BACKCOUNTRY HORSEMAN OF CALIFORNIA SEQUOIA UNIT STATE BOARD OFFICERS. Inside This Issue: WILDERNESS RIDERS SEQUOIA UNIT. BCH Contact Information 2

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BACKCOUNTRY HORSEMAN OF CALIFORNIA SEQUOIA UNIT STATE BOARD OFFICERS Inside This Issue: BCH Contact Information 2 PRESIDENT S MESSAGE 3 January Minutes 4 Classifieds 5 Horsemen for Hope Trail Ride 7

2 BACKCOUNTRY HORSEMAN OF CALIFORNIA SEQUOIA UNIT STATE BOARD OFFICERS Inside This Issue: BCH Contact Information 2 PRESIDENT S MESSAGE 3 January Minutes 4 Classifieds 5 Horsemen for Hope Trail Ride 7 Special Invitation Jan Walker s Birthday Party 8 Ads and Announcements 9 Washington Newsletter 11 Photos of the April Ride 12 BCH-High Sierra Unit May Ride 13 Membership Application 14 USFS Snow Survey 15 Upcoming Events 16 WILDERNESS RIDERS SEQUOIA UNIT Bonnie Searcy Emily Miles Ruthie Heuer Bradley miles Paul Frisby Bob Hodgkins President - Jamie Wilson drjamie91@earthlink.com State Director - Tom Cole Vice President - Jan Walker qhbrat@hotmail.com Secretary - Libby Beatty cop2@ocsnet.net Treasurer - Renee Zachary redwingscorgis@aol.com Newsletter - Gail Inman gail.inman@gmail.com Education - Sandy Oates sandyoates@yahoo.com Membership - Gail Januska gailjrider@gmail.com Service - Peg Wilson Public Lands - Steve Ladrigan Web Master - Jorene Downs webmaster@bchc-sequoia.org Web Master Coordinator - Phil Lomonaco phils@springvillewireless.com Rodeo Board Rep - Steve Ladrigan Rodeo Board Rep - Tom Cole President - Dennis Serpa dmserpa@cwnet.com 1st Vice President- Sam Burrows sburrows@frontier.com 2nd Vice President - Carrie Johnen cjubilee@comcast.net Secretary - Kaye Bruns kowgrl@juno.com Treasurer - Lynn Joiner lynnjoiner@sbcglobal.net VP of Public Lands - Bruce DeMott Demott9@aol.com VPCO-VP of Public Lands - Bruce DeMott Demott9@aol.com Ruth Gerson ruthgerson@aol.com VPCO-VP of Education - Dan Horn Bearstrap@msn.com Lisa Deas muledaze@yahoo.com BCHA Nat l Director - Michael Murphy m_murphy@sonic.net Ann Lange kvvet@onemain.com BCHA Nat l Alternate Director. - Michael Murphy North Bay BCHA Alt Nat l Board Rep - Dan Clifford bigeasycowboy@mac.com The Sequoia News is the official publication of the Sequoia Unit of the Backcountry Horsemen of California and is published monthly. The Sequoia news is committed to print articles to inform readers of issues concernaing the Sequoia Unit and BCHC/BCHA, humorous stories, ads, cartoons, events and the minutes of the Sequoia Unit meetings. All items for the newsletter must be received by the editor no later than the 15th of each month. Your views, comments or suggestions are solicited. The Sequoia News looks forward to providing members a newsletter that will keep you informed, make you laugh and have a little history of the BACKCOUNTRY. Change of Address Please inform us of any address or phone changes. Contact: Gail Januska (Membership) Disclaimer The views or opinions expressed and articles appearing in the Sequoia News are those of the persons that submitted items for Sequoia News and may not necessarily be those of the officers or members of Sequoia Unit, BCHC or BCHA. Page 2

Our rides are finally starting. The Big Spring Ride behind Lake Success is coming up; should be lotsa fun.

3 President s Message Howdy Everyone! We survived another Rodeo. A BIG thanks to all who helped at the booth; we had one busy Saturday nite! Thank goodness we had so many volunteers. Our rides are finally starting. The Big Spring Ride behind Lake Success is coming up; should be lotsa fun. Hope to see more of you at the monthly meetings. Only one more in Springville, then the Potluck in June and the summer meetings at the Oates. We ve had some great refreshments and speakers at the meetings. Come on out! Dr. J. (Jamie) Page 3

4 April 13, 2011 BCH Sequoia Unit General Meeting Minutes Jamie called the meeting to order at 7:06pm. Bailey led us in the flag salute. The EMT program was cancelled tonight due to illness. There were no corrections to the minutes from March, Mike made a motion to accept, Bob 2nd, minutes accepted. Renee reports a balance of $ but we have food to purchase for the Rodeo. Usually we can make a profit of about $1000 on the Rodeo food booth. Ace contacted Peg with tentative dates for trips. Peg is suggesting to go in on July 2 or 3, and out July 30 or 31, with a resupply trip in on July 16 or 17. Then do another trip in on Aug. 13 or 14, out Sept. 10, 11, with a resupply trip in on Aug. 27 or 28. They have been eradicating non-native Velvet grasses in the back country and use our help transporting equipment, and other stuff in. Please consider helping Peg this year with these trips! Jan brought a sign up for volunteers at the Rodeo food booth, and ticket passes. Tom reminded us to put the Jr. Rodeo dates on our calendars: June and Aug We will also be running the food booth at those Jr. Rodeo dates, plan to come help! Jamie reported on the state matters presented at Rendezvous. The state motioned to raise dues, but was voted down. They are looking for ways to raise monies. Last year s Rendezvous cost $5,000 and this year s probably broke even. Red Bluff is the site for next year s Rendezvous, a long drive for us, but worth it. The next state board meeting is Oct. 15th at the Holiday Inn (Visalia?) Sandy and Jan Horn from State are taking us into the future! Sandy brought instructions how each BCH member may enter their volunteer hours on the computer. Hours can be reported for individuals, groups, projects and chapters. Dan Horn put in some graphics that make it fun. We increased our volunteer hours from about 3 million to $4,124,561. WE ROCK! Please receive your own copy of how to upload your hours from Sandy at: sandyoates@ yahoo.com The state is asking everybody for s to be used instead of snail mail for membership renewals. If you have an and are willing to provide it, it will reduce the state s costs. Let any officer know, thanks! Our total number of members is still too low to retain that 2nd director position, we are looking for a few more active members We will provide a family membership for auction at the dinner Sat. for the Giant Sequoia Monument Assoc. Tonight we asked members to provide addresses for sending out our newsletter with less cost to the unit. We are happy to snail mail your copy! Phil announced we are advertising in the April 1st Save A Buck, more members to come! Old Business The Rendezvous was great fun. The arena was busy with Ride for Life fundraisers. The trail trial had some pretty good obstacles, 60+ vendors, Lassen and Trinity USFS booths with trail maps, a successful wine and cheese party, art and dutch oven cooking contests besides packing contests. There is something for everyone. Next year the Rendezvous will be held again in Red Bluff. Be thinking of an item to donate at the Sat. dinner and auction. This year we donated an iron cloth for packing worth about $180. Our April 9th ride up Pothole Road was a huge success. Good food, good horses, good people. A few curious cows attaching on the trail Thanks Peg for the preparations and for the poker game on the trail. Gus won the pot with a pair of aces! New Business Don t forget to send us your address for sending out the newsletter! Or let us know you enjoy it by snail mail and we ll keep it coming. Mike offered to try to bend plexiglass to make a box for the horse display. Work crews are needed in the food booth at the Rodeo. The Rodeo parade starts at 2 so get up there about noon. We are to Page 4

April 13, 2011 (Continued from page 4) BCH Sequoia General Meeting have a float for non-riders. White shirts, blue jeans attire asked. The Club Spring Ride will be May 7 behind Success Lake.

5 April 13, 2011 (Continued from page 4) BCH Sequoia General Meeting have a float for non-riders. White shirts, blue jeans attire asked. The Club Spring Ride will be May 7 behind Success Lake. 10 am signups, but let Peg or someone know ahead for the food count. We ll BBQ, have dutch oven cooking, another poker ride (?), obstacles, and another tack swap. We may have left over Rodeo deep pit tri-tip There is a snake issue at this time of year there, watch for snakes. Tom Cole will present trailer safety at the May meeting. He is bringing a trailer and it s never too late to learn safety! Fri. night social 7pm at Vet s clinic, no horses, call Jan or Peg for information. Sandy and Ruthie put together an 8 minute tape on Hug a Tree for the Porterville Fair Farm Days. Mule Days is at the end of May, is anyone going? A question came up about membership at one unit, but participation at another. That s OK, you are covered, but you must pay $15 for an associate membership in order to receive their newsletter. There was information about ACTHA (Amer. Competitive Trail Horse Assoc.) needing volunteer judges June 4th (our Natl. Trails Day) for a competition behind Success Lake. They ll need 30 riders; $25 annual fee and $58 fee for the ride. We have very few t-shirts at the Vet s Clinic: a size small, more x-larges. But if we can get a list of people wanting specific sizes we can get a bunch printed. Our next meeting is May 18th at 7 pm, board meets an hour earlier. Jay motioned for adjournment 8:02. Respectfully submitted, Lib Beatty Thank you Suzanne and Nathan Jensen for the wonderful prune cake! Page 5

6 CLASSIFIED ADS Classified and Newsletter Display Ad Rates Ads to be prepaid. Please send business card or display with check for the duration of the ad. Classified ad rate for business card is $5.00 per month, quarter page, $10.00 per month, half page, $20.00 and whole page is $40.00 per month. One month free with a prepaid 1 year ad subscription. Editor reserves the right to refuse inappropriate ads. Page 6

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8 Come ye all for song and fun! It s Jan Walkers Birthday and she ain t 21. It rhymes with shorty and also sporty, Yes you guessed it she s turning Forty! This is also a Celebration of Renee Zachary s Birthday No shirt, No shoes, No problem! (just kidding-you need shoes) Please bring funny stories, pictures and police reports, as we look back on the last 4 decades! There will be live music by Patti Torrey And light refreshments. May 21, 2011 at 7 pm At the Westwood Vet pond Ave 140 And... Renee s A Lot more than forty! RSVP: Peg Jamie Or Jan /qhbrathotmail.com BYOB!!! Page 8

9 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Hello my name is Cindy, my husband Jackand I are new members to Back Country Horsemen. I am attempting to hold a competitive trail ride on the 4th of June this is a national effort on the part of ACTHA (American Competitive Trail Horse Assoc). It is a ride to raise money for the Mustang Heritage Foundation. ACTHA is hoping to have enough rides nationally to get into the Guinness World Record Book. We are hoping to hold this ride at Lake Success Wildlife area. you can go to ACTHA.US and click on World Record Ride for the Mustangs. for more info. The trail will be approx 6 miles long, with 6-8 obstacles. We need volunteers to act as judges for the obstacles. You will be able to go into the ACTHA site and find videos with instructions for judging. If you have the time and are willing to help call or me at: H. or c or me at labcrazy@ocsnet.net Thanks It should be a fun day provided the Lake doesn't raise to much! WILDERNESS RIDER PROGRAM The Wilderness Rider of the Year Award was bestowed on Rick Jacobsen! What a great man he is! Rick has been helping Lynn Joiner and Bonny Searcy over at Grey Ranger Station for several years, assisted the High Sierra Unit with the Beginning Packing Course at Cowcamp, did several packing demos over at the coast, helped pack signage in for a BSA Troop and multiple other projects. Never thought such a big guy could blush so well. Rick has a wonderful team of pack animals that are a pleasure to work with. The total number of volunteer donations for the State Wilderness Riders: $324, Here are a few of the totals: Basic hours: over $88 thousand Skilled hours: over $11 thousand Trail Recon: close to $9 thousand LNT Education: over $24 thousand Personal Vehicle mile: 41, Stock Hauling miles: 13, Total Stock days of: 1,103 These are pretty good numbers for a cadre of 38 riders able to work this year. SAVE THE DATES FOR NEXT YEARS RENDEZVOUS March 30 - April 1st Red Bluff, CA We figure we had folks show up this year. Lynn Joiner is working the figures to see if we made any money. Folks seemed to really enjoy themselves. Lots of classes on trail repair, Gentle Use, mule training, packing and kids fun and much more. Ride for Life was going on at the same time and BLM adoption was there too. We'll see if we can combine a few community events at the same time to draw more of the locals again. If you accidentally brought your program home with your Gentle Use points; be sure to mail that to Lynn Joiner, BCHC State Treasurer. Page 9

FOR SALE Custom home on over 2 1/2 acres, on Globe Drive, Springville. 3 bedroom, 3 bath, office, plus huge bonus room over the 3 car garage, pool, spa and much more.

August 27-28 July 30-31 September 10-11 If you cah help, Contact Peg Wilson - 559-310-3176 2011 BCH Sequoia Unit Refreshments Club meeting Date: Host: May 18 June 8

10 FOR SALE Custom home on over 2 1/2 acres, on Globe Drive, Springville. 3 bedroom, 3 bath, office, plus huge bonus room over the 3 car garage, pool, spa and much more. Contact: Tony Prandini, DRE# , Prandini Realty (559) or Mary Ann Short (559) Tentative Ace Trip Dates July 2-3 August July August July September If you cah help, Contact Peg Wilson BCH Sequoia Unit Refreshments Club meeting Date: Host: May 18 June 8 July 20 Aug. 17 Sept. 21 Oct. 19 Nov. 16 Dec. 10 Refreshment Sandy Oates POTLUCK at Oates Lib Beatty Crystal Champion Kerry Ladrigan Peg Wilson Gail Inman CHRISTMAS PARTY Page 10

11 Federal Budget, FY 2011 Washington Newsletter May 2011 By the skin of their teeth, the White House and the Congress agreed on a final federal budget for the last six months of this fiscal year (better late than never). In what could only be described as a Cinderella moment, a deal was struck only minutes before the fiscal coach was about to become a giant pumpkin. If that had happened, there would have been plenty of blame to go around. Federal land agencies received a fiscal haircut as did most federal agencies. BLM received $18 million less than it received in FY 2010 and the Forest Service $6 million less. Also, the Land and Water Conservation Fund received a major cut of $123 million. This large reduction stemmed from concerns that the federal government does not have adequate resources to maintain those lands it already owns so it doesn't make sense to spend more money acquiring additional parcels of land. ARRA agrees with this logic. Hold it on Wild Lands! A surprise development coming out of the FY 2011 bargaining sessions was the decision to deny funding for the rest of FY 2011 for the implementation of Secretary Salazar's Wild Lands Initiative. (Read this issue and about other important access issues that may affect your use of public lands. Now on the ARRA Website Needed, Fairy Dust for FY2012 Sticking with the Cinderella theme, decision-makers in the Congress and at the White House are going to have to sprinkle a lot of fairy dust around if agreements are to be reached in raising the debt ceiling and passing the federal budget for FY2012. Both of these items are very controversial, especially in light of the mounting federal deficit. Almost daily, more Republicans and Democrats in the Congress are saying they will not vote for raising the debt ceiling unless further restrictions are placed on federal spending. (Read this issue and about other important access issues that may affect your use of public lands. Now on the ARRA Website Forest Service Planning Rule The May 16th deadline is fast approaching for the submission of comments on the draft Forest Service Planning Rule. Concern over the scope of the proposed draft continues to grow. In fact, sixty-five national organizations, ARRA being one of them, joined together to write the Administration with the request that the comment period be extended for an additional 90 days. (Read the full letter on the ARRA Website - H.R. 1581, Wilderness and Roadless Release Act of 2011 In last month's newsletter, we mentioned that Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-California, was going to introduce legislation that would authorize the release for multiple use purposes those wilderness study areas and roadless areas that had been determined by federal land agencies to be ineligible for wilderness designation. The release of these lands is a very important step in utilizing our federal lands for the benefit of all Americans. Rep. McCarthy, along with 22 co-sponsors, introduced the bill, now identified as H.R. 1581, the Wilderness and Roadless Release Act of 2011, on April 15th. ARRA enthusiastically supports this legislation and we hope you will as well. If you haven't already written to your Representative urging support or even cosponsorship, we encourage you to do so by accessing this link on the ARRA website. Sincerely, Larry E. Smith Executive Director Americans for Responsible Recreational Access Page 11

12 The April ride along Pothole Road was awesome! Don t Miss the May Ride, BBQ, and Tack Swap. Page 12

The ranch will be on your left. (Follow the signs) PLEASE CLOSE THE GATE AFTER ENTERING. If taking Ave.

13 Directions: From Hwy 198, travel north on RD 196 to Millwood Drive. Turn right and continue to the Elderwood Market. (Approx 10 miles.) Continue on Hwy 245 (Milwood Dr.), go past the Woodlake Rodeo grounds. Continue on Hwy. 245 past Drum Valley turn-off approximately 3 miles. The ranch will be on your left. (Follow the signs) PLEASE CLOSE THE GATE AFTER ENTERING. If taking Ave. 384 from Hwy 99, continue East to the Elderwood Market. Turn left on Hwy 245. Follow the above directions from the Elderwood Market. Page 13

14 NEW MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION RENEWAL APPLICATION CHANGE - ( ) PARENT UNIT ( ) ADDRESS/PHONE/ ( ) MEMBERSHIP TYPE DCTR (YOUR MEMBERSHIP NUMBER) **NEW MEMBERS WILL BE ASSIGNED NUMBER BY MEMBERSHIP COORDINATOR PARENT Unit Affiliation): (Select and CIRCLE ONE Unit as your Primary Unit Affiliation) Antelope Valley Eastern Sierra High Country High Sierra Kern River Valley Kern Sierra Lake-Mendo Los Padres Mid Valley Mother Lode North Bay Ohlone Riders Redshank Riders Redwood San Diego San Gorgonio San Joaquin Sierra Santa Ana River Sequoia Shasta Trinity Sierra Freepackers Sutter Buttes Top of the State MAIL TO: BACKCOUNTRY HORSEMEN OF CALIFORNIA Donate to BCHC Education Fund? Tax Deductible Packer $10.00 Mule Skinner $25.00 You re the Greatest $50.00 MEMBER S NAME No Business Names; Please Print Clearly SPOUSE/MEMBER S NAME MUST SHARE SAME ADDRESS ADDRESS ( ) CITY STATE ZIP PHONE ADDRESS TOTAL ENCLOSED: $ CHECK # DATE SUBMITTED: BUSINESS NAME DONATIONS ONLY: PARENT UNIT MEMBERSHIP TYPES: (CIRCLE ONE) Individual $40.00* Family $50.00* Benefactor $ Patron $ Mt Whitney $ *=BCHC shares portion of dues with Back ountry Horsemen of America ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIPS: AN ADDITIONAL $15.00 PER UNIT IS ADDED TO YOUR PARENT UNIT DUES. ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIP UNIT AFFILIATIONS MAY NOT BE FOR THE SAME UNIT AS YOUR PARENT UNIT. Associate Membership for: $15.00/unit (Unit Name (from above list) Associate Membership for: $15.00/unit (Unit Name (from above list) Please write additional choices on back Please clip form along dashed line KEEP BELOW INFORMATION FOR YOUR RECORDS PARENT BCHC MEMBERSHIP TYPES Individual, Family (Shared*), Benefactor, Patron, and Mt Whitney. A Parent Membership is affiliated with a single Local Unit. BCHC members may NOT hold more than one active Parent Membership. *A SHARED Membership is for two adults with differing last names, each sharing a common address. ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIPS These special Memberships are only available to persons already holding Parent BCHC Membership. No one may sign up for an Associate Membership without 1) having registered one of the Parent Membership types, and 2) having selected Parent Unit affiliation. You may sign-up for as many Associate Memberships as you like. Associate Memberships may also be initiated at any time during the term of your Parent Membership. Associate Memberships must expire concurrently with the Parent Membership, and are renewable only at the time of renewal of the Parent Membership. Complete information regarding BCHC Membership is available on the MEMBERSHIP page at: KEEP FOR YOUR RECORDS I SUBMITTED AN Application Form for: Individual Membership $ Family (Shared) Membership $ Benefactor Membership $ Patron Membership $ Mt Whitney Membership $ Donation Packer $10.00 Mule Skinner $25.00 You re the Greatest! $50.00 Associate Membership Total Remittance Check Number Date Mailed $ $ Questions: Contact membership@bchcalifornia.org Page 14

NEWS RELEASE Sequoia National Forest and the Giant Sequoia National Monument Kern River Ranger District, 105 Whitney Road, PO Box 9, Kernville, CA.

15 NEWS RELEASE Sequoia National Forest and the Giant Sequoia National Monument Kern River Ranger District, 105 Whitney Road, PO Box 9, Kernville, CA Date: May 2, 2011 Contact: Cindy Thill, Public Affairs/Fire For Immediate Release (Reformatted to fit BCH Newsletter) Phone: (760) , # 625 Forest Service Completes Snow Surveys Kernville, CA.The U.S. Forest Service has recently completed snow surveys, for the season, on multiple snow courses across the Kern Plateau. These snow surveys target the Kern River drainage. Results for this area also include data from several other surveys. Additional surveys were performed on the Western Divide Ranger District near Tobias and the Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park. Surveys in the Park are performed by both park personnel and the California Department of Water Resources. Results from the Kern River Basin survey are 195% of average. Statewide surveys show California at 171% of average. Chris Stewart, District Hydrologist heads up the multiple surveys each year. Joining him are Forest Service employees who have added snow surveyor to their list of skills. Snow surveyors venture out into the mountains, via snowmobiles or skis several times a year and at varying elevations to observe changing conditions throughout the season. The work can be hazardous; therefore the surveyors travel in teams and must be trained to handle emergencies. Californians are dependent on snow for many reasons. Snowmelt provides a good portion of water for irrigation, energy generation, recreation, municipal, and industrial uses throughout the state. To make optimum use of the state s water resources for these needs, advanced planning is essential. Data is collected from the snow pack amongst other water sources each year in order to anticipate the approximate amount of water that will be available. Snow surveying is just one important part of the water information gathering program. A snow sampling tube with a cutter end is driven through the snow pack, measuring depth. By weighing the snow core, the water content (water equivalent) is obtained. This information is fed into a state computer network and, when correlated, enables the State to forecast snow melt runoff in California. Forecasts are updated regularly and snow pack information can be obtained from the following site: Stewart commented, This was a great snow year and there will be a significant amount of runoff so please use caution around the river and creeks. Stewart added, As of last Thursday there was still seven feet of snow at Sherman Pass Snow Survey Forest Service Fire Engineer, Ryan Lobre. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC or call (800) (voice), or (202) (TDD). Page 15

16 Sequoia Unit P.O. Box 456 Springville, CA UPCOMING EVENTS May General Meeting - Springville School Special Presentation to - Tom Cole - Trailer Safety 7:00 PM May Jan Walker/Renee Zachary s Birthday Party - Westwood Vet Clinic 7:00 PM May Mule Days - Bishop, California June National Trails Day - Work Day Upper Grouse Valley - For Times and Details, call Peg Wilson or Steve Ladrigan June General Meeting and Potluck Bob and Sandy Oat s June Immersed in the Wild (Wild Places) Trip to Jerky Meadow Packers Needed - Contact Ann Taomina June Freeman Creek Ride Tentative Interpretative Ride TBA 6:00 PM TBA 10:00 AM July Tentative Ace Trip TBA July Immersed in the Wild (Wild Places) Trip to Grey Meadow Packers Needed - Contact Ann Taomina July Tentative Ace Trip TBA July Tentative Ace Trip TBA Page 16 TBA

Official Publications of the Sequoia Unit Volume 24 Number 6 November/December

Official Publications of the Sequoia Unit Volume 24 Number 6 November/December Sequoia Unit s Goal and Purpose 1. To promote, through education and action, care and conservation of back country trails,