Month: September 2012

Hope for a Changing Planet

Hope for a Changing Planet

Thursday Oct. 4, Grange Hall, Big Sur
Potluck 6 pm, Program 6:30

Big Sur Advocates for a Green Environment (B-SAGE) and Big Sur Grange encourage everyone to come and hear about: Hope for a Changing Planet.

Global Warming can sometimes seem nebulous and distant. However, it is becoming clear that those distant changes will have local and personal effects on our daily life and health. The Climate Reality Project is a resource that is providing education and research on these changes as they are happening and how those changes are causing real consequences now and more so in the near future.

Central California volunteer and environmentalist, Tama Olver, attended a Climate Reality Project event in August 2012 with people from 47 states and 58 countries. She is coming to Big Sur to share the latest thinking about our changing climate and impending impacts on human health. Her focus is one of hope and action.

Come hear Tama Olver and see her informative power point presentation at the Big Sur Grange Pot Luck, 6:00pm October 4th. Bring a dish to share and your own place settings, program at 6:30. Donations for expenses are appreciated. For more information, call B-SAGE at 667-8823 or go to http://climaterealityproject.org.

Fire North of Ragged Point

4:30 pm – fire was about a mile north of Ragged Point. They are in mop-up, now.

4:15 pm – just got word that there was a dispatch to a fire north of Ragged Point about 1/2 hour ago. Already air attack has been called off, and one Cuesta crew. One Cuesta fire remains on scene, as well as a couple LPNF Engines. Looks like they caught this early. I don’t have any more details, but will look around to see what I can pick up.

Question of the day, re Rocky Creek closure

I asked the project manager “Local wants to know if that [walking across closure at night] will be allowed. She has classes 2 nites a week.
bigsurkate, on a mountain top in Big Sur

He answered “Hi Kate. Unfortunately for safety reasons we can’t allow the general
public to walk through during the night closures. We tried to think of
ways to allow it, but construction activities would be going on much too
close to the path they would be using.

Thanks,
Ken”

Rocky Creek Viaduct closure, press release number 1

This came yesterday, but I had already provided the basic info through advance notice and had some other things I wanted to post about. These notices of closures and the impact on community and visitors will hopefully develop a rhythm of their own, and I will only be posting about this once a week, but until that rhythm gets established, I’ll just go with it here.

“Today’s Date: Thursday, September 27, 2012
District: 05 – Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito
and Santa
Cruz Counties
Contact: Susana Z Cruz (bilingual) or Colin Jones
Phone: (805) 549-3138 or 549-3189
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

HIGHWAY 1/ROCKY CREEK VIADUCT PROJECT IS UNDERWAY—
OVERNIGHT CLOSURES TO BEGIN OCTOBER 11

MONTEREY COUNTY – Following the survey results from the Big Sur community,
the hours for full closures of Hwy. 1 at Rocky Creek will be 9 pm to 7 am
beginning Thursday, Oct. 11 through the end of February, Caltrans officials
have announced.

Roadwork will occur seven days a week, 24/7 with one-way signalized traffic
control. Traffic will be stopped for 10 minutes at a time. However, full
overnight closures will take place five nights a week Sundays through
Thursdays.

The project to construct a permanent viaduct about 15 miles south of Carmel
near the Rocky Creek Bridge along Highway 1 began on Sept. 4. Completion is
scheduled by Labor Day 2013, weather permitting.

This project came about after a roadway slipout caused severe damage to the
southbound lane and required Hwy. 1 to be closed from north of Big Sur and
south of Carmel at Rocky Creek from March 17 through April 16, 2011. The
contractor for this $12 million project is Golden State Bridge Inc. of
Martinez, CA

In order to minimize traffic impact as part of the project, there will be
advance notification for motorists, residents and businesses via a traffic
hotline, electronic message signs and email notifications.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving
through highway work zones.

For more information, please visit: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/projects/
or contact the Hwy. 1 Cambria to Carmel Toll-Free Hotline at 888-836-0866.”

First overnight closure set at Rocky Creek

Update, less than an hour later, Collin Jones sent out this:

“Hey folks, our news release is going out later today. The temporary signal
is up and the updated schedule now calls for overnight closures to begin on
Thursday, Oct. 11 @ 9 pm.

Thanks, Colin”

“Heads up everyone:

The permanent viaduct repair of Highway 1 at Rocky Creek 15 miles south of
Carmel is underway, with the overnight closures from 9 pm to 7 am set to
begin on Oct. 7 or 8 and continuing for 3-4 months. Susana Cruz, Jim
Shivers and I in the Public Information Office will be sending out frequent
traffic notices, updating our Big Sur traffic hotline (888-836-0866) and
our crews will be deploying numerous message signs on both ends of Big Sur.

We’ll be sending out more details in a news release by Monday, Oct. 1.

As always, Caltrans greatly appreciates the community’s support and
cooperation. This project is important in maintaining the long-term
stability of the vital Highway 1 corridor from Cambria to Carmel. Working
together, we can make this another successful transportation project along
the Big Sur Coast.

Let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks, Colin Jones
Public Affairs Manager
Caltrans District 5
(805) 549-3189”

Big Sur Jade Festival, road closures, and other stories

First let me notify everyone that the 21st Jade Festival is almost here. It will be held, as always, at Pacific Valley School. It will be held Friday, Oct.5 from noon to 6, Saturday, 10-6, and Sunday 10-5. This year, it will be important to close down on time on Sunday so that vendors can pack up and get through Rocky Creek before they close the road. Other than that, the closure should not affect the festival. As has become standard, we have lots of music, good food, jade, and other gems, good family fun. As it is held at the school, and is a family event, no alcohol or drugs allowed and all furry family members must be on a leash.

Second, I am getting lots of inquiries regarding the Rock Creek closures. I will post all announcements of closures right here on my front page as soon as i get them. I have posted six different times so far, so I will give a simplified or Readers Digest version here. Basically, if you plan on night closures every Sunday-Thursday night from Oct 8th thru the end of January, you won’t be surprised and caught off guard. (we will know the exact 10 hour closure time next week, but so far, it is looking like 9 pm-7am?) During the day, the road will be one lane, controlled traffic. While delays are supposed to be only 10 minutes, I got reports of 1/2 hour delays today. Give yourself extra time to make it to work, or your lunch reservation, or whatever brings you down our way. Get to know the visitor in the car behind you or in front, take photos of the stoppage, enjoy your time here.

Other stories? Okay, I admit. I made that up. Let me see if I can find a photo for you.

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Cambria’s Annual Scarecrow Festival

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The businesses add new scarecrows every day, until the judging takes place, so come on down and take a look for yourself. Great photo ops! I found out from a long-time resident who informed me that the high school art studens make the scarecrows and sell them for $20 to the businesses that don’t make their own. This will all culminate at the Harvest Festivwl at the Biachinni house, aka, the Cambrian Historical Society, the second weekend in October, at the corner of Burton and Center.

On the way out of town, I saw so many others I had missed! Several construction workers, the invisible man, the male and female “mooners”, the gal with the flying dog, and at least a dozen more. There are between 200-250 total “scarecrows” that have taken over Cambria. Quite a sight to see. I never even went down Moonstone Drive where there are many more! Next time, I guess.

Possible Fire, NE of Cone Peak ?

11:15 update – I still have not been able to locate, but it doesn’t seem to be growing, although there is a very significant inversion layer over the ocean.

10:30 update – I have determined the fire is NOT on FHL, per my source there. It might be Indians, or Lost Valley or ?? Still trying to track down. Wherever it is, it increased in size considerably this morning.

About 9 am, I went outside and noted drift smoke covering Cone Peak. My friend called from Lockwood. I asked him, “Where is the fire?” He laughed, and said he’d called fire central to ask that very question. Nothing is listed on WildCAD-LPNF, so his thought that it is at Indians is probably not the case. Since I can find nothing anywhere, that leads me to believe it might be on FHL. Don’t see a column, only heavy drift, so I will keep seeking information this morning.

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One can barely see Cone Peak through the drift smoke.

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