LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – There’s something happening in Lake County that’s going to offer people new opportunities to connect – with nature, with each other and to places that make up the stuff of the everyday or that we frequent only in our free time.
The Konocti Regional Trails, a countywide network of multiuse trails, are meant to provide nonmotorized pathways between communities, local services, recreational areas and other points of interest – and the combinations are endless.
“The first and newest ones will be on Mount Konocti in the spring,” said Kim Clymire, Lake County Public Services director. “There are already trails in all areas of the county on public lands including at Highland Springs, Bureau of Land Management (land), Trailside Nature Preserve, Boggs Mountain and more.”
That is, a total of 100 miles of existing trails and 355 miles of forest roads. The challenge is that the majority are located a significant distance from populated areas and often require traveling by car to enjoy them.
The solution then is the trails system, which will be used primarily for recreation and transportation.
First, you can go out for your Sunday morning hike or after-work bike ride, and you won’t have to drive there first.
Second? They’ll get you from here to there without the worry of sharing a cramped lane with a much faster, larger vehicle.
At a minimum, the trails will be expected to host road bicyclists, mountain bicyclists, hikers, birders, pedestrians, dog walkers, individuals in wheelchairs and strollers, skateboarders, horseback riders, as well as kayakers, canoeists and rowers. (That’s right. The trails will include both pathways by land and waterways.)
While most trails will serve multiple purposes, not all activities will be available on all trails – based mostly on terrain and location.
The trails have been categorized in a number of ways according to their purpose.
For instance, community pathways are trails within a single community that could link neighborhoods to neighborhoods or neighborhoods to local services, parks and other points of interest. They would be used mostly for transportation.
Community connector trails will actually link different areas – as an example, one might stretch all the way to Lakeport from Kelseyville.
Regional trails encompass trails between major recreational areas or other destinations, such as a possible corridor between Robert Louis Stevenson State Park and Middletown.
Although, in most cases, these trails offer the slower, quieter route to travel, that’s also precisely what’s enticing: the slower, quieter route. Options are nice.
And the trails provide a number of other benefits, as well:
Supporting and inspiring healthy lifestyles – For those looking to make improvements to your health and general well-being, the trails offer a number of healthy helping hands, some of which go by the names of brisk walk, long hike, fresh air, rowboat and sunlight.
Encouraging outdoor recreation – What are the odds of going out for a bike ride after a long day when you have to pack the truck, drive a distance to get there, unload and lock up? What if you could step outside of your house and catch a community pathway around the corner that ultimately connects to your biking destination? Or what if you just feel like going for a ride around the corner? See? Now, it’s more tempting.
Stimulating economic development – It’s easy to put off driving a ways to the grocery store or checking out that new tasting room when you factor in the price of travel, money plus time. It’s nice to think of all these places practically in your backyard. A short stroll down a clearly marked path to get there is just more fun. And hey, why not walk over to a local farm instead for tonight’s special dinner?
Promoting tourism – I suppose we’ll let our visitors in on the secret, too. Among the many benefits you can expect from the trails is increased tourism. A quickly growing industry, nature tourism will help boost the local tourism industry, as many of the community connector and regional trails ultimately lead to community pathways, which lead to local restaurants, shops, wineries and other points of interest.
Offering learning opportunities – Kono Tayee, Lillie Langtry or the Western grebes “rushing” courtship dance – ring a bell? If not, here’s another great reason to get to those trails and take the kids. A whole world of learning is available along the way – of the cultural and historical background of Lake County, the local flora and fauna, and much more.
Expanding routes for emergency egress and access — Bet you didn’t even think of this one. Another great benefit of the trails is alternative access routes for emergency personnel, as well as exit routes during emergency situations (fires, floods, etc.) for local residents.
Spearheading the effort, the Konocti Regional Trails Team consists of six key members, four of whom work for different county departments.
Led by Clymire, the others include Terre Logsdon, Public Services analyst; Alan Flora, associate planner; and Deputy Administrative Officer Debra Sommerfield.
According to Clymire, the members of the Trails Team each bring immense talent to the table. “We asked for a representative from our planning division, and the director assigned Alan Flora, who not only can integrate plans, but is an amazing cartographer. Debra Sommerfield has been invaluable in focusing the project and giving input, and Terre Logsdon, new to the process, has jumped right in and moved the plan to this point.” All of which translates to a well-organized process and steady progress.
Another key member is veteran trail expert Barbara Rice of the National Park Service’s Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program.
“Barbara Rice has been a treasure trove of information,” said Clymire.
Rice was brought on board through a one-year grant back in 2007, which was later renewed in 2008.
Although the grant – and therefore Rice’s service to the county – expired, she made a decision to help see the trails come to fruition and has continued to show up ever since.
“We would be totally remiss if we did not say how important it was to have the ongoing, incredible support and guidance from Barbara Rice,” added Holly Harris, project volunteer and the sixth key Trails Team member.
“Barbara has been thoroughly committed to the KRT (Trails) vision and goals since her first visit in 2007,” said Harris. “While this may be her job, she does not treat it as a job; for her it is a passion. We could not have come as far as we have without her expertise.”
Harris and her husband Chuck Lamb — otherwise known as “the catalysts” by Clymire – were “instrumental in moving the planning process forward over the past two years.”
“I suppose you could term it a vision,” said Harris. “When we first moved to Lake County in 2001, as hikers we searched for outdoor recreational opportunities. While Lake County boasts miles of trails, most are located many miles away from communities on federal lands.”
In the spring of 2007, Harris and Lamb approached county department heads with their idea to help with the Northshore redevelopment area.
To improve tourism, they suggested creating a system of interlinking nonmotorized land trails and “blue ways,” or water trails. One notable idea was the concept of a Northshore ridgeline trail between Highway 53 in Clearlake Oaks to Highway 29 in Upper Lake with smaller “connector” trails linking it to Northshore communities.
“Expenses would be minimized by utilizing existing county parks and boat launches along the Clear Lake shoreline as staging areas, as well as providing a hub between land and water trails,” stated Lamb. “The Lake County Board of Supervisors unanimously endorsed the concept in the summer of 2007.”
Following that, “We wrote a successful grant to the National Park Service and received the services of Barbara Rice,” said Clymire. “Shortly thereafter, we began the acquisition process of Mount Konocti, and the plan evolved to include all areas of the county.”
Harris and Lamb have been involved in a number of projects that directly relate to the trails program, including development of the water trails brochures, the Mt. Konocti purchase, CLEAN (Clear Lake Environmental Action Network Inc.), and the Clarks Island Sustainability initiative project.
Clymire said Harris “has been the driving force behind this process.” He added, “Her dedication and involvement – her volunteerism – is an inspiration.”
And Harris believes the trails program has been well-received by the community: “It’s been incredibly positive. At the beginning, we did have property owners concerned about eminent domain, but now they understand that the trails program is being developed on public lands, or on private lands of willing property owners who have given easements.”
Harris and Lamb have had a “spectacular” experience working with the county on this project and encourage other community members to get involved.
Along with resourceful people, a number of resources exist with extensive information on the trails, the vision behind them, the work that has gone into them and the anticipated outcome.
For starters, an interactive and always up-to-date Web site, www.konoctitrails.com , has been set up to provide the community and other stakeholders with goals and objectives of the Trails, details and status of various projects, opportunities for volunteering, as well as a forum for discussion.
As the trails program is currently in the pre-planning phase, the Konocti Regional Trails Master Plan is like the Trails Team’s playbook (and you can steal a sneak peek and offer comments on the draft at www.konoctitrails.com ; download the water trails brochures while you’re at it).
So, as you’re reading this article while flipping through the draft master plan, freshly printed beside you, for clarity’s sake: the conceptual trails are not some New Agey cerebral voyage through your subconscious mind. These trails were brainstormed, conceptualized, tossed around and refined through
an online survey and four public workshops held over the past 16 months.
“This trails plan wasn't created in a vacuum,” said Clymire, “There were hundreds and hundreds of residents who gave input by one method or another.”
He added, “Members of the community – from every area of Lake County – have contributed countless hours. We wouldn't be where we are today without the community's support.”
The community has become increasingly involved since the first of the public workshops was held in June 2009. During the workshop, community participants were introduced to the concept and were given an opportunity to voice their concerns and provide input using a questionnaire regarding their
interests in trails, their locations, and potential uses.
The Trails Team followed up with an online survey in September 2009 and received a significant return from the public – 652 responses within 30 days. A 15-question survey, the questions served to determine the public’s knowledge and current use of existing trails and destinations, as well as their
desired modes of trail use and amenities, their main concerns, and their interest and willingness to support the effort.
The second workshop, held in January 2010, yielded the most input, with more than 100 in attendance, and included hands-on trail route mapping exercises, during which the public discussed their preferred trail types and locations, identified opportunities and constraints, and considered alternative routes and design concepts.
With 35 attendees, the third workshop this past August was a followup and served to verify the ideas generated in the second workshop and to ensure accuracy and completeness. The fourth workshop on Oct. 13, which had roughly the same number in attendance, featured a presentation on the final
draft of the master plan and a question-and-answer session.
The public input that has been gathered shapes the majority of the master plan. The master plan’s purpose is to provide a guiding framework for the Trails’ planning, design, implementation and maintenance. Along with the outcome of the community engagement sessions, the master plan encompasses everything trails-related, including information and detailed maps on existing trails, recreational areas, forest land, and other points of interest; policies related to the trails’ design and use; a breakdown of trail categories and potential trails; funding opportunities; and much more.
If this is the first time you’re hearing about the trails, there will be opportunities for additional and highly welcomed community involvement once the master plan is approved by the Board of Supervisors in January 2011, following approval by the Lake County Planning Commission this month.
At that point, the Trails Team will expand to include larger working groups – comprising community members – within each mapping area. These groups will work alongside county staff and representatives from other important entities to begin seeing these projects through.
According to Clymire, press releases outlining next steps will be available on the Trails Web site, and anyone can sign up to be notified of upcoming opportunities.
As Rice put it in the last workshop, “This is not the end. This is the beginning. This is the beginning of growth, of community involvement to make these projects happen … not one or two, but a dozen projects at a time. You can all make these projects happen.”
As these projects unfold and the trails begin to stretch throughout and between our small communities, like arms reaching toward each other to share something as magnificent as the ancient lake, majestic mountains and rich history we call our own, how will you connect?
For more information on the Konocti Regional Trails, contact Lake County Public Services, 707-262-1618, or visit www.konoctitrails.com .
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