and want to thank every single person who has kept them in their thoughts.

On behalf of the Irwin and Kiparsky family, Thank You. pic.twitter.com/t3OS6rgas7

— Marin County Sheriff (@MarinSheriff) February 23, 2020

“This is a miracle,” Sargent Brenton Schneider, a spokesman for the Marin County Sheriff’s Office, said at a news conference Saturday afternoon in Inverness, according to The Chronicle.

77-year-old Carol Kiparsky (a trained herbalist and retired linguist) and 72-year-old Ian Irwin (who's background includes mountaineering and is also a Parkinson's disease researcher) were found in a drainage area surrounded by “insanely thick” verdure at around 10 a.m. Saturday. Some 400 to 500 people — a gaggle of volunteers, seasoned rescue teams, and other local, state, and national first-responders — were involved in the seve-day-long search which utilized an airplane, helicopter, boats, horses, drones and a K9 team to seek out and extract the lost twosome. Kiparsky and Irwin were liberated only a few miles from their rented cottage on Via de la Vista in the Seahaven-Inverness area where their trudge started.

A statement from the Irwin and Kiparsky Family. Pictured: Rescue Team.https://t.co/p3LBgyPaJR pic.twitter.com/TUvO53rLNQ

— Marin County Sheriff (@MarinSheriff) February 23, 2020

How did they survive for such a long time? Schneider believes they're alive because of both situational savvy and environmental luck: “The reason they are most likely alive is they were drinking from a puddle they found near where they were located."

That, and "chivalry" had a part in their endurance. "[Ian] was laying his body flat into that awful thorny crap, which poison oak, you name it, so that Carol could go over him," Irwin said. "That's chivalry like I hope that's still alive."

Both Irwin and Kiparsky are expected to make full recoveries, news their sons, Jon Kiparsky and Jonas Irwin, were elated to learn.

Related: Palo Alto Academics Vanish Leaving No Clues at Inverness Vacation Rental

Image: Twitter via @MarinSheriff

Italian authorities are charging two police officers for blindfolding a Marin County teen suspect and posting pictures of him to social media, while the young man awaits trial for being an accessory to murder.

Since late July, we’ve been following the story of two recent Mount Tamalpais High graduates accused of killing an Italian police officer in an alleged drug deal gone terribly wrong. While family and friends of the Marin County youngsters describe them in flattering terms like “nicest guys and neighbors I have ever met,” there have been some allegations of the pair’s prior violence, and Italian police have released photos of from the suspects smartphones showing all manner of illegal gun and drug activities. Those police may have released too many photos, though, because the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera published leaked photos of 18-year-old suspect blindfolded Guantanamo-style, which officers then posted to WhatsApp along with unproven allegations about the teens.

ABC 7’s Dan Noyes has been keeping up with Italian police and journalists on the matter, and reports three Italian officers have now been charged for the misconduct. The blindfolded suspect Gabriel Natale-Hjorth is not the one charged with murder (that charge went to his companion Finnegan Elder, who has confessed to the stabbing but claims self-defense). But he is charged as an accessory to the murder, in the incident where the duo allegedly attempted to buy cocaine, were sold crushed aspirin, stole their sham coke dealer’s backpack who then called the police, and set off an incident where Elder stabbed a plainclothes police officer.

But now the blindfold photo is capturing more Italian media attention than the stabbing incident.

“That was horrible to see and was horrible for us, even for Italians to see and I figure for Americans, it was even worse," La Repubblica journalist Maria Elena Vincenzi told ABC 7. “On the WhatsApp groups, he even said that the two guys were trying to buy drugs, and because it was not proved yet, it was nothing yet, I mean it was the first day."

Two unnamed Italian officers are charged over the blindfolding and photo dissemination, while a third officer is charged with lying to investigators about whether a gun was involved. The Italian paper Agenzia Ansa reports that prosecutors had completed an investigation into the officers, which they say is “a move that frequently comes before an indictment request.”

According to a KTLA report in late November, Elder and Natale-Hjorth will face trial in Rome beginning February 26, 2020.

Related: Parents of Teen Accused in Murder of Italian Officer Say He Is 'Remorseful'

Image: Corriere della Sera via CNN

An SFO employee who was reportedly upset by the noise coming from a church apparently ordered a "novelty" Immigration and Customs Enforcement jacket and appeared at the place of worship during a Spanish-speaking service.

According to CBS 5, the man (who has not been publicly named) pulled the stunt on June 4, at San Rafael's Lutheran Church of the Resurrection.

San Rafael Police Lt. Raffaello Pata tells KRON 4 that the man "took pictures on a cell phone in the church parking lot and videotaped the people inside of the church" during a Spanish-language service. All the while, the Ex reports, he was wearing a jacket with "ICE written on it and an official looking emblem or seal on the back."

CBS 5 reports that he "was driving a government vehicle registered to the city of San Francisco when he showed up at the church. The vehicle belongs to the San Francisco International Airport, city officials confirmed."

The incident was alarming enough that it got the attention of the Canal Community Alliance, a San Rafael non-profit focused on immigrant advocacy, as well as San Rafael-based US Congressman Jared Huffman. At their urging, police then "contacted ICE and the FBI and learned the man was not employed by either law enforcement organization," KRON 4 reports.

He was instead identified as a San Francisco International Airport employee who lives near the church.

KRON 4 reports that the man's issue was apparently noise, as "he had prior unresolved complaints about amplified noise from the church services and went there to document it."

He didn't have an explanation, Pata says, for why he chose to do the documenting in a "novelty" ICE jacket he apparently purchased online.

“This person — out of I don’t what kind of motivations — decided to scare them and make them feel uncomfortable knowing this is something very sensitive for the Latino and Hispanic community right now," Canal Community Alliance spokesperson Lucia Martel-Dow told CBS 5.

SFO spokesperson Doug Yakel confirms that the man is employed by SFO, and says that he's been "placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation," KRON 4 reports. According to Pata, no laws seem to have been broken in the incident, but "police are referring the case to the Marin County District Attorney’s Office for review."

Marin mountain bikers are on edge this week after two cyclists discovered a spiked strip laid across a popular trail. The Marin Independent Journal reports that the apparent booby trap consisted of over 30 screws jammed through rubber, and was found on a trail that is approved for use by mountain bikers.

The four-foot long device was discovered Tuesday by a group of bikers in the White’s Hill Open Space Preserve, and was situated in such a way that the screws pointed up. “It was pretty scary,” cyclist Desi de Lenea told the Journal. “We’ve never seen anything like it. That’s why we had to pause. It was the first time something like that we both experienced.”

Mountain bikers have long been on the receiving end of opprobrium in Marin, with the Chronicle reporting that last April officials set up speed traps with radar guns to ticket cyclists traveling above 15 miles per hour on the shared trails. And while this is definitely not the first time someone has attempted to use spikes to apparently bring down cyclists, it may be the first time it's happened on what biking site Singletracks reports is a mountain bike-approved trail in Marin.

Although de Lenea removed the strip from the trail, and Marin sheriff’s deputies told the Journal that they're investigating, he remains concerned that the tension between hikers and mountain bikers remains unresolved.

"This homemade device could have crippled a bike or badly injured a cyclist," de Lenea wrote in a mass email, posted to Facebook, to cyclists warning of the discovery. "Sooner or later one of us will be badly injured by a booby trap or an intentionally placed log in the trail."

Related: Someone Is Spiking Roads In Woodside To Bring Down Cyclists

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Dec 2, 2015 at 4:36pm PST

Mount Tamalpais is a beautiful spot to hike, picnic, and generally take in views of the ocean and Bay Area. It is also, of course, home to a diverse population of animals — the exact count of which is rather difficult to pinpoint. Enter One Tam, a conservation group that CBS 5 reports has installed motion-sensor cameras around the mountain in an attempt to document the creatures that call it home.

“Wildlife data is particularly difficult to collect in a meaningful way, so when we learned about this technique it looked like a solution to a long-standing problem,” Janet Klein of the Marin Municipal Water District told the channel. "I think we’ve probably collected more than two million images."

The images, cataloged on the group's website, are stunning.

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Feb 10, 2016 at 1:45pm PST

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Feb 17, 2016 at 9:37am PST

The cameras work both during the day and at night, and with images downloaded every six weeks, researchers have started getting a better understanding of the animal population's habits. “And as we collect more data, we can start looking at what we have out there and then trends over time,” Golden Gate National Recreation Area wildlife ecologist Bill Merkle told ABC 7.

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Jan 13, 2016 at 1:56pm PST

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Dec 16, 2015 at 10:52am PST

This is part of a larger project known as the Marin Wildlife Picture Index Project, which "utilizes motion-activated wildlife cameras that are positioned along a grid at regular intervals across a large area [...] to understand wildlife populations well enough to identify what healthy populations look like, identify early signals of distress, and avoid population declines."

In other words, the more animal pictures snapped the more conservationists know, and the better they can work to protect the North Bay creatures. So, basically, these adorable photos are actually good for the animals. If you're interested in volunteering with the group, information to do so can be found on the One Tam website.

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Aug 4, 2015 at 9:49am PDT

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Jan 27, 2016 at 10:21am PST

A photo posted by One Tam (@onetamalpais) on Feb 3, 2016 at 1:22pm PST

Related: SFist photo: Snow Falling on Mt. Tam

The sight of a fawn is often enough to melt the coldest of hearts, and an apparently abandoned baby deer can drive the most fervent omnivore to consider vegetarianism. That appears to be the very problem facing many Bay Area fawns, as CBS 5 reports that wildlife officials are receiving an unusually high number of calls and reports of seemingly abandoned little Bambis. What's more, aspiring do-gooders are snatching up the animals and bringing them in for foster care. There's just one, rather large problem: The fawns are not abandoned, and these "kidnappings" as WildCare Animal Rescue calls them, can have lasting negative impacts on the health of mother and child.

“Most people don’t know that mom leaves them for about 12 hours at a time,” Melanie Piazza, the Director of Wildcare Animal Rescue in Marin County, told CBS. “She’ll leave them in the morning after feeding and come back at night. So most people who find them sitting in the grass think they have been orphaned, when they are actually not.”

Apparently this is actually healthy behavior on the part of mom, with WildCare noting that she essentially hides the fawn during the day.

"Mother deer know that their presence near their babies alerts predators to the fawns’ existence, which puts them at risk," the organization explains on a page titled "Was This Fawn Kidnapped?" "In order to keep her young safe, a doe will leave her fawn in a secluded area, often for as long as 12 hours, distracting predators away from her baby while she forages for food. Fawns’ camouflage and their ability to stay still keep them safe from predators while their mother is away."

According to WildCare, last year upwards of 20 percent of fawns brought in had been mistakenly kidnapped. It's a trend that, unfortunately, doesn't look to be on the decline. "It’s about double what we received last year at this time, which make us wonder why," Marin Humane Society CEO Nancy McKenney told CBS of calls her organization has received regarding seemingly abandoned deer. "But there might be more fawns out there or more concerned people calling us more often, right?"

If you want to know whether or not an animal needs help, WildCare suggests remembering "The Five Cs."

1. Is he Crying?
2. Is he Cold?
3. Is he Coming toward you (approaching people)?
4. Is he Covered with blood or insects?
5. Has he been Caught by a cat or a dog?

If you can answer "yes" to any of these questions, it is at that time that you should unleash your inner good Samaritan and call WildCare’s 24-hour Emergency Hotline at 415-456-7283. Otherwise, let that baby deer be.

Related: The SF Zoo's New Baby Giraffe Is Sweet Balm For Your Aching Heart

Amazing rescue of man stuck 18 hours on cliff near Rodeo Beach @CHPSanFrancisco @uscoastguard @southernmarinfire pic.twitter.com/LcpEu2qVb3

— Golden Gate NRA (@GoldenGateNPS) March 9, 2016

A Marin County man was the subject of a dramatic rescue Tuesday, after he was trapped overnight on a cliff above the pounding surf of Pacific Ocean.

California Highway Patrol Officer James Andrews says that the 33-year-old man was walking on Rodeo Beach near the sunset hour Monday, when he decided to take an up-the-cliff shortcut to his parked car.

That was the wrong idea. The man had only made it 30 feet uphill when darkness fell and the tide began to rise. He had 50 feet to go to reach the bluff above, but no visible route to get there, Andrews says.

To add another miserable element to the tale, the man hadn't brought his cell phone on his hike. He clung to the cliff overnight, and called out to passing hikers as dawn broke Tuesday.

The Southern Marin Fire Protection District responded to the hikers' 911 call, but they weren't enough: By 10:50 a.m. Tuesday, CHP’s H-32 helicopter was called to the scene to pull the man from his perilous perch. With the help of an extraction collar, the man was hooked in and lifted off the cliff in minutes.

Amazingly, Andrews says, the man wasn't injured after his wild Marin night. But something tells me he's going to be really good about bringing his cell phone with him on trips to the beach from now on.

Nanu Nanu! New R Williams Tunnel - US 101 at SF Golden Gate Bridge. First day of service. @CaltransHQ #RobinWilliams pic.twitter.com/w6OWyUJTrs

— Caltrans District 4 (@CaltransD4) March 2, 2016

Following last June's vote in the State Assembly, the Marin County tunnel formerly known as the "Waldo Tunnel" has officially taken its new name, the Robin Williams Tunnel. The tunnel, which connects Sausalito and Mill Valley along 101, was renamed after the late comedian following a popular Change.org petition championed by Assemblyman Marc Levine. The signs marking the tunnel in honor of the star — who, although not born in Marin County, moved to the area with his family at age 16 — went up on February 29, reports KRON 4.

Williams took his own life in 2014, and at the time of his death was silently suffering from the early stages of Parkinson's disease. It was only a few months after his passing that the bill to rename the tunnel is his honor went to the State Assembly.

"Robin Williams was a friend to the North Bay community of the San Francisco Bay area," reads the text of the bill. "He would often drop in unannounced at comedy nights at the 142 Throckmorton Theatre in Mill Valley. There he would encourage young, budding comedians. He did so with kindness and humility and many comedians aspired to perform with the same level of wit and insight as Robin Williams."

For his part, Williams apparently had some choice things to say about the tunnel — commenting on the nature of Marin County in the process.

"People going into Marin County say 'my god, look at that little rainbow! Isn't that cute?' No, they lied to you. It's an ethnic detector. * BEEP BEEP BEEP* 'We have two negroes headed south.'"

The tunnel was painted its iconic rainbow colors by two Caltrans workers in the 1970's, who did it without the permission or knowledge of their superiors. After an immediate positive public response, the agency decided to leave it.

Previously: Plan To Rename The Waldo Tunnel After Robin Williams Moves To State Assembly

Reports coming out of Marin over the last few weeks detailed a series of coyote-car interactions so odd that the possibility the coyotes (or coyote) were high on magic mushrooms was considered. However, as we originally noted, the likeliest explanation was that some Marin goofball had been feeding the wild animals out of his or her car. Well, after some further discussion with a local expert, it really does appear that humans, not psychedelic mushrooms, are likely to blame for the coyotes' bizarre behavior.

Lisa Bloch, the Director of Marketing & Communications for the Marin Humane Society, originally stated that it is "possible that someone was feeding him and thinking that it's cool, and magical and mystical to have a coyote eating out of his hand.” Bloch reiterated that suspicion to SFist.

"The most probable explanation is that someone has fed this coyote and now it feels emboldened," Bloch tells us. "Believe it or not, we had a similar situation recently involving an aggressive squirrel that was attacking people in Novato."

Bloch notes that she first started hearing reports about a coyote attacking cars on Highway 1 near Stinson beach on December 29, but that people had apparently been chatting about it on Nextdoor prior to that time.

This isn't the first time someone in the area has tried to feed a coyote, says Bloch.

"A couple of years ago, we received reports of a woman regularly feeding a coyote in the Marin Headlands McDonalds (yes, McDonald’s) and showing people how she could get him to come to her."

"Feeding wild animals is one of the worst things you can do for them, for your pets, and for people," Bloch explains. "They lose their natural, healthy fear of humans and as a result, they end up getting hit by cars, getting in fights with domestic dogs, and sometimes, killing domestic cats."

"The other big problem is that it completely messes with the ecosystem," she notes. "A coyote that is full on McDonald’s is going to hunt less mice and so on."

But what about those mushrooms — amanita muscaria — she warned pet owners about? Well, it turns out coyotes likely know not to eat them — unlike your precious Fido.

"This year, with El Niño in full effect, the mushrooms are all over the place. The Bay Area has several poisonous kinds of them and unlike coyotes who are smart enough — and wild enough — to stay away from poisonous things, domesticated dogs, especially certain breeds, are known to try to eat them."

Bloch tells us that if you happen to encounter coyotes behaving in the bizarre manner described by Marin motorists, the animals likely expect a snack. Don't give them one, she urges. Instead, "you should try to 'haze' them."

"No, not like in a fraternity," Block clarifies. "Hazing in this sense means scaring them off by yelling, waving your arms or throwing things (not at it but near it). Again, wild animals should retain their natural fear of humans. It’s what keeps us and them safe."

So, don't feed the coyotes — magic mushrooms or McDonald's. Got that, everyone?

Previously: Coyotes, Possibly High On Magic Mushrooms, Attacking Cars Near Stinson Beach