CPOA hires 1st Executive Director
Category: Big Sur
Horseshoe Bend – Arizona’s Bixby Bridge
Michael Chatfield sent me this excellent article. The second half of the article outlines the solutions they are implementing, including fees for parking and viewing the phenomena.
HORSESHOE BEND — In simpler times (before social media), Horseshoe Bend was a quiet yet spectacular stop along a lonely stretch of highway in northern Arizona.
Visitors would wander in from U.S. 89, just south of Page, Arizona, either because they’d heard of the dramatic bend in the Colorado River from locals, or noticed the small sign pointing the way and reacted quickly enough to make the sharp turn.
They would take a sandy path to an overlook where the land dropped away steeply to reveal a canvas only nature could paint — an emerald river hundreds of feet below, tracing a graceful arc at the bottom of sharp-edged cliffs.
A few hundred people might stop each day during the summer road-trip season. In winter, maybe just a few dozen.
But those languid days are long gone, lost in the exhaust fumes of the tour buses, party vans and SUVs that choke an area never meant to hold so much glass and steel. Each day they disgorge thousands of visitors, many from China and Germany and France and Japan.
2 million visitors expected in 2018
for the rest of this article, and the solutions they are implementing, see:
For additional article on bigsurkate re Bixby Bridge issues, see:
Volunteers Needed – Arroyo Seco
Public Hearing re TID to fund MCCVB
TID is the Tourist Improvement District tax which is collected by the cities and the counties and given to MCCVB to market the area for tourism. This dovetails with what I posted yesterday. You will recall that MCCVB gets a significant or major part of their financing for marketing our area from the various TIDs. There are 3 “zones” with differing pricing. There is no description of which zones are for what areas, or how those determinations are made. Two hearings, both at 7 pm at the City of Monterey Council Chambers, the first on September 18th and the second at which the tax will be imposed on October 16th.
Upcoming Events
*After two postponements, 2016 by the Soberanes Fire and 2017 by the Mud Creek road closure, the 25th Annual Big Sur Jade Festival – October 5, 6, 7 – is set to be held at Pacific Valley School. More to follow as the event approaches.
*The 70th Anniversary of the Big Sur Grange will be held:
On Saturday September 15th, 2018 gather with your friends and neighbors to Celebrate 70 years of community engagement at our Big Sur Grange! 3-8pm. We are preparing long harvest tables beside the river, and so much more………
It’s a Potluck Picnic- Bring a bountiful savory dish for dinner. Bring your own place setting; plate, fork, and knife.
Homemade sparkling drinks and iced teas will be available for sale.
It’s a Pie contest – Enter a sweet pie into the contest! Judges will be tasting for flavor combinations, texture, originality, beauty and more! Try something new or bring a well-loved classic. Once the winners are chosen – the pies will be our dessert! All entries must arrive before 5pm.
It’s a farmer’s market – Come and gather your weeks groceries, fruits and vegetables will be on sale from Halls Organic Farm and local gardens.
It’s for all ages – Big Sur Park School will have some harvest craft activities for the young ones.
It’s wonderful acoustic bluegrass wafting through the redwoods – Local favorites Eliot’s Haircut will play during the picnic.
It’s a Contra Dance – Caller Claire Takemori and Musicians John Weed and Tyler Weed, will be leading all ages in circle and line dances in the hall after dinner.
Looking forward to seeing you there, please help spread the word up canyons and down ridges!
The Grange board will host a delicious pancake breakfast and a presentation by the Big Sur Historical Society.
“Revealing and remembering stories from 70 years at the Grange.”
Come at 9:30, breakfast will be in the hall at long tables. The presentation will be offered during breakfast from 10-12. Bring your memories to share.
Seating is limited so we ask that you reserve your seats ASAP by emailing kendramorgenrath@gmail.com with the amount of seats you would like. We will collect the $10.00 per seat at the door.
Photo Sunday, 9/9/18 – Early 1900’s topos
These are the 3 of Big Sur – North to South (click on the image to open the high-resolution PDF)
Veterans Stand Down
Nightmare at Bixby Bridge in Big Sur
And here is a screen shot of the chp website re Bixby from yesterday, thanks to Marcus Foster:
From the CHP website. “OO” means out of vehicle. This “RDWAY” is Highway 1 through Big Sur. So, translation from chp speak to human is “People are getting out of their vehicles and leaving them parked in the middle of the highway.
Incident: 00177 Type: Traffic Hazard Location: Sr1 / Bixby Brdg Loc Desc: SR1 / BIXBY BRDG Lat/Lon: 36.372378 -121.902408
| Detail Information | |||||||
| 12:08 PM | 2 | [3] GETTING OO VEHS AND LEAVING THEM IN RDWY | |||||
| 12:08 PM | 1 | [1] VEHS 1124 IN RDWY | |||||
Health Fair – Oct. 9, 2018
Big Sur Health Fair and Community Celebration
Tuesday, October 9th Noon – 5:00 p.m.
Please join us at Big Sur Health Center’s annual Health Fair. Celebrate community, reunite with neighbors from the north and south, and enjoy some of the popular venues you look forward to each year:
– Dental checkups
– Flu shots
– Blood pressure
– Blood sugar & cholesterol screens (by CHOMP)
– Nutrition counseling
– Legal Services
– Our now famous delicious and healthy barbecue
Come see what else this year’s event has to offer!
For more information call (831) 667-2580.
Weston Call Memorial Fund
Hi Kate – soo very sorry for Big Sur’s huge loss. Here’s a link to the Fund for Big Sur Weston’s family set up: https://www.cfmco.org/2018/08/in-memory-of-weston-call/
Cristina Medina Dirksen
Communications Associate
Community Foundation for Monterey County
831.375.9712 x138 / Fax: 831.375.4731
www.cfmco.org
www.facebook.com/cfmco
Sign up for our ENewsletter
To inspire philanthropy and be a catalyst for strengthening communities throughout Monterey County