I was fortunate to spend a few weeks outside the Los Padres this summer traveling with my family. We visited the heart of the Rockies in Colorado, explored the multi-colored canyons of Utah and backpacked the granite peaks of the Sierras. It was great! Hopefully many of you had similar experiences this summer. Like all vacations, it had to come to an end and we were excited returning home on our final leg back from Colorado. It’s always nice coming home to familiar mountains, familiar roads, a familiar bed and cursing slow California drivers who don’t move out of the fast lane?!! But what I wasn’t expecting was how happy I’d be seeing the California oak trees. They were different than anything we’d seen over the previous weeks, they were beautiful, they were familiar and they were home. Oaks are everywhere across the Los Padres and I think many of us take them for granted – I’m guilty. I sometimes wonder what outsiders think of when they think of the Los Padres? Is it the iconic condor, our numerous hot springs or just that break in traffic between LA and the Bay? I’d never thought of it before but perhaps it’s our familiar oak trees that best represent the Los Padres? What do you think?
LPFA KARMA TAP- September 6 – 6:00pm: Karma Tap Party
- Nothing formal, nothing organized, just come out to enjoy a Mas Macho, bring some friends, meet some friends and lets talk trails. We’ll be upstairs.
- Nothing formal, nothing organized, just come out to enjoy a Mas Macho, bring some friends, meet some friends and lets talk trails. We’ll be upstairs.
- September 25: LPFA Trivia Night
- Second annual Trivia Night. This one will be a little different than last time, more details to come….
We hope you can find some time to visit Draughtsmen Aleworks and cheers a Mas Macho over the coming weeks. See you there……..
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY: Spearheaded by Montecito Trails Foundation, the LPFA Trail Crew along with SBMTV, SBCTC and the Multi-Use Trails Coalition have been working on some of the trails above Montecito including Romero, McMenemy, Girard, Cold Spring and Buena Vista. Most of the Thomas Fire trail work in Santa Barbara is being focused on the lower portions of the mountain mainly below the Edison Roads. People are using and enjoying most of the trails but there is still substantial damage to upper Franklin and San Ysidro trails. Lower Cold Spring and West Fork Cold Spring remain closed.
VENTURA COUNTY: Most of the work accomplished along the Ojai trails have been thanks to a dedicated semi-volunteer crew headed up by Mike Gourley. Pratt and Gridley Trails have been cleared and Howard Creek is on deck. LPFA has led a few projects in the Matilija drainage but lots more work is needed across the Ventura portion of the Thomas Fire. Good news is that the LPFA received grant funding from REI to repair Thomas Fire impacted trails in Ventura County and that work should be starting in about a month once the temperatures cool down. We’ll share more details as work begins.
We hope that answers some of your questions. The trails are slowly being repaired and most of them are being hiked daily. That being said, be safe and if you reach a point where you are uncomfortable either due to exposure, a slide across the trail or anything else – STOP and go back. The mountains aren’t done shifting after the fire and many burned dead trees are still falling. Be safe and if you’re interested in any volunteer opportunities please let us know: INFO@LPForest.org
The Friendly Conifer Confines, Campo Alto
• This Saturday September 8 we welcome Chumash Elder Julie Tumamait to Wheeler Gorge to share her stories. The talk starts at 11am at Wheeler Gorge Visitor Center up Hwy 33. This is a great talk for both kids and adults. Hope you can make it…..
• The BLM is seeking public input on the environmental impacts related to fracking across potentially 400,000 acres of BLM land and 1.2 million acres of Federal land including portions of Kern, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. There is no shortage of information related to this topic across the internet. A Google search should get you whatever you need. Public comment is due September 7. Make your voice be heard…….
• The Front Fire, which burned over 1,000 acres last month, was officially contained as of Wednesday August 29. The area around Rockfront remains closed due to the fire. Cause of the fire remains under investigation.
• The Santa Barbara Backcountry had a fire this past weekend called the Ogilvy Fire. It burned approximately 175 acres along Mono Creek near Ogilvy Ranch. It has not been fully contained but is not expected to grow. Cause of the fire has not been shared.