Author Archives: Shawn E. Bell

News

BLM Releases Draft West Mojave Planning Area Route Network Project for Public Review

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released the Draft Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan and Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the West Mojave Route Network Project, providing guidance and management direction for over three million acres of public lands in San Bernardino, Inyo, Kern, Riverside and Los Angeles counties.

The release of the draft plan delivers a proposed solution for adaptive and responsible travel management planning and off-highway vehicle use within the WEMO planning area while protecting important resources and maximizing public accessibility in the desert. The plan also outlines conservation provisions for important wildlife species such as the desert tortoise, taking an active role in protection and recovery of their habitat.

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Wildlife

Heat wipes out California Poppy Bloom In Antelope Valley

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Whew!  It’s sure been hot!  And that heat has cooked the color right out of an early bloom of California poppies.

From 89.3 KPCC’s website:

The weekend’s unseasonable record heat has prematurely “cooked” the color right out of the annual bloom of California poppies in the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, which is normally covered in orange blossoms right about now.

“We’re astonished to find that our big bloom of desert-adapted, ruggedly persistent poppies has been all but cooked away by the unseasonable heat we’ve had over the last week,” the reserve posted in a Bloom Status dated March 15.

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National Parks

Yosemite Conservancy Unveils its Outdoor Adventures for 2015

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

My favorite park group has just announced their outdoor adventures program for 2015!

Summer Camp for Grown-ups, Beginning Backpacking and Hikes to Rarely Seen Alpine Areas Are Among the Guided Outdoor Adventures Offered for Visitors to Explore Yosemite National Park

Yosemite Conservancy has unveiled a compelling line-up of Outdoor Adventures for 2015 with more than 60 programs for visitors to explore the park on guided adventures with local experts involving backpacking, photography, bird watching and more.

“Yosemite Conservancy’s Outdoor Adventures provide unique ways to see, learn and experience the park, and inspire people to care for one of the world’s natural treasures,” said Frank Dean, president of Yosemite Conservancy. “Visitors to the park are discovering that some of the best things to do involve organized small group adventures.”

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National Parks

Zabriskie Point reopens a month ahead of schedule!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Zabriskie Point, which was closed on December 1, 2014 for repairs, has been reopened to the public – a full month ahead of schedule!

Thank you, contractors!

The site required major rehabilitation and reconstruction of rock retaining walls and to repave the trail.

Part of Death Valley National Park, Zabriskie Point is a popular sunrise and sunset viewing location. The area is famous for its beautiful and colorful eroded rock badlands. There’s a parking area just east of Furnace Creek off Highway 190, and there, it’s just a short uphill hike.

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National Parks

Happy Anniversary Kings Canyon National Park!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Happy 75th Anniversary, Kings Canyon National Park!

From Wikipedia:

Kings Canyon National Park is a national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of Fresno, California. The park was established on March 4, 1940 and covers 461,901 acres. It incorporated General Grant National Park, which was established in 1890 to protect the General Grant Grove of giant sequoias.

The park is north of and contiguous with Sequoia National Park; the two are administered by the National Park Service jointly as the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.

History:

Kings Canyon had been known to white settlers since the mid-19th century, but it was not until John Muir first visited in 1873 that the canyon began receiving attention. Muir was delighted at the canyon’s similarity to Yosemite Valley, as it reinforced his theory regarding the origin of both valleys, which, though competing with Josiah Whitney’s then-accepted theory that the spectacular mountain valleys were formed by earthquake action, Muir’s theory later proved correct: that both valleys were carved by massive glaciers during the last Ice Age.

Then United States Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes fought to create the Kings Canyon National Park. He hired Ansel Adams to photograph and document this among other parks, in great part leading to the passage of the bill in March 1940. The bill combined the General Grant Grove with the backcountry beyond Zumwalt Meadow.

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