The La Honda Voice

Sept. 18th is Coastal Cleanup Day - Be the Cigarette Butt Champion!

San Gregorio Environmental Resource Center (SGERC) invites you to join us at San Gregorio State Beach on Coastal Cleanup Day, September 18th from 9:00 - 12:00.  This is an annual event sponsored by the California Coastal Commission, San Mateo County Environmental Health, Ocean Conservancy and many others. Each year thousands of pounds of trash and recyclables are removed from our beaches, parks, schools, and neighborhoods by volunteers like you.

This will be an outdoor event, but since we’re still in COVID times, we’ll be taking extra precautions to keep everyone safe and distant. Please bring masks, gloves, sturdy shoes, sunscreen and layered clothing as the weather can be unpredictable. We encourage the use of reusable materials for the event, such as buckets, water bottles, and sturdy gloves, but can provide bags and gloves if needed. We’ll have plenty of water to keep you hydrated and hand cleaner and sanitizer.

Volunteers are encouraged to work in pairs with one picking up trash while the other records the data. This record allows the state to know how best to allocate resources to fight pollution in our streams and oceans. In the past, items of concern have been Styrofoam and plastics. This year the focus will be on tobacco products, with prizes for collecting the most cigarette butts or other tobacco products. We’ll also have info about the safe consumption of fish for people of all ages, the current Seafood Watch for the West Coast, and how to safely dispose of household hazardous waste. Parking is free for volunteers, and young people are welcome!

SGERC’s activities include a monthly stream monitoring program in the watershed (now in its 20th year), a Watershed Education Program with our elementary schools, litter removal on Hwy. 84, and pampas/jubata grass removal throughout La Honda and San Gregorio.

If you're interested in participating in any of these projects, or know of ways to further enhance the health of our beautiful watershed, please send an email to Neil Panton at [email protected]

We look forward to seeing you at the beach!

More info at:

www.sgerc.org

https://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/ccd/cleanup/ - /map

Know Your Zone

The Zonehaven Evacuation Platform

Know Your Zone – myzone.zonehaven.com

I attended a recent presentation of the Zonehaven Evacuation Platform used in the August CZU fires as well as the recent Debris Flow advisories and evacuations in the South Coast burn areas. The information was presented by CalFire Deputy Chief Jonathan Cox and Charlie Crocker, CEO of Zonehaven.

Two years ago, fire chiefs in San Mateo County agreed they needed to do something to reduce the time between a call for evacuation and when the public becoming notified or started moving. In consultation with other counties and jurisdictions, they found Charlie Crocker and Zonehaven. Fires have been getting worse in recent years, and evacuation planning was in need of revisions because of how fast and differently these fires are behaving. Traffic congestion emerged as one of the most critical aspects of evacuations.

Previous evacuation decisions were made ad-hoc standing around maps, but the information didn’t translate well to the public and didn’t get out quickly. They went to the Board of Supervisors for funding to prove the viability of the Zonehaven platform. The goal was to automate the process of getting information out through all channels immediately once a decision has been made. Key components for the software were: agency coordination, a single real-time map, compatibility with existing communications channels, input area for local knowledge, speed, and community accessibility.

The result was to put all of San Mateo County into zones. Zones are managed by first responders as to number of people, where they can travel, traffic congestion, etc., can print plans for firefighters and first responders, and status can be changed and communicated to the public.

• “Smart” Zones are scaled to handle a certain amount of population based on ingress/egress, number of structures, type of fuel, and risks in the region.
• Supports collaboration with other counties and jurisdictions.
• Single Source of Truth: the same information is put into news releases, Twitter, WAZE, community.zonehaven.com, Google, firefighters managing assets in the field and others.
• Allows first responders to prepare and build pre-plans, and understand the unique aspects of each individual zone. They can use it to train, run fire simulations, and during an actual event change information regarding shelters, road conditions, etc. The information is immediately available through a variety of channels.
• Continuing outreach to the community: Billboards, Know Your Zone (write it down!).

There are two versions of the application, one for first responders, the other for the public. The public will not see all the information available to first responders. First responders can see what’s going on in other counties – how they are dealing with traffic control points, what’s their progress, and how to prepare to support them.

For First Responders: Information is available about schools, hospitals, temporary evacuation points, traffic control points, and more. The most current information can be made public to reduce confusion about old data. They can look at individual zones or combine zones to get a bigger picture of traffic congestion for example. Pre-plans with special considerations and other important info can be downloaded as a pdf to their phones or other devices. Work that used to be done with phone calls and someone sitting at a desk can now be done in the field.

For the Public: Zones are color coded as to normal, advisory, evacuation warning or order, shelter-in-place, or clear to repopulate. Temporary Evacuation Points are indicated with a flag. The platform was developed for San Mateo County, but is now providing similar support to Marin, Sonoma, Alameda, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, and other counties.

Know Your CEAP

“Shake hands before the disaster, so you don’t have to point fingers after the disaster” (Anonymous)

CEAP (Coastside Emergency Action Program) is a disaster preparedness group for the entire San Mateo coast begun in 2005. Knowing that in the event of a disaster we need to be prepared to fend for ourselves for several days, Charise Hale McHugh, then CEO of the Half Moon Bay Coastside Chamber of Commerce & Visitors’ Bureau got everyone to the table. First responders, city and county officials, businesses, the harbor and airport, animal groups, ham radio operators, Red Cross, medical staff, schools, senior centers, and more were welcomed and started meeting monthly. The county and CalFire provided training and classes. The group moved forward and earned recognition with their unique model. 

Besides the obvious advantage of “shaking hands” with leaders and representatives in our community, a huge asset of CEAP is their maintenance of a Resource List. This list was compiled by Charise and the Chamber of Commerce to document resources available to the community as well as the groups and agencies ready to provide them. The list is continually updated.

Each meeting includes a guest speaker and updates from member organizations and agencies. This gives everyone a chance to hear what each group is currently doing or has done, and allows for sharing of press releases, flyers, and other important information to the broader community. It also encourages collaboration among the groups and brings specific skills and resources to the others. Joint exercises and drills are also discussed and planned.

Following the August CZU lightning complex fires, CEAP members shared quick “debriefs” of how their organization reacted to the incident. As you might imagine, many groups were involved up and down the coast including Large Animal Evac, Red Cross shelter operations, ham radio operators, CERT volunteers (Community Emergency Response Teams), not to mention Fire and County Sheriffs. These debriefs were consistent in several ways: preparedness paid off, teamwork across organizations worked seamlessly, the ability to maintain communications via ham radio was essential, and (editors comment) we have incredible people here in our communities!!

Here is a partial list of agencies and organizations represented at meetings to discuss their emergency plans and preparedness: the City of Half Moon Bay, Coastside Fire Protection District, San Mateo Office of Emergency Services (OES), La Honda Fire Brigade, Coastside Fire, American Red Cross, San Mateo County Harbor District, the Half Moon Bay Coastside Chamber of Commerce, Puente de la Costa Sur, Coastside and Southcoast CERT, Amateur Radio groups from Half Moon Bay and La Honda, Large Animal Evacuation Group, Coastside Hope, Senior Coastsiders, Disaster Airlift Response Team at Half Moon Bay Airport, the Peninsula Humane Society, Pescadero Municipal Advisory Council, and many more.

If you’re interested in more information or in joining Coastside Emergency Action Program Committee, please contact [email protected].

The Pampas Fighters are Back

After a nearly three year hiatus, our team of intrepid volunteers gathered in Cuesta La Honda to tackle new and old pampas/jubata grass plants. Evidence of the heroic work this group has done is the absence of hundreds of plants along Highway 84, Stage Rd and in Cuesta. Not that plants haven’t crept up here and there, but with many people alert to the baby plants as they sprout up, they are quickly removed. There are still a number of plants on private property that continue to bloom, but we have managed to control the roadways and public areas.

This year it was time to revisit La Honda proper, and the several hotspots known to us from previous years. A scouting trip was planned to take inventory and develop a game plan. We re-affirmed our permission to remove or control plants on Guild property and spoke with several landowners for their permission. Though this grass is considered a beautiful ornamental by many (myself included), there are other varieties available that are not invasive and equally beautiful. Workdays were scheduled for mid-October and early November.

This was a little late in the season to tackle the plants as seeds were already starting to fly off and disperse. Careful handling of the flowers kept distribution to a minimum as the plumes were bagged. The rest of the foliage was trimmed with a hedge trimmer and pick-axes were used to dig up and overturn the shallow root ball.

More than 30 plants were removed, and plumes removed from half a dozen more. Some plants are so large and difficult to reach it can be a multi-year project to remove them entirely. One strategy is to control the seeds each year in the fall until the plants either die or are removed. Another strategy is to return to the plants every month or two and keep all new growth trimmed away. The plants eventually give up. This is particularly effective on steep slopes and areas where erosion is an issue and removal of the plants could cause problems. The plants don’t flower, but the roots remain in the soil holding things together.

If you are interested in joining us on future adventures, or would like info about non-invasive ornamental grasses, please contact Neil Panton at (650) 726-2499 or [email protected].

“San Gregorio Starfish” – our group cleanup name

It’s a little incongruous to think about litter removal in the midst of a pandemic following a frightening wildfire evacuation, but it might bring a little normalcy back to your life. As the air quality continues to improve, it might be good to get outdoors and participate in this year’s “any day in September” cleanup event. Please monitor AirNow or PurpleAir before going outside for extended periods. See links below.

Rather than gather in a large group, cleanup will be all of September and utilize the CleanSwell app to log and submit data. Clean up around your house, your neighborhood, or a nearby trail or park. Pretty simple. It’s a cool app, and can be used all year long to help the Ocean Conservancy track trends in litter. The information helps their efforts to bring available resources and funding to the most critical areas.

Check out the short video for Coastal Cleanup 2020 - https://youtu.be/-Zg7AfmIesI, and register with me (your local team captain). Search for Coastal Cleanup Day at smchealth.org, or use the link here: https://www.smchealth.org/general-information/coastal-cleanup-day

Next, download the CleanSwell app to get started. It's fun and easy to use. Create an account and use the group name “San Gregorio Starfish” to keep our data together in the database. When done with your cleanup, be sure to hit “Submit” so the data will be uploaded to the Ocean Conservancy. You do not need to have wifi or cell connection at the time, the data will be uploaded automatically once you’re within wifi or cell range.

It’s easiest to go out in pairs – one person picking up litter, the other doing the logging. It’s a great activity for families. If you‘d like help with the CleanSwell app or need supplies or trash pickup, contact me: Neil Panton; [email protected] or by phone (650) 726-2499.

https://www.airnow.gov/?city=La%20Honda&state=CA&country=USA

https://www.purpleair.com/map?opt=1/mAQI/a10/cC0&select=4343#11.37/37.3114/-122.2393

Local Cleanup in September

Safe and Local

September marks the 36th annual California Coastal Cleanup. This year, rather than meeting up at public events throughout the state on a single date, cleanups will happen throughout the month. Clean up any day and time that works for you.

Cleanups will be self-guided and close to home. Local parks, shores, creeks, streets, sidewalks, drainage areas, natural areas, and trails are good choices. Participants must practice physical distancing and strictly follow both local ordinances and the set of guidelines provided on the California Coastal Commission website. Safety first! 

Although the cleanup model will be different in 2020, it will still be an effective, educational, community-building event. Trash within our neighborhoods will become the trash polluting our coast once the rains come.

CleanSwell App and Data Keeping

Download CleanSwell Here

We need your help to record your participation and your diligence to collect data on all litter you remove. Data will be collected primarily through the CleanSwell app for smartphones, or you can download the paper data card: English/Spanish. Please count every piece of trash you collect! Reporting thoroughly and accurately will help put together a more complete picture of Coastal Cleanup 2020. For help downloading or using the CleanSwell app, contact our local coordinator, Neil Panton.

Connecting with your Coordinator

Neil Panton will be your Local Coordinator and your contact for learning about local conditions and how to report results. Neil can help you with the CleanSwell app, arrangements for any supplies you may need (trash bags, gloves, etc.), and retrieval of trash in case you collect too much to handle in your regular trash. He may also have suggestions for some hotspots that need attention. Contact Neil at [email protected]  or call (650) 726-2499.

Since the CleanSwell app is a new addition this year, a primer on its use will be in next month’s Voice. It’s very handy and easy to use and can be used all year long whenever you do a cleanup!

Beach Cleanup July 13th in San Gregorio

Join us for beach cleanup at San Gregorio State Beach Saturday, July 13th from 9-11am. Bring your own bucket and gloves, or we can provide if you prefer. Dressing in layers is recommended, and bring sturdy shoes or rubber boots. Everyone who participates in this event leaves with a big smile on their face. It's great for young and old. Parking is free for all volunteers. Help keep our beach beautiful!!

 

And She’s Off!

Jane's Gone AWOL

By Karen Christian

On Friday, May 24, the “A Team”, the “Creme de la Creme” as Jane calls them, gathered to celebrate the culmination of months of planning and to send Jane Sullivan on her way to take the American Walk of Life.

Who are these people and what were they thinking?

As a result of a New Year’s Day chat, Will Johnson, Adda Quinn, Karin Bird, Trudy Schoneman, Bill Bishop, Lisa Chupity, Karen & Rob Christian, Neil & MaryPanton were brought together by Jane to help execute her goal of walking across America. From our very first meeting, there was no doubt this goal was going to become a reality. The perfect storm was created by combining Jane’s enthusiasm and passion with friends who were dedicated to working out the details.

Hard at work for the past year, the A Team has been gathering data and information, researching places to stay, oddities to see and people to meet as Jane makes her way across America. Each of us with our selected states searched high and low for the best coffee shops, the diveyest dive bars and the most unique American experiences we could find. We’ve had meetings about safety, communication, travel logistics, insurance and packing lists. We’ve met with the architects of the American Discovery Trail and contacted authorities on all sorts of subjects.  And now she’s on her way.

After treating us all to a full English breakfast, Jane and Tim headed off in their RV, the Mary Joyce. They will take 10 days heading east to her starting point in Lewes, Delaware. From there, on June 3, she begins the adventure walking and biking across the United States.  Members of the A Team, family and friends will be hopping on and off the trail to meet up with Jane on her journey, sharing the fitness challenge and helping drive the Mary Joyce. This trip is sure to be full of amazing experiences for everyone involved, particularly for the Americans that encounter Jane along the way!

From a New Year’s goal to the realization of a dream - Jane’s Gone AWOL!

Keep track of her progress on Instagram (janesgoneawol) and You Tube (Jane Sullivan).

San Gregorio Beach Cleanup Sat. April 27th

Saturday, April 27th from 9am-12 will be a cleanup day at San Gregorio State Beach. Join your friends and neighbors, bring your kids, and play a part in keeping our beautiful area beautiful! Parking is free for volunteers, and SGERC (San Gregorio Environmental Resource Center) will sort all the trash and recyclables. Bring re-usable buckets and gloves, dress in layers and bring sunglasses and sunscreen just in case! We'll have extra garbage bags and gloves for anyone who needs them.

This is always a fun event and provides instant gratification.  SGERC, in partnership with State Parks, will hold cleanup events each year in May, July and September as part of the Adopt-A-Beach program. We look forward to seeing you there!

La Hondans Support “Jane Goes AWOL”

by Adda Quinn

In the last month’s Voice, Neil Panton interviewed Jane Sullivan about her upcoming great adventure walking, biking, and driving across the US to inspire, motivate and encourage others to live life to the fullest.  A number of La Honda residents have volunteered to help her realize this dream.

JANE AND TIM

Tim and Jane Sullivan will be driving East in their rig, the Mary Joyce, across country the end of May, following portions of the American Discovery Trail (ADT) that she will be using on her trip returning West. Her trip starts in Delaware where local La Hondans Karin Bird and Will Johnson join her.

JANE AND KARIN, THE LA HONDETTES

Karin is a friend who wants to bike ride with Jane part of the journey and who undertook all of the planning for the first two states:  Delaware and Maryland. You probably know these friendly ladies as the La Hondettes, who perform with our local bands. 

WILL JOHNSON

Will Johnson is a local La Honda fixture frequently found grazing on bagels and coffee at the village market when he’s not knee deep in ranch chores or playing with his ham radios. He is one of the instigators of Jane’s decision to make her epic trip, along with Neil Panton.  Both gentlemen said they would help her with logistics if she would make the trek. Will is the designated driver for both Delaware and Maryland.

Will Johnson and Adda Quinn were the planners for the next two states, West Virginia and Ohio.  Mary Joyce will be driven across West Virginia by Jane’s brother Bill. Her nephew Reuben will accompany Jane on the trails in West Virginia.  We want Jane to have as much company while on the trails as possible for safety sake. There are two or three states for which we still need hiker/bikers and drivers.  We have potential driver volunteers for Ohio but nothing confirmed yet, and hoping to find some hiker/bikers for this scenic leg of the trip.

If you have not traveled much, you would be in for a treat if you can join Jane for portions of her odyssey. The planning has been a trip in and of itself. We are all learning so much about our country.  It has really been an educational experience.  Below follows some of the highlights Jane will be seeing in her first four states:

Delaware June 3-6, 2019

The journey begins after we rendezvous on June 3^rd in Lewes Delaware, the farthest Eastern point of the American Discovery Trail.  The following morning, Jane will walk about 15 miles to Milton, Delaware. Milton is an important ship building town first settled in 1675 by English colonists.  As it turns out the local pub in Milton has Karaoke on Tuesdays so watch out Milton… the La Hondettes are coming to town. Day 3 is an 18 milewalk to Bridgeville, Delaware.  That evening they will drive to Stevensville on Kent Island to stay at the home of acquaintances.  Stevensville is another town of historical note with over 100 historical structures in the downtown area.  The last day they will head into Washington DC to spend a couple days touring the nation’s capital.

Maryland June 7-14, 2019

After DC, Jane heads to the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, also known as the C&O Canal or the Grand Old Ditch.  It operated from 1831 to 1924 along the Potomac River and runs about 185 miles to West Virginia.  The canal served as the main form of transport in the area providing food, mail, building materials, booze… you name it, to the towns along the way. 74 locks were built to accommodate changes inelevation.  The canal and towns along the way have a distinctly European character.  Jane and Karin will be riding bikes along the path adjacent to the canal for about a week before they reach West Virginia.

West Virginia June 15-21, 2019

On the Allegheny Front, Jane will be in the Monongahela National Forest, 3500-4000’ where
snow might fall any day of the year. This segment is the highest elevation that the Discovery Trail will reach east of the Rockies.  Here she will find out why West Virginia is called the Mountain State. Beautiful waterfalls, lakes, canyons, and forests to be explored. It also has Abe Lincoln’s mom’s homestead to visit!

They will then drive to Wolf Summit where they will bike the next 60 miles to Walker. The Discovery Trail follows the North Bend Rail-Trail, a National Recreation Trail through one mountain valley after another, with 10 tunnels and 37 trestles. Along the route are cottage industries of hand blown glass, old asphalt mines which produced material for many of Europe’s first paved roads, and nice parks. They drive to Parkersburg at the Ohio border for a side trip to the Blennerhasset Island Historical State Park to visit the mansion and to take a stern-wheeler river boat ride.

Ohio June 22-30, 2019

The Discovery Trail route is in the southern part of the state which has spectacular scenic attractions. In 1803, when Ohio was the first state to be carved out of the Northwest Territory, first settlers discovered that 95% of the land was covered in hardwood forest.  Much of the area the Discovery Trail passes through is still heavily wooded.  The Appalachian Plateau in eastern Ohio has narrow valleys, steep hills and many caves. The Hocking Hills State Park alone sounds like a 2-3 day stay for its activities and natural beauty.  There are parks about every 30 miles on the route with lakes and hiking.

Heading south and west from there are numerous forest parks in the Little Smokey Mountains to be explored.  The Discovery Trail will be driven the last leg to Cincinnati where the trail crosses into Indiana.  The Indiana leg is being managed by La Hondans Bill Bishop and Trudy Schoneman from whom you will be hearing in the future, along with other La Honda volunteers for this project.

JANE SULLIVAN. AS HERSELF

If you want to be part of this great adventure, email [email protected].  Follow Jane on Instagram @JanesGoneAWOL; Facebook at JanesGoneAwol and YouTube: Jane Sullivan Janes Gone A.W.O.L..  Even if you are unable to join Jane on any part of the cross-country venture, we hope you will join us all August 31, 2019, on the very final leg of the trip when we will be hiking from Sears Ranch Road down into La Honda.  Hold that date and let’s make it a big party in town! Enjoy being part of Jane’s epic odyssey!