Category Archives: Bike Trail

Bike Trail, Water, Wildlife

Nonprofit group cares for Folsom Lake, Lake Natoma

A nonprofit group is lending a helping hand to the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area in tough fiscal times.

“We are one of the newest state park cooperating associations,” said Linda McDonald, president of Friends of Lakes Folsom and Natoma, which is looking for more members to join the 2-year-old organization. “Our membership drive is just getting under way.”

McDonald, along with board members Crystal Barber, Paula David, Ken McKowen and Bob Hall, hope to help state parks officials maintain the recreation area that draws tens of thousands of visitors each year to its rolling hills of valley oak, chaparral and the two lakes. Wildlife includes herds of black-tailed deer and soaring red-tailed hawks.

“I love the park and want to give back,” McDonald said. “Folsom Lake was once a park away from the city. Now, it is surrounded by development. It covers three different counties – El Dorado, Sacramento and Placer. It is really one of the most heavily used parks in the state.”

More at SacBee.com >>

Bike Trail, safety, Water, Wildlife

Proposal to build flood control center along American River Parkway draws fire

A large new government office building, filled with 600 skilled wage earners, would seem to be a blessing for the economically depressed Sacramento region.

But some are treating a proposal to build one alongside the American River Parkway as a curse.

State and federal agencies want to build a high-security, 200,000-square-foot nerve center for California flood protection on a 25-acre parcel next to the state-operated Nimbus Fish Hatchery in Rancho Cordova.

Critics, who range from the area’s congressman to nearby homeowners, condemn the project as inappropriate for the American River Parkway, the region’s most treasured and scenic recreational asset.

There are looming questions about whether it makes sense to park a flood-control headquarters next to a flood-prone river downstream of Folsom Dam, the region’s largest.

More at SacBee.com >>

Bike Trail, safety, Salmon, Water, Wildlife

Hundreds Voice Outrage Over Possible Plan For New Flood Operation Center

The building could be built on the American River next to the Nimbus Fish Hatchery.The federal and state government is studying three different locations for a new flood operation center that would house three state and federal agencies, the Department of Water Resources, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the National Weather Service.

The proposed site is the Nimbus Fish Hatchery and two alternative sites are Mather Airport and near the intersection of Sunrise and Killgore in Rancho Cordova.

The size of the proposed center is 200,000 square feet.

Hundreds of concerned residents are angry the government would even consider building such a large structure so close to the river and the bike trail.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, Fish, Salmon, Wildlife

Sacramento foodie’s cookbook will drive locavores wild

Are you the type of person who fishes shad out of the Sacramento River and who treks along the American River to forage for blackberries, fennel, miner’s lettuce and all sorts of other goodies? Do you go down to Napa to shoot wild turkeys grown fat on thieved grapes from the vineyards or crawl into Dixon to blow away a few quail for dinner?

Local food writer Hank Shaw is best known for his food blog Hunter Angler Gardener Cook (http://honest-food.net), where he chronicles his gourmet approach to wild food. Shaw has recently come out with a new book. Hunt, Gather, Cook: Finding the Forgotten Feast (Rodale, $25.99) is the must read for the hunter/fisher/forager and all-around foodie.

More at NewsReview.com >>>

Bike Trail, Fire, safety, Wildlife

Officials ask for help in identifying parkway arsonist

Fire officials are asking the public to help identify the person responsible for a series of arson fires along the American River Parkway in recent days.

A total of 15 fires were deliberately set — nine on Sept. 10 and six on Wednesday, said Assistant Chief Scott Cockrum of the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District.

The arson occurred near River Bend Park, in an area of heavy vegetation that could fuel a major fire, Cockrum said.

“In this area there are no homes, but there is dense brush, with trees, shrubs and a lot of dead stuff,” he said.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, Fire, safety, Wildlife

American River Parkway arsons, no suspect yet

Arson investigators said the grass fires along the American River Saturday morning were set intentionally.

“Having somebody coming through here and start these fires is really concerning that this was an intentional act to have a huge fire run through the American River Parkway,” Sacramento Metro Fire Assist. Chief Scott Cockrum said.

Sacramento Metro Fire crews fought seven to nine grass fires along the American River around 6 a.m. Saturday, Cockrum said.

The grass fires were spotted from River Bend Park to Hagan Park and burned 19 acres of land.

More at News10.net >>>

Bike Trail, safety

Scout project aims to keep walkers, bikers safe on trail in Folsom

It’s hardly anarchy on the American River bike trail, a tranquil oasis in an otherwise busy suburban landscape, but some Boy Scouts and the city of Folsom are striving to make it even safer.

The two-lane trail that winds among the gray pine and oak trees close to Willow and Humbug creeks can be dicey when bicyclists and pedestrians pass one another.

To keep the wheeled and walking a safe distance apart, a simple remedy is planned: Boy Scouts will stencil rules of the road on the bike trail.

The painted advisory will say:

“Runners Walkers Keep Left” in the left lane.

“Bikes Keep Right” in the right lane.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, safety

Detour set for walkers, bikers on American River Parkway near Sac State

A section of the American River Parkway near California State University, Sacramento, will be temporarily closed for a levee upgrade beginning Aug. 22.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that pedestrian and bicycle traffic will be detoured to an alternate trail from the Campus Commons golf course to about Ethan Way for up to nine weeks while a seepage cutoff wall is built in the levee at the end of Northrop Avenue, near Howe Avenue. Signs have been posted along the trail noting that the detour will be in place for the duration of the construction, scheduled for completion by Oct. 17.

The Corps of Engineers built more than 20 miles of cutoff walls into American river levees between 2000 and 2002 as part of a joint project with the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency. Areas where construction was complicated by utilities, bridges or power lines were set aside for later construction, leaving gaps in the walls, according to a Corps news release.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Bike Trail, Events, Rafting, Video, Water

VIDEO: Eppie’s Great Race contestants prepare for Saturday

The 38th Eppie’s Great Race is set for Saturday morning.  The Sacramento-born triathlon features running, bicycling and kayaking.

The race starts with a 5.8 mile run, 12.5 miles on a bicycle, and 6.4 miles racing on the American River in a kayak.

More than 2,000 people participated in 2010.  A similar crowd is expected this year, and registration remains open until 6:30 the morning of the race, near the starting line at the William Pond Recreation area along the American River.

More at News10.net >>>