Woo Hoo for Chaparral

If you’ve spent any time along the Ventura trails over the past decade or so, no doubt you’ve crossed paths with Heidi Anderson at least a few times.  Heidi has been the Wilderness Trails Manager for the Ojai Ranger District for the past 13 years.  It’s a sad week for us as Heidi will be leaving the LP after accepting a promotion with the Fremont-Winema National Forest in southern Oregon.  During her time on the LP, Heidi was the main cog for trail projects within the Ojai District.  She organized and led most of the volunteer projects within the district and famously provided timely water and trail updates from across the Ventura Backcountry.  In addition, Heidi was a regular out in the forest and it was not uncommon to see her trekking the trails she worked so hard to maintain.  I remember the first time I met Heidi, I was backpacking the Red Reef Trail and she came hiking up in her Forest Service uniform with a smile on her face and excited to be out in the forest.  Her enthusiasm for the forest was infectious and you could clearly see that through her devoted volunteers who followed her literally anywhere across the ORD swinging tools and lopping brush.  The trails around Ojai surely won’t be the same without her but I think I speak for all of us in saying we’re happy for Heidi as she continues her journey.  Best of luck Heidi, thanks for all your help and one last…… WOO HOO!

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