LATE FEBRUARY'S TO-DO LIST... can be surprisingly stout and notably long. You may have resolved to finally take the Christmas lights down (after all, January was only last month, and January still has that holiday vibe). You might be planning what mondo spring music festivals to attend, and how to secure a place to stay. And you might be heading for Horsetail Fall, in Yosemite National Park, to see the water go aglow at sunset (something that only happens at the end of February, depending upon cloud-cover and luck). But another keep-in-minder, at least if you're...
SWEET ON THE CENTRAL COAST, and you're entranced by eucalyptus groves, and you could watch clutches of butterflies flap and flutter and find stillness for the better part of the afternoon, is this: California's famous Monarch butterfly migratory season will soon fold its wings for another run. The iconic insects, which find a wintertime home at their typical treeful traditional spots in Goleta, Pismo Beach, Nipomo, Pacific Grove, and other regional points, depart around the end of February. In fact, the Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove has a closing date of...
FEB. 27, 2017, so flap there ASAP. Other groves near the coast give "mid February" to the end of the month as general goodbye dates, but best call the spot you long to visit to make sure they'll be open to visitors. Even if you don't get to spy thousands of colorful creatures all up on a branch — as wowza a Golden State phenom as wowza phenoms come — take heart, and then prepare to take wing this fall: The Monarchs return around November.
