HIGHWAY 12

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NORTHWEST ENTRY PLAZA

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Grizzly Island Trail

A SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL

PROGRAM PROJECT

City of Suisun City701 Civic Center Boulevard

Suisun City, CA 94585www.suisun.com

BENEFITS TO THE COMMUNITY• The primary intent was to connect Crystal

Middle School to the west with the Crescent Elementary School to the east. Student safety was a primary concern. This trail eliminated the need for school age students who live in the southern half of the City to cross State Route 12, a high volume and high speed expressway, to get to and from either the Crescent Elementary School or the Crystal Middle School. This trail allows the students who live within the southern boundary of the City to remain on the south side of State Route 12 when accessing those schools.

• This trail reduced the fears parent share about their children traveling along busy State Route 12 on their way to and from school, and the end result will include fewer trips by parents and an increased number of walking and bicycling trips by students.

• This trail provides an environmentally-natural educational opportunity for students and school mini field trips.

• This trail is a public facility for family recreation including viewing, photography, wildlife observa-tion, nature study, bicycling, walking, jogging or just sitting.

• This project is sensitive to the existing wildlife and will enhance the view from State Route 12.

GRIZZLY ISLAND AND SURROUNDING WILDLIFE AREAS

GRIZZLY ISLAND TRAIL

TRAIL FEATURES• Class I bicycle/pedestrian trail separated from

vehicular traffic.

• Overall trail 0.9 miles in length. Decorative colored concrete and pavers are featured at the four primary access points to the trail: 1) Marina Blvd/Driftwood Dr, 2) Marina Blvd/SR12, 3) Grizzly Island Rd/SR12, and 4) Grizzly Island Rd/McCoy Creek Way.

• Large granite monument signs flanked by concrete seatwalls welcome the trail users at the corners of State Route 12/Marina Boulevard and at State Route 12/Grizzly Island Road. These signs bring attention to the trail and the biggest marsh not too many people know about.

• Educational interpretive signs the Bay Conservation and Development Commission and the Department of Fish and Wildlife helped design are evenly spaced along the trail.

• An outdoor classroom/overlook area with long concrete benches, railing and an interpretive sign is located at mid-point of the trail.

• School bus parking spaces on Grizzly Island Road are for drop off and pick up of students on field trips to the Suisun Marsh.

• A new crosswalk on Marina Boulevard at Lotz Way features new pushbutton-activated flashing bea-cons to alert motorists to crossing pedestrians.

• Site furnishings of benches and trash receptacles are located in the rest areas separated from the main trail.

THE SUISUN MARSH, the largest contiguous estuarine marsh in the United States, is comprised of nearly 100,000 acres of land, bays, and sloughs. The Grizzly Island Complex, a patchwork of ten land parcels, occupies about 15,300 acres. The complex not only acts as a vital buffer against further marsh development, but offers a variety of recreational opportunities and provides prime wildlife habitat.

THE GRIZZLY ISLAND COMPLEX combines natural tidal wetlands and artificially diked marshes. Each habitat attracts a special kind of wildlife. Some animals, like the California clapper rail and Suisun Shrew, live exclusively in these tidal wetlands. Other animals include: Tule Elk, River Otters and Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse.

THE SUISUN MARSH provides excellent bird watching opportunities, including the chance to see rare and unique species. The Grizzly Island Complex is home to an eclectic mix of birds which includes the Tule Goose, White-tailed Kite, Snowy Egret, great Egrets, Black-crowned Night Herons, Green Heron and Great Blue Herons. Some of the Egrets along with the Common Yellowthroats, Marsh Wrens and Suisun Song Sparrow prefer the cover provided by the tules lining many of the ponds and ditches. During August and September,

American White Pelicans glide into the Marsh for a brief stay. The fields and upland areas draw a rich variety of raptors such as Hawks, Kites, Red-tailed Hawks and the occasional Prairie Falcon or Peregrine Falcons. The Rush Ranch area is home to the great Golden Eagles.

WITH THE GREATEST DENSITY of nesting Mallard Duck in all of North American, the Suisun mudflats are a prime location to view waterfowl. Shallow tidal and diked areas are dotted with shorebirds that winter each year at Grizzly Island. The Least Sandpiper, Dunlin, and Black-necked Stilt probe the mudflats for food. The opportunity to view waterfowl is at its peak during the winter months.

MARSH VEGETATION includes a mix of both native and non-native plant species, comprising an important component of the marsh’s ecosystem. Unique marsh vegetation provides shelter and safety for many, including the endangered Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse. The likely vegetation in the mouse’s habitat includes Pickleweed, a salt-tolerant plant that thrives in the brackish water and soil conditions found in the Suisun Marsh. Other native marsh plants include the Marsh Gumplant, Creeping Wildrye, Sago Pondweed, Wigeon Grass and Suisun Thistle.

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SNOWY EGRET

CREEPING WILDRYE

SUISUN THISTLE

MALLARD

TULE ELKRIVER OTTER