Category Archives: Events

Boating, Events, Rafting, safety

‘Rage On The River’ Makes Busy Day For Emergency Crews

A large fight at the Swabbies bar caused quite a commotion – just one of the many incidents authorities responded to Sunday.

At one point, there were more than a dozen police cars at the scene. Officers say no one was seriously injured. Law enforcement was already out in force along the river for the alcohol-filled “Rage on the River” event that takes places every year.

In more scary moments, two women had to be rescued near Discovery Park.

Sacramento firefighters rushed to the area to perform CPR. While they couldn’t say what led up to the emergency, witnesses say the person fell off a boat.

“Then when she fell off the boat, the policeman just came over there, they took her over here and they were just pumping her heart,” said witness Latina Dawson. “They were just pumping and pumping for like 10 or 15 minutes.”

It happened around 5:30 p.m. – the same time crews had to react to another person who was unresponsive.

Both were taken to the hospital.

“I have kids and grandkids, and I don’t want to see that happen to no one,” said Iris Garner, another witness.

But it’s something emergency responders were prepared for. Rage on the River attracts tens of thousands to the Discovery Park area every year.

And the alcohol was flowing.

“Last year we had the same event. We did over 20 rescues in a two-hour period.  And this year we were very well prepared,” said Roberto Padilla with the Sacramento Fire Department.

With three Sacramento Fire boats out on the water and multiple law enforcement agencies from surrounding areas keeping watch, there was a major effort to prevent drownings.

More at cbslocal.com >>>

Bike Trail, Events, Rafting, safety

Rafters get creative during Memorial Day alcohol ban

Sunday is the warmest day this month and hundreds of people are cooling off along the American River.

Sacramento County park rangers are busy enforcing a strict ban on booze. Despite plenty of signage, some people tried sneaking in beer, wine and even non-alcoholic glass bottles — all of which are not allowed.

“People can get very creative when they hide the alcohol,” said Chris Kemp, a park ranger sergeant. “We’ve had them in coolers with false bottoms. We’ve had them hidden in backpacks, inside of Camelback pouches on their bodies in various places in different types of containers so we know what to look for,” Kemp said.

Partygoers caught in the act were given the option of taking their contraband back to their cars or watching rangers pour it out. Getting caught with booze this weekend could lead to a $100 citation.

The 10 rangers on patrol were determined to keep people on the American River safe from drowning and vigilant in enforcing the message that alcohol and water just don’t mix.

“Yeah, I think it’s probably a good thing to keep everybody safe out here,” said Andrew Ray, a kayaker from San Francisco.

For Billy Balogh of Roseville, the no-alcohol rule makes for a better family experience for his 8-year-old daughter Alexandra.

“I think it’s a good idea,” Balogh said. “Nobody’s going to fall in the water. People are going to be more aware and keep an eye on things going on in the water. And it’s just safe overall for everybody.”

But not everybody is enamored with the ban on booze.

“I mean I feel I can handle myself responsibly, drinking a couple of beers on a hot Memorial Day weekend,” said Diana Takla, a rafter from Walnut Creek. “I don’t know what the problem is.”
“With alcohol intoxication it lowers your threshold for tolerating hypothermia,” Kemp said. ”

“People when they drink a lot of alcohol, they can hit the water and become very disoriented and very hypothermic, and it leads to a lot more drownings. And we don’t want to see that out here,” Kemp said.

Meanwhile rafters on the American River are enjoying higher water flows, thanks to bigger releases from Folsom Lake.

More at KCRA.com >>>

Bike Trail, Boating, Events, Fish, Rafting, safety, Salmon, Water, Wildlife

American River Parkway Spring Clean Up Is Set For This Saturday

There’s still time to volunteer to work at The Annual American River Parkway Spring Clean Up.

For the 9th year in a row, a spring clean-up of the 23-mile American River Parkway will happen this Saturday, April 11.

“With the water levels so low we have access to so much of the riverbed where so much trash is and if we can help remove that when it does rain and we get a normal precipitation the waterways will not be dirty.”-Dianna Poggetto with the American River Parkway Foundation says.

Poggetto says it goes from 9 to Noon and they’ll provide food and water:

More at KFBK.com >>>

Boating, Events, Fire, Fish, News from Other Watersheds, Rafting, safety, Salmon, Water, Wildlife

Spring To Arrive Rain-Free In Sacramento And North State, Much Like Winter

The official arrival of spring today brings with it the realization that Sacramento and the Sierra Nevada have again been abnormally dry for the fourth straight winter.

The rainy season began in the fall with hope that the drought would be broken, but that was not to be.

With the exception of one big “Pineapple Express” in December and a good rain in February, Sacramento has been dry – and, lately, warm.

On Thursday, Sacramento set a record when the high temperature reached 81 degrees at Executive Airport, topping the previous mark of 80 degrees set in 2004, according to the National Weather Service.

The lack of rain was especially stark in usually soggy January when just 0.01 of an inch was recorded in Sacramento.

The winter also did not deliver a great deal of snow to the Sierra Nevada. California’s water supplies are reliant on mountain snowpack that melts in the spring and fills reservoirs for summer use in cities and on farms.

The most recent snowpack survey showed that statewide the mountains have just 13 percent of the snowpack normal for this time of year.

“Generally our snowpack accounts for about a third of our state water supply,” said Brooke Bingaman, weather service meteorologist. “Not all of the 13 percent snowpack will end up in the reservoirs, some of it will soak into the ground. So the level our reservoirs are at now is essentially what we will have for the rest of the summer.”

The culprit behind the snowfall shortfall is a familiar meteorological villain – a high-pressure ridge that has shunted snowy storms to the north, Bingaman said.

In addition, the northern part of the state usually gets five to seven atmospheric rivers, large storms that can drop several inches of rain. This year, Sacramento got two such storms.

One hit in December, a month when 7.63 inches fell and another in February, when 2.28 inches of rain were recorded.

“Since Oct. 1, we have had 11.73 inches,” Bingaman said. “Normally we should have had 16.64. So we are at 70 percent of normal right now.”

Bingaman said Folsom Lake is 59 percent full, but it won’t get the usual snowmelt from the American River.

“December, January, February and March are typically our wettest months of the year,” she said. “Really, December was the only month that was really wet.”

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

Volunteers Step Out for Sacramento County’s Biannual Homeless Count

Hundreds of volunteers joined members of Sacramento Steps Forward on Wednesday night to conduct the area’s biannual “Homeless Count.”

About 400 people, including John Foley of Sacramento Self-Help Housing fanned out across the county to count and learn more about those living without shelter.

“One thing that we found over the last several years were that there were a lot of people who had been homeless for a long time and had various disabilities, particularly mental health issues and substance abuse,” Foley said.

Like 52-year-old Hannah, who’s been homeless for nearly a year. She suffers from ADHD and bi-polar disorder.

“If someone just holds my hand and gets me through my appointments and helps me complete things, that would be a life-changing event for me. Plus psychiatry, because I have to work on the behavior modification,” she said.

She told surveyors she’s grateful for the organizations that provide showers and laundry services.

More at KFBK.com >>>

Bike Trail, Events, Wildlife

Learn About Sacramento’s Winter Birds

Effie Yeaw Nature Center in Carmichael is launching a series of classes next week to help people identify birds that frequent the Sacramento area in winter.

While many of the area’s resident birds fly south for the winter, many other birds make the Sacramento region their winter destination. The classes focus on identifying many of these birds by sight and sound, including songbirds, waterfowl and shorebirds.

The series includes three Wednesday evening classroom sessions, starting Jan. 7, from 7 to 8:30 p.m.; and three field sessions on Saturdays, starting Jan. 10, each lasting starting at 8 a.m. and lasting at least four hours.

The classroom sessions will be held at Effie Yeaw Nature Center, located at Sacramento County’s Ancil Hoffman Park along the American River, at 2850 San Lorenzo Way, in Carmichael. The first field session is at Ancil Hoffman Park, and the others will require driving to different locations.

More at SacBee.com >>>

Events, Fish, Salmon, Water, Wildlife

Nimbus Hatchery Salmon Ladder To Open

The public will have a chance next week to witness the annual spectacle of the American River salmon run.

About 10:40 a.m. on Nov. 3, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife will open the fish ladder at Nimbus Hatchery on American River. This allows fall-run Chinook salmon migrating upstream from the Pacific Ocean to enter the hatchery, and it also provide an excellent viewing opportunity for the public.

Nimbus Hatchery was built in 1958 as mitigation for the construction of dams that prevented fall-run salmon from accessing their historic spawning habitat upstream. Instead, fish swim into the hatchery, where their eggs are harvested to produce several million salmon each year. The hatchery will collect more than a half-million eggs in the first week alone.

More at SacBee.com >>>
Bike Trail, Events, History

Johnny Cash Trail And Overcrossing Opens Oct. 4

Dedication and ribbon cutting ceremonies for Folsom’s Johnny Cash Trail and Bike/

Pedestrian Overcrossing are set for Saturday morning at the intersection of Folsom Lake Crossing Road and East Natoma Street .

Roseanne Cash will attend the ceremonies for the project that honors the memory of her father, said Sue Ryan, City of Folsom public information officer. The public is invited to view exhibits and enjoy entertainment from 9 a.m.-noon. The ribbon cutting ceremony will begin at 10 a.m.

Organizers encourage guests to walk or cycle to the event, because of a limited on-street parking for vehicles.

The $3.8 million overcrossing, which spans busy Folsom Lake Crossing Road, is designed to echo the look of Folsom Prison’s East Gate guard towers, Ryan said. Cash made the prison famous with his big hit, Folsom Prison Blues, which he performed at the prison in 1968.

“People around the world know Folsom because of that very famous song,” says Mayor Kerri Howell. “This very distinctive overcrossing will serve as an iconic and symbolic feature of Folsom history and will be a unique gateway for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.”

The 2.5 mile Johnny Cash Trail will eventually extend from the Historic Truss Bridge to Green Valley Road , traversing prison property and linking El Dorado and Placer counties to Folsom’s Historic District and the American River Parkway , Ryan said.

Exhibits at the event will showcase plans for the Johnny Cash Trail Art Experience. The Folsom City Council recently approved artists’ concepts for the project, and development of a fund raising campaign.

More at FolsomTelegraph.com >>>

Bike Trail, Events, safety, Water, Wildlife

American River Parkway Advocates Bristle At Potential Expansion Of Aftershock Festival

Concert promoter Danny Hayes sees Discovery Park as an ideal venue for his Aftershock heavy metal rock festival. Nearly 38,000 fans attended the two-day event on the American River earlier this month, prompting Hayes to talk about adding a third day and raising the daily attendance cap.

“We’re definitely coming back,” said Hayes, CEO of Los Angeles-based Danny Wimmer Presents. “The numbers prove there is a market there.”

Bill Davis doesn’t share his enthusiasm. The Sacramento resident argues that large, for-profit events such as Aftershock are inappropriate for the American River Parkway, a 29-mile ribbon of open space that starts in Discovery Park and stretches east to Folsom.

Davis is a board member of Save the American River Association, which last year sued the county to stop it from approving foot races, food truck festivals, concerts and other activities that the group contends are harming the ecologically sensitive riparian forest. Formed in 1961, SARA helped establish the American River Parkway, a recreational centerpiece of the Sacramento region. “Our concern is the impact on the park’s resources and wildlife,” Davis said.

Sacramento City Councilman Steve Hansen also has concerns. Hansen lives in Alkali Flat, a mile from Discovery Park, and heard the festival’s heavy metal music loudly and clearly on both nights.

“It’s a difficult balancing act, between large events and use of the parkway,” Hansen said. “Not every venue is appropriate for every event.”

Sacramento County is responsible for maintaining and managing the parkway, which is both a wildlife corridor and a place where about 5 million people come to play every year. County officials say the parkway is a public resource and its use should be available to any event that complies with the guidelines in a county parkway plan.

In 2014, the county expects to issue permits for 71 events on the parkway, including a Girl Scout camp, 5K runs and concerts. That’s an increase from 2012 and 2013, when there were 66 events permitted each year.

Aftershock is the latest flashpoint. Attendance has risen sharply since the festival drew 12,800 its first year in the city in 2012. In 2013, 30,000 people attended the two-day event. The growing popularity has prompted Danny Wimmer Presents to talk about expansion.

More at SacBee.com >>>
Bike Trail, Boating, Events, Fish, Rafting, safety, Salmon, Water, Wildlife

Great American River Clean Up Is This Saturday

This Saturday, September 20, offers opportunities to help the community as well as have fun.
During the hours of 9 am to noon the annual Great American River Clean Up will be held. To volunteer and enjoy the outdoors while helping to keep the American River Parkway clean; details and more information can be obtained at the American River Parkway Foundation website.