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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol reopened the highway at about 5 a.m. Saturday.
The highway was closed late Friday night due to flooding and mudslides.
CHP is still reporting mud and debris at other points along the highway as it follows the Northshore, specifically near Clearlake Oaks.
Friday's heavy rains triggered the flooding and slide activity.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff reported Friday that James Booth, Michael Johnson and Michael Bruins pleaded no contest on Tuesday to possessing more than the legal limit for crappie and received fines totaling more than $7,000.
The legal limit of crappie in Clear Lake is 25 per day and 25 in possession, said Hinchcliff.
He explained that the possession limitation means that no matter how many days a person spends fishing, they can possess no more than 25 crappie at one time.
Hinchcliff said that on Nov. 15, 2007, state Department of Fish and Game Wardens Loren Freeman and Nick Buckler received an anonymous tip of fishermen taking and keeping more than the legal limit of crappie.
Freeman and Buckler set up surveillance in the Kono Tayee area and observed a black bass boat with three men catching crappie, according to Hinchcliff's report.
After the men left the area, the wardens contacted them at Indian Beach Resort, said Hinchcliff, where the three men told Freeman and Buckler the fishing had not been very good.
The wardens found only 12 fish in the boat, which were all the fish the men claimed to possess, said Hinchcliff.
However, Booth, Johnson and Bruins admitted they had fish in a freezer at their motel after the wardens told the men that they could inspect their vehicle and any freezers or ice chests, and that failing to exhibit all fish was an additional crime, Hinchcliff reported.
In all, the two game wardens found a total of 151 crappie, said Hinchcliff.
Hinchcliff said he charged Booth with possessing 18 fish over the limit, Johnson with 18 fish over the limit and Bruins with 40 fish over the limit.
He said the standard fine is $780 for the first fish over the limit and $68 for each additional fish over the limit.
After the men pleaded no contest to the charges Tuesday, Judge Stephen O. Hedstrom fined Johnson and Booth $1,900 each, and Bruins was ordered to pay a fine of $3,447.
Hinchcliff, who oversees the poaching cases that come through the District Attorney's Office, said crappie and deer are the major poaching victims in Lake County.
As or crappie, “The last couple of years we've prosecuted at least half a dozen people for catching over limits,” said Hinchcliff.
In 2003 Hinchcliff prosecuted an out-of-county poacher who was found in possession of 122 crappie over the limit and received thousands in fines.
Crappie used to be seen in more abundance in Clear Lake, said Hinchcliff, who grew up locally and fished for them himself.
“They pretty much disappeared for a long time,” he said, adding that the fish population has its ups and downs.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The California Highway Patrol and Caltrans reported that Highway 20 was closed in both directions from its junction with Highway 53 to Interstate 5 in Williams due to flooding over the roadway and rock slides.
Flooding in the road was reported at early as 5:30 p.m., but it wasn't until nearly five hours later that officials finally closed the roadway, according to the CHP incident logs.
Farther up along the highway, at Hillside Lane at Clearlake Oaks, CHP reported that rocks were falling into the roadway.
CHP's Ukiah Dispatch Center said it was unknown when the highway would reopen.
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LAKE COUNTY – Friday's extremely wet weather is filling up area creeks, saturating the ground and causing trees and utility lines to fall.
The California Highway Patrol reported that area roadways were affected by small rock slides, fallen trees and power lines because of wet conditions Friday.
Caltrans crews responded to rock slides on Highway 20, with county road crews removing large rocks from Soda Bay Road near Clear Lake State Park, CHP reported. County crews also had to respond to remove a tree from the road at Floyd Way and Lakeview in Nice Friday morning.
CHP reported it was snowing up on Bartlett Springs Road at about 3 p.m. Friday, with water crossing the road about four miles up from Highway 20.
Lake County Public Works reported that chains are still required on Elk Mountain and Bartlett Springs Roads. Chain restrictions were lifted in Cobb.
Carson Street in Nice was closed due to a downed tree, Public Works reported.
Pacific Gas and Electric crews removed a downed power line along Highway 20, CHP reported. However, that didn't appear to have caused any power outages, according to Jana Schuering, a spokesperson for PG&E.
As the day progressed into night, officials had to close Highway 20 from its junction with Highway 53 to Interstate 5 in Williams due to flooding and rock slides. Slides were reported on Highway 20 at Paradise Cove and near Clearlake Oaks.
Just after midnight Caltrans had to remove a tree that was blocking the westbound lane of Highway 20 near Cora Drive between Glenhaven and Lucerne, CHP reported.
At Morgan Valley Road at Highway 29 a mudslide was reported at about 1 a.m. Saturday, according to CHP.
The Northshore had steady, heavy rain during most of the day, with Weather Underground reporting that 3.31 inches was recorded at a personal weather station near Clearlake Oaks as of midnight.
Lower Lake also received a lot of rain, according to Weather Underground, with 3.21inches as Friday's total.
Lakeport had a daily total of 1.06 inches, according to Weather Underground.
Rainfall totals were not available for Cobb; however, area resident Roger Kinney reported heavy rainfall and snow melt Friday afternoon.
Shortly before 6 p.m. Friday snow began to fall in Cobb once more, Kinney reported.
Chris Rivera, coordinator of Lake County's Office of Emergency Services, said his office had received reports of swollen creeks due to ground saturation from previous storms.
“We're just advising people to be aware of what they're doing, where they're going,” he said.
Rivera said drivers should not cross roadways covered with water and to be careful around the small creeks and tributaries that are filling up due to the rains.
The US Geological Survey stream gauges showed Kelsey, Putah and Cache Creeks to be running high, with Clear Lake at 3.41 Rumsey, just off its 3.53 Rumsey measurement on the same day last year. A full lake measures 7.56 Rumsey, according to the Lake County Water Resources Division.
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