Trails and Tales VIP EVENTS. July 28 th : MAU Benefit Ride. October 6 th : MBAU Benefit ride. Check out the calendar at:

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1 Trails and Tales News for VIP Volunteers in the Montane Sector July 2013 VIP EVENTS July 28 th : MAU Benefit Ride Photo by Michele Hernandez October 6 th : MBAU Benefit ride Check out the calendar at: 1

2 MBAU Article and photos by Jason DeMendonca Bobcat Encounter Recently, I decided to head up to Cuyamaca without the bike. Instead, I d head out by foot. I figured I would check out the newly trimmed Harvey Moore Trail. It had been one of my favorite hiking trails in the park but it became impassible due to the encroaching ceanothus. Thanks to Ken McIntyre, TMU, and all the volunteers who worked on opening up the switchbacks past Harper Creek. I started out from the Cedar Grove Volunteer Camp up East Side Trail out to the remote eastern section of the park in hopes of some tranquility and the opportunity for wildlife sightings. With my camera ready, I saw nothing throughout the hike. I completed the hike, reached my car, and put down the hiking pole. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw something move near a log. At first I thought it was a rabbit but I grabbed my camera anyway and proceeded to investigate. As this animal moved around, partly hidden, I knew it wasn t a rabbit; it moved like a cat. Now, I was excited (and a little annoyed since I hiked 9 miles and saw no animals at all) as I realized that I was looking at a healthy, large bobcat. I hastily snapped a few shots of the partially hidden cat as I approached. 2

3 To my surprise and astonishment, the cat saw me and then put its head over the log and just stared at me for well over a minute. I snapped more pictures. Finally, it moved. This is when I got a nice side shot, clearly identifying the animal as a bobcat, with its distinctive tail and ears. The moral of the story is to keep a camera handy and don t assume one has to be way out on a trail to see something interesting. Imagine a bobcat near the school camp, the volunteer camp and a ranger s residence during the middle of the day. This is what makes Cuyamaca Rancho State Park such a gem an opportunity to be in nature yet only 45 minutes from the city. 3

4 IAU Article and Photos by Phyllis Meckstroth Like the Kumeyaay of long ago, after a winter our hut had a few holes. We decided that it should have a remodel. On June 2, 2013, Greg and Phyllis Meckstroth and their family got together to spruce it up. We gathered willow branches from the stream nearby. We tried to fill in all the holes with fresh willow branches. We also decided to make the "sun roof" smaller and put another row of willow branches near the top. 4

5 With the help of three generations in our family, the hut is ready for another year. 5

6 MAU Article by Bonnie Slager Photo by Michele Hernandez The highlight of June was our MAU family and friends campout at Los Vaqueros. We had a full house or should I say full stalls. The weather was perfect and the moon was almost full so there were some moonlight rides. We had our first ever chili cook-off and even though there were rumors about Walt s Wonderful Chili, Joy won with her secret recipe. Congratulations Joy!! Now we will see if anyone can top it next year. The desserts on Friday night were beyond all of the table room. Millions of calories and I think I tried most of them. Saturday night along with our potluck we had a Dutch oven cookoff. I think Ernie won with his famous pineapple upside down cake. It was great, congratulations Ernie!! Next year I am sure there will be more competition as more of us try Dutch oven cooking. Now that the campout is over, my horse has put me on a diet so he does not have to haul extra pounds around. The Benefit Ride is coming up the end of July so everyone needs to get those raffle prizes. We still have some open corrals so if you know anyone that is thinking about attending, remind them to get their reservation in. I will be contacting you to remind you if what you signed up to do that weekend. We really need everyone to help make the weekend a success. Four of our members helped with a medical aid situation the first part of the month. A Park visitor came off his horse. Ron and Erin Robillard, who were doubling as camp hosts at Green Valley, along with Bill Butters and Nancy Ujazdowski assisted the rangers with the injured person. We always hope nothing happens but are there volunteers if help is needed. Good job to all of you! The days are getting really warm or should I say hot. Be sure you have plenty of water with you when you are patrolling. This is the time of year we find hikers out on the trail without enough water. Enjoy the Park and I will see you all at the Benefit Ride. 6 Photo by Michele Hernandez

7 TMU Article and Photos by Michele Hernandez Is it July already? No wonder it is getting Hot! Hot! Hot! Last month the Hike and Hack did Azalea Loop from the Springs Fire Road back to Paso day use. Susan R, Elizabeth B, and Michele H did a lot more hacking than expected as Ceanothus just keeps on being the bane of the post-fire TMU! Watch out for poison oak on the section between the mortreros and the creek. Milo and his well-fed warriors (Thanks Janet!) worked on the California Riding and Hiking trail between Azalea and the group camps. It was hot enough their work party ended a little earlier than normal. So a big Bravo to Milo for keeping everybody s safety in mind! In another effort of this busy month, Ultra-marathoners helped Kenny Mc. clear Conejos trail, and they too worked on Kelly s Ditch. Hopefully nobody got poison oak, because I know I often do when I work on Kelly s ditch. A point to ponder, Is P.O. the red scratch of courage, that mark of passage of a TMU vet? Speaking of folks with a million hours on the trail, our illustrious Jim Dascoulias and his e er-ready resource crew had been brushing Kelly s Ditch trail too, way up by Heise Park. Jim then took a Saturday crew in to finish the job. That crew comprised Mike Curtis, Dave McClure, Susan Russo, Steve Boland, Garner Grady, Milo Prodanovich, Serena Hill, and Raz. Raz is a new TMU volunteer, so a big TMU welcome to Raz. So where stands Kelly s Ditch Trail? There are still a few monster-sized or technically difficult fallen trees that need removal, and those preclude equestrian use. The trail is passable for most hikers and mountain bikers. Bikes will have to dismount in places, and scramble over and around like a hiker in places. 7

8 And now to round up this recap with a rescue! Our ever-on-the-spot Ron and Erin Robillard were the saviors of a horse and rider who fell off the trail and got trapped in the ceanothus while riding the B-13 trail. Ron had a saw, and went down into the brush with Erin to cut the horse out. Rangers Brent and Eric responded as well, as Eric helped brush the horse out and Brent helped John the rider back to civilization. (Surprisingly there were no broken bones or serious injuries to horse or rider!) Bill Butters and Nancy Ujazdowski helped the horse get back to Green Valley, and thereby completed the rescue by meeting the guy s truck, which Ron had driven over from Sweetwater Parking. Good job peeps! Please do yourself a favor, and Google heat illness, and read a safety talk on the subject from a government or NGO website. Here is a good URL: That is your homework, all you TMU-ers. Remember, pros learn how to work safe, and we watch out for each other too! Until next month, have fun and stay safe! 8

9 Bonus Trail work by Ken Bonus Photos by Anne Flemming For our last Saturday outing of the season, we assembled a fabulous crew consisting of Morgan Goff and his teenage son, Gavin, Anne Fleming, Mitch Reese, Ken McIntyre and your truly. Eager to beat the heat, we shuttled a couple of cars over to the Cuyamaca School Camp and started work on the Dyar Spring trail. I ran The Obliterator and sprayed cut stumps of ceanothus as well as a few patched of poison oak. I had to run The Obliterator to the max as the crew was right on my heels the whole time stashing brush and cutting stuff I could not reach with the brush cutter. We cleared about.5 mile of trail, and it looks marvelous. See the photos below. Thanks to Anne for being our photographer. 9

10 But yes, summer is coming and by 11:00 it was already about 90 degrees. We'd hit some poison oak near the trail so it seemed like a good point to wrap things up and hike out. Lunch was at a shady picnic table back at Paso Picacho, washed down by a growler of Rustic Horizons ale from Manzanita Brewing. We had to chase off a few squirrels looking for a free meal. All in all, a lovely end to trail work season until the fall. 10

11 Palomar News! LOCAL GIRL SCOUTS RAISE $ TO KEEP PALOMAR OPEN AND VIBRANT Thank You Girl Scout Brownie Troop 1852! Through a lot of hard work selling cookies, the girls of Girl Scout Brownie Troop 1852 of Carlsbad raised and donated $ towards keeping Palomar Mountain State Park open and vibrant. "Your gift will have a big impact on the park," Rick Barclay, Chairman of Friends of Palomar, told the girls during the official handover ceremony. "Absolutely every dollar counts to keep the park open and beautiful, no doubt about it. I'm really impressed with your hard work -- - you had to sell a lot of cookies to raise a hundred dollars! And I'm especially grateful that you decided to share your hard earned money with Palomar." In February the girls visited the park --- many for the first time --- and were struck by its beauty and learned of the park's plight. When it came time to sell cookies and to decide where to contribute a portion of their proceeds, supporting Palomar Mountain State Park in its hour of need was proposed --- an idea that came from the girls, rather than the parents. The gift was given in loving memory of Dan Beishline, recently departed grandfather of one of the girls. Thank you Girl Scout Brownie Troop 1852 and special thanks to the leaders and family members who supported their efforts! Mountain lion tracks in Cuyamaca! Photo by seasonal worker Jason House 11

12 12 Photo by Michele Hernandez

13 Summer in the Park Photos by Michele Hernandez 13

14 Contacts: Palomar TMU-Rick Barclay TMU- Dave McClure - CuyamacaTMU@cox.net MAU- Bonnie Slager- slagerb@sbcglobal.net MBAU- Chad Leptich- leptich@juesd.net IAU-Shannon Svensen- shannonsvensen@mac.com Visitor Center Gift Shop Manager- Barbara McCoybmccoy2008@yahoo.com Visitor Center Museum Scheduling- Greg Meckstroth greglm@sbcglobal.net CRSP Park Headquarters (weekdays only) Paso Picacho Kiosk (for weekends) Green Valley Kiosk Palomar Headquarters Send articles and photos (Please, include photographer s name) for next month between the 24th and the 30th to- Susan Russo-nebulae3sma@hotmail.com Photo by Michele Hernandez 14