Category Archives: Outdoors

Adventures, Hiking - General

Thru-hike the roadless Sierra

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Backpacker Magazine put up an EXCELLENT appetite whetting hiking guide to one of the most scenic parts of the Pacific Crest Trail.

For those who don’t know, the Pacific Crest Trail is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail that follows some of the highest pats of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges from Mexico to Canada, crossing Califoria, Oregon and Washington.  It is 2,663 miles long, passes through 25 national forest and 7 national parks.  The trail became a National Scenic Trail in 1968.

From Backpacker Magazine:

The Hike
The best section of the most scenic long trail in the country is the 203.7-mile stretch in the central Sierra from Kennedy Meadows Campground to Red’s Meadow Campground. In that span, the PCT crosses Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks and the John Muir Wilderness–and never meets a single road. It’s the longest roadless span on any National Scenic Trail in the country. On the way, you’ll have a chance to summit Mt. Whitney (the Lower 48’s highest point at 14,497 feet) and experience the legendarily gentle weather of California’s central Sierra. Plan for 10 to 15 days to cross this roller coaster of subalpine and glaciated terrain.

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Adventures, News, Offroading - General

Johnson Valley Access Preserved!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Press Release:

Hammerking Productions, the founders of The Griffin King of The Hammers Presented by Nitto Tire, are pleased to announce that the week-long off road festival held annually in Johnson Valley, CA will be able to continue in its current location for the foreseeable future. After six years of negotiations between the United States Marine Corps, the federal government and the Off Highway Vehicle(OHV) Community, a deal has been reached to preserve the majority of the land in Johnson Valley for OHV use.

Congressman Paul Cook spearheaded the deal which allows nearly 100,000 acres of land to remain open to the public and managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The Marines will have access to approximately 55,000 acres of shared use land for 60 days a year to meet their training objectives, but will not retain ownership of the land the remaining 305 days a year.  The proposed legislation is expected to pass  the House later this week and the Senate next week before the holiday recess.

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Activities, Adventures

TreadLightly! Unveils Newly Re-Designed Outdoor Education Website for Kids

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Move over Elmo. Take a hike Dora. Lightfoot is back in town – and he has a new website your kids need to check out now at tlkids.org!

In a national effort to engage children in outdoor education Tread Lightly! has re-vamped tlkids.org – a website designed to help kids learn to recreate responsibly in the outdoors.

The newly re-designed site offers fun, interactive word games, trivia, coloring pages and other activities teaching children the importance of safe and environmentally responsible outdoor recreation.

From TreadLightly!:

In a national effort to engage children in outdoor education, the nonprofit organization Tread Lightly! has re-vamped TreadLightlyKids.org—a website designed to help kids learn to recreate responsibly in the outdoors.

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Adventures

American Hiking Society’s Volunteer Vacations sign-ups are open – HURRY to take advantage of some pretty great adventures!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

The American Hiking Society has just announced that registration for the 2014 Volunteer Vacations season is now OPEN! They’re offering “more than 60 adventure opportunities” this coming year.  These slots can fill up fast (especially on some of the more interesting vacations) so don’t wait!  Discounted registration fees are now in effect.

If you’re not familiar with what the Volunteer Vacations program is, it’s a series of trail stewardship projects that take place across the country during some of the BEST vacation timeframes, that offer you the chance to give back to the trails you love. You can browse trips by state, difficulty level, accommodations, or timeframe. Remember: trail work experience is not a requirement; you only need a good attitude and the willingness to get a little dirty!

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Offroading - General, State Parks

Carnegie State Vehicular Recreation Area General Plan Public Comments NEEDED

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

From the California Association of 4-Wheel Drive Clubs:

Thanks to all of you who attended the recent public open house meetings held in the East Bay Area to detail the Draft Preferred Concept for the Carnegie State Vehicular Recreation Area General Plan (DPC). Draft Preferred Concept.

Members of extreme anti-OHV groups were also there to try to impose their closure agenda on the OHV community and DPC planning team. Over the last seven years, those closure advocates have worked with East Bay Regional Parks on a massive and fraudulent campaign to build political support for an outright ban of OHV use on the Tesla property. They have been making weekly, if not daily, visits to the offices of State Senator Mark DeSaulnier and Assemblymember Joan Buchanan demanding legislation to enact an outright ban of OHV use at Tesla.

It is critically important that we counter that smear campaign by sending comments to the SVRA planning team and the aforementioned legislators.

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