Author: Bryan Conant

Happy Los Padres Days!

Posted on by
Little Pine Winter Majesty, December 12, 2022

Hello Friends,

Happy Holidays and what a nice start to the winter season! We’ve now had multiple storms roll through the Los Padres with rain totals across the forest over 150% of normal to date. The creeks have recharged, the hills are green and most of the higher mountains are white; all good stuff for this time of year. While we’re certainly off to a good start, let’s not forget that at this point last year we were also well above average, that was until the rain decided to shutdown for January and February. Let’s hope for more extended light rain over the coming weeks and beyond.

As a result of the recent rains and greening, the Forest Service has terminated the fire restriction order which means that campfires are once again allowed across the Los Padres. This is probably very welcome news for many of us backcountry wanderers! Be sure to renew your California Campfire Permit (click here, just takes a few mins) and please remain diligent and smart with your fire activity. Happy Day!

Another Legendary Los Padres Sunset Enjoyed by Two Legendary Los Padres Sawyers

FOREST 411

• Recreation Fees Increased – The LPNF announced earlier this week that fees at select sites will be increased across the Los Padres. This mainly affects campground fees and Pfieffer Beach day use. Click here to learn more.

• Trout Creek Update – Over the past 5 years the Wilderness Land Trust has purchased multiple private properties along Trout Creek (SLO Co.) and just completed the final transfer of land to the LPNF. This is a huge win in preserving forest access along Hi Mtn Road and into the Garcia Wilderness. Trout Creek is also a segment of the Condor Trail. Cheers and a HUGE THANK YOU to everyone involved in this effort!

• E-Bike Crew Poachers Busted – Seven people were busted this past month for poaching with illegal hunting tags. In addition to illegal tags, the group, known as the E-Bike Crew, had also been reportedly hunting within the Sespe Condor Sanctuary. That’s a no-no. Lots of information online, click here, here or here.

• Courts Approve Tecuya Fuelbreak – It was also announced earlier this week that the LPNF won a court appeal to begin work on the Tecuya Ridge Shaded Fuelbreak project within the Mt Pinos Ranger District. Click here and here for more information.

• Los Padres Calendars – Looking for any last minute stock stuffers or gifts for the Los Padres lover on your list…. we got ya covered! The LPFA has once again produced a full-color Los Padres wall calendar. They are beautiful and available online or at REI Santa Barbara. Get em while you can!

Volunteer Opportunities

• JAN 21: Mountain Lion Tracking – Exciting news! The LPFA will be helping to install a series of game cameras across the Santa Barbara Backcountry which will be used to track mountain lion activity. We are looking for volunteers to help with this effort. Should be fun! Sign Up Here!

• DEC 30: Santa Cruz Trail – Join the LPFA on Friday December 30 to help maintain the beloved Santa Cruz Trail! Details on the link below but we’ll likely be focusing our efforts on the section of trail around 19 Oaks. TBD based on weather. What better way to wrap up 2022! Sign Up Here!

• DEC 21: Hwy 33 Cleanup – Please join the LPFA as we continue our monthly Highway 33 Adopt-A-Highway events based at Wheeler Gorge Visitor Center. While you’re there, come check out Marcos the Mountain Lion, photo featured above. Sign Up Here!

• FEB 4: VWR Training – The LPFA will once again be leading a Volunteer Wilderness Ranger Training event on Saturday February 4 off Paradise Road. Skills and procedures will be shared so that you can hopefully lead volunteer projects across the forest. Sign Up Here!

So nice seeing water flowing and falling again…. Hope you find some too.

The Passing of a Los Padres Legend

Posted on by

Hello Friends – Some Unfortunate Sad News to Share Today,

The Los Padres lost a legend with the recent passing of our dear friend Rik Christensen. Rik, aka Ranger Rik, has been a regular along the Los Padres backcountry trails for the past four decades with his favorite trails being within the San Rafael Wilderness. Rik’s enthusiasm about the trails was indelible and if you happened upon him while backpacking, you would not forget his welcoming smile, his encouraging word and of course those supernatural white teeth. In this modern world where photos are shared but directions are not, Rik would always go out of his way to share his wisdom, any helpful tips and of course that smile.

Rik was one of the inaugural Volunteer Wilderness Rangers (VWR) and never shied away from a trail maintenance project or an opportunity to survey and explore the backcountry. Rik was instrumental in so many trail surveys, in particular those crucial and difficult post-wildfire journeys into the forest. For many years the Forest Service relied on Rik to be the eyes and ears of the Forest and he took that responsibility very seriously. Rik was the first recipient of the Dave Weaver Wilderness Award, which is presented annually as a lifetime achievement award for Los Padres volunteers. Rik was also at the forefront of the ultralight hiking revolution and a Gossamer Gear Trail Ambassador who helped Gossamer with many of their tent and gear designs. Some of you might also know Rik through his involvement with the LPFA Used Camping Gear Sale, which he organized and founded. Rik’s passion for backpacking was never more apparent than at the Used Gear Sales where he would spend hours happily sharing his knowledge and helping make sure that each backpack perfectly fit its new owner.

Perhaps Rik’s greatest Los Padres contribution was his efforts to restore South Fork Station along the Sisquoc River. For many decades South Fork had been left in disrepair, ignored as it slowly decayed. Never was South Fork worse than shortly after the 2007 Zaca Fire when it was saved from the flames but left to rot amongst the ash. The mouse invested Station had no shutters, the screens were all ripped, the paint gone, roof cracking and there were no plans to bring it back. South Fork was a goner. That changed when Rik took on the challenge of bringing South Fork back to life. Over the next several years Rik worked with the Forest Service and backpacked the 15 miles to South Fork countless times hauling in supplies and handcrafted materials. Rik used his background in car restoration to carefully restore every detail of the cabin from the color of the paint to the shape of the hinges. If you’ve been to South Fork in the past 10+ years, you know how beautiful that cabin is and that is all thanks to Rik Christensen. Rik embodied the spirit of volunteerism here in the Los Padres and his contributions and spirit will live on forever.

For those interested, there will be a Rik style get together at La Cumbre Peak this Saturday December 10 at 11am followed by a Rik style lunch at Natural Cafe on Hitchcock in Santa Barbara at 1pm.

Rest in peace brother Rik and thank you for all the smiles you shared.

2023 Los Padres Forest Calendar

Back by popular demand, the LPFA has once again published a full color, professionally bound wall calendar full of Los Padres AWESOMENESS! This isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s a need-to-have! Great holiday present for the Los Padres lover on your list or be a little greedy and get one for yourself. The calendars will likely be available at your local REI or you can purchase online and we’ll send them directly to your door.

Thanks to everyone who contributed photos and please have a safe holiday season and terrific 2023….. oh, and find some trail time too!

Amazon Smile Shopping!

Tis the season for lots of shopping. For those few of you who are going to buy more than just the LPFA Calendar and might use Amazon for your shopping, please consider using Amazon Smile and choosing the LPFA as your charity of choice. Any proceeds raised go straight back into supporting the Los Padres Forest. Thank you!

Amazon Smile Supporting LPFA

Volunteer This Week!

The LPFA will be leading a volunteer trail maintenance and sign installation project this Friday – Saturday Dec 9-10 out near Mono Campground. We’ll drive in early Friday and out Saturday afternoon, car-camping at Middle Santa Ynez Campground. To sign up click the link below or feel free to email with any questions: VOLUNTEER@LPForest.org – should be fun, hope you can join us!

LPFA Trail Work GivingTuesday

Posted on by
How many #GivingTuesday emails did you receive today?
We’re setting the over/under at 15. How’d you do?

Hi Everyone – Sorry to inundate you with another #GivingTuesday email but we believe in our goal of restoring the Santa Cruz Trail and we believe that you as trail users should believe in it as well. Of course your contributions go to the LPFA but more importantly they go to support the Los Padres Forest, they go directly to the Santa Cruz Trail and they go to help folks like yourself who are out there using the trails. If you use the trails, this is for you!

If you haven’t volunteered with us yet or don’t know about the LPFA, we can almost guarantee you’ve enjoyed the trails we help maintain. We’ve put together a list of 12 trail accomplishments we’re proud of from 2022. If you’ve not enjoyed these trails listed below, please do so, now is the time before they get overgrown again…. trail work in the Los Padres is like painting the Golden Gate Bridge, it never ends!

For 2023 we will be making a big push to continue work on the Santa Cruz Trail and connect the dots between Upper Oso and Santa Cruz Station. We have funding in place for much of this work but not all of it just yet. If you use or have used the Santa Cruz Trail or any of the trails across the Los Padres, please consider supporting our Santa Cruz Trail campaign. Thank you all for your support and see you on the trails…..

– Your Friends at the LPFA

LPFA Accomplishments !

Click here to watch a YouTube of our 2021 #GivingTuesday accomplishments in the Sespe.
Click here to donate for #GivingTuesday 2022 on the Santa Cruz Trail.

Have a great day everyone!

THANK YOU!

Sespe Working Vacation & Exciting Santa Cruz Trail News!

Posted on by
Sespe, Red Reef & the Topatopa’s – shining!

Hello Friends – HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

While there is much to be thankful for here in the Los Padres, we are most thankful for the 32 volunteers who helped out last week on our Sespe Working Vacation based at Willett Camp. The LPFA has hosted dozens of Working Vacations over the years but they just keep getting better, more efficient and more fun. We had a great time out there, the Sespe in fall is hard to beat and we watched the colors get better and better with each passing day. We’ll share the whole story later but for now some quick bullet points of what we accomplished:

Otis, Annie, Tommy, Honey, Floyd & Jessabelle – could not have done it without you!
  • Our awesome volunteers cleared and restored 4 miles of the Sespe River Trail, mainly between Willett and Coltrell Camps.
  • We hauled out, thanks to the mules, over a dozen trash bags filled with garbage left along the trail and at Willett Camp. Willett is clean now, please help keep it that way!
  • We repaired 4 disastrous fire rings around Willett while creating defensible space for when the fire ban is lifted.
  • Repaired and cleaned most of the out-buildings at Willett Camp. Much more love is needed!
  • Cut out 13 downed trees which were blocking both the Sespe River and Red Reef Trails.
  • Somehow kept everyone well fed and energized despite the freezing conditions and daily long hikes to the work sites.
  • Engaged with countless dozens of backpackers who were out enjoying the Sespe and its fall colors over the past week!
They don’t call him the Shermanator for nothing…..

We want to also thank Southern California Edison, who provided a grant to complete some of this work and a private anonymous donor (you know who you are THANKS!) who paid for all the food and drinks for our hungry and thirsty volunteers.

We are working on scheduling next years Spring Working Vacations and as of right now will be working on the Alder Creek Trail within the Sespe Wilderness and hosting another Working Vacation at South Fork Station in the San Rafael Wilderness. Stay tuned for updates and we hope you can join us in 2023 and beyond……

You likely know that #GivingTuesday is this coming Tuesday November 29. Last year the LPFA raised funds to fix a sketchy section of the Condor Trail within the Sespe Wilderness called the Alder Creek Slide. This year we will be focusing our #GivingTuesday efforts to continue our trail restoration along the Santa Cruz Trail within Santa Barbara County. Thank you everyone who helped support our efforts this past year and we hope you choose to support this #GivingTuesday as well. 

Check out this video of the Alder Creek Slide repairs!
Support #GivingTuesday 2022 on the Santa Cruz Trail!
Sespe Creek in Full Bloom

Sespe Rattlesnake Bite

Posted on by
Click here for YouTube video

Local Los Padres backpacker Dan Susman was bitten by a Southern Pacific Rattlesnake in May 2022 while off-trail deep in the Sespe Wilderness. Dan is a friend of the LPFA and we were fortunate to catch up with him in June 2022 to hear and record his story of the bite, the rescue and the recovery from his rattlesnake bite.

We hope you enjoy the video but more importantly we hope you learn a few things about how to prevent rattlesnake bites, how to aid in getting help after a bite and what the recovery process might look like.

As a thanks to Dan for sharing his story and to hopefully get him back out on the trails as soon as possible, we’d like to buy him a pair of Turtleskin SnakeArmor Rattlesnake Gaiters. If you’d like to contribute towards the gaiters, please click the link below. Thank you……

Rattlesnake Gaiter Fund

Lower Manzana 40″ Gray Pine Crosscut Time Lapse

Posted on by

Time lapse photo of a very large gray pine that five LPFA volunteer cut off the trail on May 10, 2022. The pine was measured at 40″ in diameter and took us almost five and a half hours to cut using a 72″ felling crosscut saw. Thanks to everyone who reported it to us. We can’t help maintain trails if we don’t know there is help needed. Good fun had by all……

Sunset Valley Road Closure: Cachuma Saddle to NIRA 2021-2022

Posted on by

CLOSED: Sunset Valley Road from Cachuma Saddle to NIRA, both NIRA and Davy Brown Campgrounds and the Old Catway OHV road / trail will be closed from July 30, 2021 through March 30, 2022

The Forest Service has been working with the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation and other partner groups to schedule the construction of two bridges which would replace the existing ‘Arizona crossings’ along Sunset Valley Road. When completed, the bridges will help assist aquatic organism passage within the Santa Maria, Sisquoc, Manzana and Davy Brown drainages. Sunset Valley Road is located in Santa Barbara County behind Figueroa Mountain and is most commonly used to access NIRA and the Manzana Trailheads. This bridge project has been in the works since at least 2017, with construction being delayed a few times due to COVID, etc…

In order to construct the bridges, the Forest Service will need to close both Sunset Valley Road and the Catway OHV (Old Catway) to all traffic including vehicles, bikes and hikers and as a result of the closure, both Davy Brown and NIRA Campgrounds will be closed.

READ THE CLOSURE ORDER HERE

The Arizona crossings at Davy Brown (left) & Lower Manzana (right)

While the initial reaction after hearing about this closure has been overwhelmingly negative, the long-term effects from the closure will be very positive. Obviously the bridges will greatly benefit fish passage along the Davy Brown, in addition the bridges will improve year-round access to NIRA and as an added bonus the Forest Service will be repaving Sunset Valley Road during the construction as well. This repaving might be worth it all by itself as that road has won the distinguished honor as the “worst road in the Los Padres” over the past couple years due to car-eating potholes.

The infamous first crossing of the Manzana. Pack up, walk 100ft, take your boots off….

NIRA is closed? Now what…..???

NIRA and the Lower Manzana is the main gateway to the San Rafael Wilderness and by far the busiest backcountry trailhead in Santa Barbara County, if not the entire Los Padres National Forest. There is no doubt that this 8 month closure is going to impact a lot of backpackers, hikers, equestrians and hunters who rely on NIRA and the Manzana for their backcountry access as well as Davy Brown and NIRA Campgrounds for somewhat easy and remote car-camping.

Forest-users tend to have favorite trails and camps that they revisit frequently and while that is terrific, this might be a good excuse to find a new favorite spot or search out that peak, camp or trail you’ve always wanted to visit. There are certainly plenty of other backcountry trailheads, trails and campgrounds worth exploring. We’re very fortunate in the Los Padres to have miles and miles of backcountry trails for all fitness and experience levels and quite a few other remote campgrounds worthy of loading up the larger tents and coolers.

If you have any questions about what other spots to check out, WE’D BE HAPPY TO HELP: check out HikeLosPadres or email us at INFO@LPForest.org and we can suggest a variety of trails and camps based on the time of year, what you are hoping to find and of course any of the current forest restrictions or closures.

And for those willing to hike the extra mile and push through some extra brush, just think how uncrowded the Narrows and Horseshoe Bend will be this year……

Springtime at NIRA, it’ll be here before we know it…….

Los Padres Forest Closure Update & More…….

Posted on by
The closure of 9 California Forests, including the Los Padres, has been extended through September 24

FOREST CLOSURE EXTENDED AGAIN

Hello Friends,

We wish that we had better news to share but it was announced earlier today that the Los Padres, along with eight other California Forests, will remain closed through Thursday September 24 as a result of wildfire safety.  As of this morning there were 27 major fires across California with over 18,500 firefighters engaged on the fires.  While the weather has certainly cooled as compared to earlier this month, red flag and heat warning remain in the forecast for much of California.  Resources (crews, support, air attack, etc…) are spread incredibly thin between California, Oregon and Washington and we collectively cannot afford to have any new fires with the resources being what they are. Once again, this forest closure forbids all access into the forest including trails and forest roads.  We realize the inconvenience this has caused, especially for A-Zone hunters who have missed the last two weeks of the season, and hope people will remain patient as this too shall pass (favorite saying for 2020).  We’ll provide updates as they are made available.  If you have any questions please contact your local Los Padres Ranger Station.

— • — • — • —

Sewart Mountain is in the eastern Ojai RD and burned in the 2006 Day Fire.  Fourteen years later and we only found a few conifer seedlings within this 20 acre flat along the ridge line.  Note how the conifers along the slopes have largely survived.  This is a recurring theme we’ve noticed along fire scorched mountains in the southern Los Padres. (Little Pine, Big Pine, Bear Meadow, Madulce, Alamo, Mission Pine, etc..)
Conifers along the slopes tend to survive while those within flats do not.

FOREST 411

There is so much news from around the forest that doesn’t make sense to share at the moment due to the larger scale closure.  We’ll save most of that for when the forest reopens but we’ve still got a bunch of things that remain relevant.  Let’s go….!

• The largest (and only? knock knock) fire burning in the Los Padres remains the Dolan Fire within the Monterey Backcountry.  Currently, Dolan has burned 127,724 acres and is 46% contained with an estimated full containment date of September 28.  Some tragic news from the fire is the death of two condor chicks as reported by the Ventana Wildlife Society.  And if you hadn’t heard, on September 8th the fire overtook 15 firefighters while they were fighting to protect Nacimiento Station.  Fortunately all 15 survived but three did suffer significant injuries.  You can read a spine-chilling account here as well as a link to the Big Sur Dolan Fire Relief Fund.  #TrueHeroes

• Word on the beach is that sensors are showing La Niña ocean temps forming across the Pacific.  La Niña winters are usually on the drier side and lack the large major winter rains that we’ve seen during some of the El Niño events.  It’s early, but something worth keeping an eye on, especially after all the fires.

• The major LP news last month was the Reyes Peak Forest Health Project Proposal which received over 16,000 public comments.  We talked with the Forest Service and they are currently reviewing the comments and will be sharing those comments with their specialists in order to assess if changes are needed within their proposal.  There is no hard time-frame as to when the final decision will be made but we were told it would most likely come in late 2020 or early 2021. If you’ve not read the Reyes Peak Proposal, you really should take a few minutes and look it over.  We may not all agree with all aspects of the proposal but we should all agree that we don’t want Pine Mountain to end up looking like Sewart.  Stay tuned……

• We’ve started a new monthly feature where we highlight some of the extraordinary volunteers who dedicate their time to the trails, critters, habitat and heritage of the Los Padres Forest.  Up first is the dynamic duo husband/wife tandem of Maureen and Kevin Wallace.  Read more on our Instagram page and we’re looking forward to highlighting more volunteers in the months to come…

• Late last month South Coast Habitat Restoration and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation completed an aquatic organism passage project where they removed the concrete crossing at the bottom of the Davy Brown Trail.  The project was successful but they will be back later this season to complete the job.  Eventually they’ll also build bridges at the two Arizona crossings between Davy Brown and NIRA, most likely 2021.  More to come….

• Many of you (we’ve been getting the emails) have noticed that HikeLosPadres has been down over the past few days. We’ve been working with the web guru himself to use this forest closure downtime to perform some site updates and maintenance.  It’s a race, we’re hoping to get the site back up before the forest reopens. Thanks for your patience….

• Last week the Forest Service shared their decision notice for the Forest-Wide Invasive Plant Treatment Program.

• Camp Scheideck Lodge (aka Reyes Creek Bar & Grill) shut its doors last month.  You can read more here.  We’re not sure what’s next for the Lodge/Grill but we’re certainly going to miss coming off the Piedra Blanca Trail and having tasty burgers (today happens to be National Cheeseburger Day) and cold drinks.  Hope it get resurrected again soon….

• VOTE.

• Last but not least, we’re still looking for a car donation in case any of you have an extra vehicle looking for a new home.  We can promise it will be well cared for, fed as often as needed and will have access to some of the best views around the Los Padres.  Let us know……

— • — • — • —

And a beautiful photo taken by ECarroll – a mountain biker, enjoying a ride, on a normal day down the backside of Pine Mountain.

Pine Mountain Trail Work & Los Padres Updates Galore

Posted on by
Finally, there’s the confounded trail! Gene Marshall – Piedra Blanca Trail, Before & After, July 2020

Hello Friends,

Amidst all the recent cancellations and tribulations, we wanted to share a story of success and accomplishment.  Did you know that there are only two designated National Recreation Trails (NRT) within the Los Padres National Forest?  NRT’s date back to the 1968 National Trails System Act and are designated to “recognize exemplary trails of local and regional significance”.  One of our Los Padres NRT’s is the 18-mile Gene Marshall – Piedra Blanca Trail (aka Piedra Blanca Trail) (aka GMPB) which crosses Ventura County’s Pine Mountain within the Sespe Wilderness between Reyes Creek Trailhead and Piedra Blanca Trailhead.  The GMPB is indisputably one of the gems of the Los Padres National Forest.  It’s got everything: high elevation pine forests, swimming holes, a rich history, a variety of camping options, incense cedar lined creeks, massive views, Piedra Blanca (nuff said) and even a pub at the Camp Sheideck finish line.  The GMPB is certainly special and while it sees a good amount of use by LP standards, it unfortunately suffers the same fate as most our trails with overgrown chaparral and downed trees frequently blocking the way.

The Los Padres is no stranger to overgrown trails but a few sections of the GMPB might hold the title as being the most overgrown popular trail in the forest.  This was particularly true of the 3-mile section of the GMPB between Beartrap Camp and Haddock Saddle.  This portion of the trail follows Beartrap Creek and is very susceptible to fast growing riparian bushes and plants such as willows blocking each creek crossing and the dreaded California rose.  In addition, this portion of the GMPB is just far enough from the trailhead (about 5 miles) to make it not practical for volunteer day trips.  While most of the trail between Reyes Creek and Beartrap have been worked by MPRD volunteers, there hasn’t been much trail restoration efforts above Beartrap Camp.  Time for that to change…..

Gene Marshall – Piedra Blanca Trail, showing where we worked and where we hope to work.

In 2019 the LPFA received a trail grant from REI to help restore some of the damaged trails across the Sespe Wilderness.  We started by leading a winter project down the Sespe Trail from Piedra Blanca to Willett and followed that up with a late winter project working the northern portion of the Red Reef Trail.  We had hoped to complete the grant by hosting a 10-day volunteer Working Vacation on the GMPB but unfortunately this thing called COVID got in the way and we had to cancel.  While we couldn’t coordinate a large volunteer project, we were able to use the final portion of the REI grant in combination with some generous contributions from folks like you and hired the LPFA Trail Crew to work the GMPB.  Thanks to you and REI, the LPFA Trail Crew spent a week earlier this month on the GMPB and were able to brush the hardest and nastiest section of the GMPB and completely opened up a mile of the trail above Beartrap Camp.  Yippee! The trail looks great and but unfortunately it dead ends with more brush ahead.

While our grant funds have run out, we are hoping some of you may wish to contribute to our Sespe Trail fund so that we can put the trail crew back out for another week on the GMPB.  We are optimistic that with one more week of work we can complete the Beartrap Creek section of the trail and have the trail smooth and clear of brush between Beartrap Camp and Haddock Saddle.  If you love this trail, want to hike/backpack/ride/run across Pine Mountain or want to support our trail efforts, please click the link below and help us help the forest.  We are hoping to raise $5,000 to restore the GMPB up through Beartrap Creek and could use your help!  Thank you all for your support and we hope to see you on the GMPB sometime soon…..

LPFA SESPE TRAIL CAMPAIGN

Smoother Sailing GMPB Style

— • — • — • —

Western Hurricane Deck Trail, probably a little hot at the moment, but we’ll be helping restore this trail come fall…..photo Ryan Anderson, HLP

FOREST 411

• The biggest news across the forest continues to be the proposed Forest Health Project on Pine Mountain.  The FS has extended the public comment period until August 14 and will be hosting a 90-minute virtual public meeting to discuss the proposal on Monday July 20 at 12:30pm.  We’re hoping the public meeting will be recorded and shared through YouTube or something similar, hint hint…..

• Sadly, the Los Padres made many headlines this week with the tragic drowning of Glee star Naya Rivera who was boating at Lake Piru.  Awful story…..

• The Thomas Fire Trail Fund (TF2), which consists of a partnership between the LPFA, SB Trails Council, Sage, The CREW and REI, have continued our work efforts to restore trails damaged by the Thomas Fire.  Collectively we’ve now repaired the Murietta Trail outside of Ojai and it’s in great shape and ready to hike, backpack, ride or run.  Go check it out!

• Speaking of Murietta, we were shocked last weekend when on our way to a Murietta Trail volunteer project we noticed that Matilija Reservoir was empty!  According to the Ventura River blog, the reservoir was drained over July 4 weekend in “response to safety concerns as well as liability resulting from recreational use of the dam site”.  We all knew the reservoir was silted in but it’s quite shocking how much silt is really behind that dam.  It’s a lot!  The Matilija Dam tory is certainly not over, stay tuned….

• We want to extend a warm LPFA welcome to new Mt Pinos District Ranger Karina Gutierrez.  We’ve already worked with Karina on a few projects, including our GMPB trail work, and look forward to many years of continued collaboration.  Cheers Karina……

• On June 17 the Senate passed the Great American Outdoors Act, which if approved by Congress and signed by the President will fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund and provide over a billion dollars annually to help restore national parks, conserve land and build playgrounds and parks. This is a historic moment in environmental conservation for the United States and the bill is expected to be approved and signed. To learn more please Google the Great American Outdoors Act.

• For those of you who enjoy Podcasts, the Los Padres appeared in a recent episode of the Dirtbag Diaries entitled Tales of Terror!  Listen if you dare……..

• Santa Paula Canyon remains closed through the end of the month.  Since its closure in early May, there have been over a thousand hours dedicated to the removal of graffiti and trash as well as trail restoration along the Santa Paula Canyon Trail.  Lets hope the community recognizes all that effort and behaviors change.  THANK YOU to everyone who has helped with that effort and in particular super duper volunteer and part time LPFA’er Ellie Mora.

• The La Brea Closure order is expected to be extended another year until August 2021.  This is due in large part to the recent restoration decision and additional time needed for implementing the reopening of the area.  More to come on this as well….

• The recreational shooting ban across the Los Padres has been extended another six months until December 31, 2020.  For more information click here.

• Did you know there has been a fire burning under the Fillmore hills for the past decade?  Amazing, read this for more on the incredible thermal anomaly.

• Earlier this month a California condor was spotted in Sequoia National Park for the first time in nearly 50 years.  Isn’t it fantastic seeing and reading about the condors recovery?

• As mentioned in our last update, Sunset Valley Road is expected to be closed at Cachuma Saddle starting August 3 and lasting through the end of October.  During that time there will be two aquatic organism passage bridges built at the Davy Brown Creek crossings below Davy Brown Campground and just above the lower Manzana Trailhead.  There will be no access to NIRA during this time. We’ll be sure to provide more updates and details as they are available.

— • — • — • —

Can’t have a July newsletter without a photo of an inviting pool to cool off in, photo David Whitehair

UPCOMING EVENTS

A few upcoming dates, events, projects, presentations or things you might want to know. If you have any forest-related events to add to this list, let us know and we’re more than happy to pass along!

July: Adopt-A-Highway, Wheeler Gorge
July 24-26: Alamar Saddle Trail Project, LPFA

August 1: Ojai 1st Saturday, Wheeler Nature Trail, LPFA
Aug 8 – Sep 20: A-Zone South General Deer Season