Category Archives: Bike Trail

Bike Trail, Fish, safety, Salmon, Water, Wildlife

Sacramento levees’ failure of federal standards declared

Levees protecting most of the city of Sacramento and 15 other areas of the Central Valley were declared today to have failed federal maintenance criteria. As a result, they are no longer eligible for federal rebuilding funds in the event of a levee breach.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers made the declaration today. It did so after concluding that a new state plan to improve Central Valley levees does not provide enough detail to ensure maintenance problems — such as erosion and intrusion by structures — will be fixed.

The affected levee systems include 40 miles of levees wrapping most of the city of Sacramento on the American and Sacramento rivers. This system of levees, known on flood-control maps as “Maintenance Area 9,” includes the south bank of the American River from about Bradshaw Road downstream to the confluence with the Sacramento River, then downstream from there nearly to Courtland.

More at ModestoBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, safety

Notebook of missing UC Davis student found

A notebook belonging to missing UC Davis student Linnea Lomax was found just off the American River bike trail, her family announced Sunday.

It was the first solid lead since her disappearance June 26, said Craig Lomax, the girl’s father, at a Sunday news conference.

The notebook was found near the Sutter Medical Center outpatient facility on Howe Avenue where the 19-year-old Placerville woman was last seen. She was receiving treatment after having a mental breakdown while studying for finals, her father said.

The evidence has been turned over to police, but Lomax confirmed it belonged to his daughter.

“I saw the handwriting on the notebook,” he said. “It was Linnea’s.” The notebook was found during a search by 250 volunteers over the weekend.

More at SacBee.com >>>
Bike Trail, safety

American River levee construction causes bike trail detour

For the second year in a row, cyclists will have to take a detour route along the American River that runs from the Campus Commons Golf Course to the Northrop Avenue trail entrance because of scheduled construction of a seepage wall.

The construction begins today and could continue until Nov. 30 or later, said Todd Plain, spokesman for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District.

Plain said bikers will “not be inconvenienced” because of the detour, but implored bikers to be extra cautious because of the narrower width of the trail.

“The regular trail is 12 feet paved with granite shoulders on both sides of about three feet,” Plain said. He said the alternate path varies between eight and 10 feet, with a mowed dirt shoulder of two feet on each side.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, safety, Water

Volunteers search American River for missing teen

Hundreds of volunteers on Sunday were taking part in a search along the American River in Sacramento for a missing University of California,Davis student.

The search for Linnea Lomax comes as Marc Klaas, who founded the KlaasKids Foundation after his 12-year-old daughter was kidnapped from her Petaluma home and murdered in 1993, said he was getting involved in the efforts to find her.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, Events, Rafting, safety

Sacramento supervisors extend alcohol ban on American River Parkway

Sacramento County supervisors voted to extend a ban on alcohol along the American River Parkway following last month’s drunken fracas at an event called Rafters Gone Wild.

Supervisors granted the county parks director the authority to ban alcohol consumption on the parkway between Hazel and Watt avenues when he anticipates such events could threaten public safety.

The action extends the county’s previous drinking ban on the parkway, which is in effect on three holidays – Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day. Supporters of the stronger ban say they expect young revelers will find a way around it.

“They’ve declared war on you,” said John Barris, a retired county juvenile court administrator.

This was the second year public safety officials struggled to contain fights, nudity and other questionable activity at Rafting Gone Wild, an event that has been promoted through social media without any support by a known organization. More than 3,000 people showed up to the event last month, with 23 people arrested.

More at SacBee.com >>>
Bike Trail, safety, Water, Wildlife

American River levee work closes some bike trail access

Access points along the American River Bike Trail are closed during a project to reinforce and raise more than 4,000 feet of levee along the American River in Sacramento.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that work on the Howe Avenue Levee Raise project that officially began July 25 is in full swing.

The levee, running east from Howe Avenue along the American River’s north bank, is being raised an average of 1 foot to allow for more water coming from Folsom Dam and its auxiliary spillway, which is under construction and scheduled for completion in 2017, an Army Corps of Engineers news release states. The levee project is to be completed this October.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, Events, Fire, Fish, Rafting, safety, Water, Wildlife

Surprise $54M won’t impact Auburn recreation areas

Auburn and Folsom state recreation areas won’t benefit from $54 million recently found stashed in California State Parks’ budget.

Local recreation officials said the 25-year partnership between the two recreation areas and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation that was signed last January prevents any of the newly found money from potentially being allocated to Auburn or Folsom Lake by the governor.

“No, that money will go to the governor to be appropriated, but it should have no impact on Auburn Recreation Area or any of the units associated with the agreement,” said Matt Green, superintendent of the Gold Fields District of State Parks.

That means the recreation areas will continue to be, in Green’s words, “self-sustaining” through revenue it generates partially through fees and supplemental funding it gets from the Bureau of Reclamation. On July 1, new fees were added to parking areas in the Auburn and Folsom Lake state recreation areas or existing fees were increased.

For example, parking along the road in the Auburn State Recreation Area was free before, but on July 1 a $10-per-day fee was imposed in the confluence area and in the Lake Clementine area boat launching fees were also increased to $10.

California State Parks recently found $54 million of unspent money in its budget due to underreporting of funds to the state Department of Finance for the last 12 years, according to a press release by the state Natural Resources Agency.

Roughly $20.3 million of recreation funds and more than $33.4 million off-highway vehicle funds were unused by State Parks, the release stated.

Katy Veling, of Auburn, was enjoying the confluence area near Auburn on Wednesday and said she wishes the $54 million could be used to either lessen or do away with the fees. She even said the new parking fee has kept her away from her favorite swimming spot on the American River.

 More at ColfaxRecord.com >>>
Bike Trail, Events, Rafting, Water

Eppie’s Great Race draws more than 2,000 competitors to American River Parkway

More than 2,000 people sprinted, pedaled and rowed in Eppie’s Great Race today, with veteran Vic Vicari, fresh face Diana Hellman and a group named “Vitek Vikings” seizing the honors of Ironman, Ironwoman and the team champion.

“The World’s Oldest Triathlon” consists of a 5.82-mile run and a 12.5-mile bike ride along the American River Parkway trail, and a 6.35-mile paddle on the river. Since its origin in 1974, organizers have presented about $970,000 to the race’s primary beneficiary, Sacramento County Therapeutic Recreation Services.

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Bike Trail, safety

Body found in Folsom, possibly linked to manhunt

The body of a man possibly suspected of a homicide in Mariposa County was found Sunday just after noon along a trail near Lake Natoma following a three-hour manhunt.

The man’s cause of death and identity were not immediately released.

Sgt. Jason Browning, of the Folsom Police Department, said State Park rangers were notified by employees of Sudwerk Riverside Restaurant around 9 a.m. of an unattended white Ford Ranger in the parking lot.

A license plate check revealed that the truck was a suspect vehicle in a Mariposa County homicide.

“Suspecting that the driver of the truck could be armed, the recreation area (Negro Bar) was cleared,” Browning said.

California State Parks rangers, Folsom Police officers and deputies from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department began a full-scale search for the suspect, a white male approximately 21 years old.

SWAT and canine officers were called in to assist with the search.

Just after noon, the man was found in an “off trail wild land area.” He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The command center, set up in the Sudwerk’s parking lot, got the attention of several passersby in the area.

Lisa Thompson, of Folsom, was on her way to the grocery store when she stopped to see what the commotion was all about.

“It’s not every day you see SWAT and all the media out here,” she said. “ I thought it was a drowning. To hear it was a murder suspect is concerning.”

She said she was relieved to hear the suspect was no longer on the run.

Scott Pill, of Fair Oaks was riding his bike along the Negro Bar trails when he and other bicyclists were stopped by officials.

More at AuburnJournal.com >>>

Bike Trail, safety

Back-seat Driver: For better bicycling manners, discussion beats spitting

There is a cyclist on the American River Parkway trail who some say spits at other cyclists if he doesn’t like the way they are riding.

How is it that we are not surprised?

Summer is high season for parkway use. One of the sad bike trail realities is, the more crowded it gets, the angrier some get, and the worse some behavior becomes.

Sacramento County Chief Ranger Stan Lumsden likens it to the ugly side of driving on streets and highways. “I guess it would be called trail rage.”

Three weeks ago, several members of a cycling club, including a former cop, reportedly had a trailside “discussion” with the spitter.

His contention, according to their report: Too many cyclists ride poorly and discourteously, and he lets them know it.

More at SacBee.com >>>