The Naturalist Who's Been Decoding—and Painting—California's Wild Spaces for 30 Years

This is a very special episode of Unpacked by Afar. This week, we hosted Unpacked Live — a live version of the podcast — in partnership with Visit California in Dallas, Texas. The event celebrated California's extraordinary creative landscape, and today's guest is one of its most original voices.

Obi Kaufmann is a naturalist, writer, and illustrator whose California Field Atlas series has redefined what a nature book can be. His books — filled with hand-painted watercolor maps, poetry, and decades of ecological research — don't tell you where to go or what you're looking at. They ask why the landscape works the way it does, and what it means to truly belong to a place.

In this episode, Obi talks about growing up exploring Mount Diablo in Northern California, what makes a field atlas, and why he believes the future of California conservation depends on better poetry.

On this episode, you'll learn:

• What a "field atlas" is — and why Obi had to invent the genre himself
• How Indigenous stewardship and traditional ecological knowledge are reshaping conservation in California
• Why Obi, one of California's great wilderness writers, is a proud city dweller in Oakland
• What to expect from his next three books
• Where to go right now to experience California's wildflower season at its peak

Travel Recommendations from Obi:

• Anza-Borrego Desert State Park — Keep your eye on the California Native Plant Society or CalFlora for super bloom alerts; the window can be as short as a week
• Death Valley National Park — Another prime super bloom destination; timing is everything
• Big Sur — Highway 1 is open again; Obi recommends climbing a mountain and watching for California condors, which have rebounded from just 17 individuals in 1987 to over 500 today
• Pinnacles National Park — The smallest and least visited national park in California, with condor sightings along the High Peaks Trail; Obi calls it "a beautiful gem of wilderness"
• Mount Diablo — Obi's home mountain, 25 miles east of San Francisco; a lifelong study in ecological wonder

Chapters

00:00:00 Introduction

00:02:00 Growing Up on Mount Diablo

00:05:00 Inventing the Field Atlas

00:10:00 Conservation and the Word "Wilderness"

00:30:00 Living as an Urban Naturalist

00:37:00 What's Next: Books 7 Through 10

00:41:00 Where to Experience California Now

Resources

• Obi Kaufmann's website and books
• Explore the Afar guide to California
• Watch the live recording of our Dallas event on YouTube
• Listen to our other Unpacked Live episodes featuring architect Barbara Bestor and landscape designer Roderick Wyllie

Be sure to subscribe to the show and sign up for our podcast newsletter, ⁠Behind the Mic⁠, where we share upcoming news and behind-the-scenes details of each episode. And explore our second podcast, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Travel Tales⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, which celebrates first-person narratives about the way travel changes us, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠View From Afar⁠⁠⁠⁠, where we spotlight the people and ideas shaping the future of travel.

Unpacked by Afar is part of ⁠Airwave Media⁠'s podcast network. Please contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ if you would like to advertise on our podcast.

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