Recreation

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Written by: Elizabeth Larson

Published: 06 August 2019

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Anderson Marsh State Historic Park holds guided nature walks on the second Saturday of nearly every month.

The next guided walk this summer is Saturday, Aug. 10.

Come and experience the birds, dragonflies, butterflies and other wildlife and wildflowers that can be found in the park this time of year.

Led by Certified California Naturalist and Park Docent Henry Bornstein, this walk will proceed to Cache Creek and back over the Cache Creek Nature Trail.

This is an opportunity to experience and learn about one of the jewels of Lake County. The walk should take between one and one and a half hours.

Bring your binoculars and meet in front of the ranch house at 8:15 a.m. for time to experience the early morning wildlife to be found in the ranch house and barn complex yard. The walk begins at 8:30 a.m.

There is no fee for the walk and parking is free those attending.

There will be a guided tour of the historic Anderson Ranch House after the August walk.

Anderson Marsh State Historic Park is located on Highway 53, between Lower Lake and Clearlake.

For more information about the walks, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 707-995-2658.

For more information about the park, you may also visit www.andersonmarsh.org and click on Park Brochure on the home page.

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Written by: Nadine Strauss

Published: 05 August 2019

MADERA, Calif. – Scott Winters of Tracy set a new North State Modified Series Hoosier Tire track record at Madera Speedway Saturday night and went on to win his first feature event in the series, presented by Protect the Harvest.

Winters’ win bolted the Ferrari Farms team to a margin of only nine points behind Cameron Austin of Santa Rosa in the NSMS championship race. He also was named the Keyser Hard Charger for the night.

Winters drew a number four for the invert in the 60-lap feature placing former champ Darrin Knight of Kelseyville and Austin in the front row. Sacramento’s Jason Philpot and Winters shared row two.

Austin forged ahead at the start with Winters diving under Philpot where the duo battled for third the next four rounds. Philpot then took several attempts to get around Knight and finally made that pass stick to assume the second position on lap seven.

Two laps later Winters drove under Knight and set his sights on Philpot. Meanwhile Austin was putting a healthy distance between his car and the rest of the pack.

Winters inched under Philpot at the line just before the yellow flew for a Darrin Sullivan – Brian Collins confrontation that resulted in Collins spinning on the back stretch.

Austin chose the outside lane for the restart where he ran side-by-side with Winters for five circuits before Winters took the lead. At the same time Philpot and Knight were battling for position as Collins worked his way back up to fifth and Sullivan rebounded back to sixth.

The leaders gracefully worked their ways through lapped traffic until lap 56 when Dale Didoha spun on the front stretch for caution number two. The final four laps saw Winters drive to his first NSMS victory over Austin, Philpot, Knight, Collins, Sullivan, Keith Bloom, Rick Avila and Didoha. Ian Elliott and Dustin DeRosier were early-race dropouts.

Bloom collected the $100 for his second consecutive win in the Lucas Oil Dash for Cash. Didoha finished second for $50. They also both went home with Scriber jugs. Collins earned the Naake Shocks award. Winters, Austin and Bloom were the recipients of the Frank’s Radios gift cards.

The next North State Modified series race will be the inaugural event for the six-year old series at Douglas County Speedway in Roseburg, Orgegon on August 24.

The North State Modified Series is presented by: Protect the Harvest, Lucas Oil, Hoosier Tire West, Sunoco Race Fuels, Naake Suspension, Five Star Bodies, Racer Bling, Keyser Racing Products, Scribner Plastics, and Franks Radios.

HOOSIER TIME TRIALS:

Scott Winters 15.005 NTR; Jason Philpot 15.094; Cameron Austin 15.098; Darrin Knight 15.153; Dustin DeRosier 15.198; Brian Collins 15.398 ; Darrin Sullivan 15.462 ; Ian Elliott 15.512; Sal Lopez 15.583; Keith Bloom 15.600; Rick Avila 16.029; Dale Didoha 18.110

LUCAS OIL DASH FOR CASH:

Keith Bloom, Dale Didoha, Brian Collins, Ian Elliott, Rick Avila, Sal Lopez

PROTECT THE HARVEST 60:

Scott Winters, Cameron Austin, Jason Philpot, Darrin Knight, Brian Collins, Darrin Sullivan, Keith Bloom, Sal Lopez, Rick Avila, Dale Didoha, Ian Elliott, Dustin DeRosier

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Written by: California Department of Fish and Wildlife

Published: 04 August 2019

Fish, wildlife and ... cannabis?

Question: I follow the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's social media pages, and it seems like recently there have been a lot of posts promoting cannabis growing workshops and other cannabis activity. This makes no sense to me. Your department regulates fish and wildlife, not marijuana! Isn't this the responsibility of the Bureau of Cannabis Control? (Bill)

Answer: At the heart of CDFW is a mission to protect California's natural resources. Like other farming activities, commercial cannabis cultivation has the potential to harm fish and wildlife through water diversions, alterations to rivers, lakes and streams, habitat destruction and pesticide use.

With the passage of Proposition 64, thousands of new and existing commercial-size cultivators are entering the legal cannabis market. Many are unaware that seemingly harmless farming activities can have big impacts to the environment.

In California, all commercial-size cannabis activity is regulated by three state agencies. The Bureau of Cannabis Control is responsible for licensing retailers, the California Department of Public Health's Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch licenses all manufacturing of cannabis products and the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CalCannabis) oversees commercial cannabis cultivation.

While CDFW does not directly issue a license for commercial cannabis activities, any CalCannabis commercial license application must include either a CDFW issued Lake or Streambed Alteration (LSA) Agreement or written verification that an LSA Agreement is not needed. Cultivation activities that alter the bed, channel or bank of a river, stream or lake may require an LSA Agreement to protect fish and wildlife resources. Each grow is unique and specific compliance requirements may vary accordingly.

CDFW has been partnering with CalCannabis, the State Water Resources Control Board and other state agencies that regulate commercial cannabis cultivation by holding workshops for those trying to navigate the regulatory and licensing process.

At these workshops, state agencies are on hand to provide information and answer project questions so cannabis cultivators can succeed in this newly regulated industry. Social media is one of many tools used to promote these important outreach events.

CDFW supports the regulated cannabis market and appreciates those cultivators who obtain county permits, apply for commercial cannabis licenses and take steps to reduce environmental impacts. Visit www.wildlife.ca.gov/cannabis to learn more about CDFW's role in commercial cannabis regulation.

Shutting down illegal grows

Question: How does CDFW decide what illegal marijuana grows to shut down? (Anonymous)

Answer: CDFW has a long history of combatting illegal marijuana grows on public lands where some of the state's worst environmental violations have been documented. The biggest concerns with illegal marijuana grows are water diversions, pesticide use, poaching, pollution and habitat destruction.

Today, CDFW focuses on illegal grows found on both private and public lands and uses a variety of tools when prioritizing enforcement efforts.

For illegal marijuana grows on private property, CDFW usually focuses on sites having the most environmental damage and areas with a history of illegal cultivation.

Parcels near sensitive watersheds and areas with threatened or endangered species are usually a big priority. Before a parcel is targeted for a search warrant, a thorough records check is conducted with CalCannabis and the county to verify what steps may or may not have been taken to obtain a commercial cannabis license.

During an enforcement action on private land, wildlife officers will document any state law violations and may eradicate any illegal plants. CDFW science staff will document environmental violations. From there, the case may be referred to the county District Attorney's office or state Attorney General's Office for prosecution. CDFW may also file a complaint for civil penalties. It's up to the property owner to remediate the damage to the land. County officials may also step in and require a clean-up depending on the circumstances.

With public land marijuana grows (federal, state or county property), CDFW works with several allied agencies to determine what resources are available. Public land grows are a huge safety risk on properties that can be accessed by CDFW staff or the public. Illegal grows are usually guarded by armed individuals who will do what they feel is necessary to protect the plants.

Many grows are also found in once-secluded, pristine areas, now decimated by huge amounts of garbage, land clearing and banned pesticides. Many of California's threatened and endangered species are victims of this egregious behavior.

Remediation efforts to restore the land are handled by various government agencies which can take days or weeks to complete and cost thousands of taxpayer dollars.

That said, it's a huge task to combat illegal grows. CDFW takes immense pride on the efforts to protect California's fish and wildlife, and the habitats they depend upon to live and thrive.

If you have a question for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . While they cannot answer every question, they will answer a few in each column.