Outdoors
Friday, January 18, 2019
Flood Watch This Afternoon as More Rain Arrives
Posted By Kimberly Wear on Fri, Jan 18, 2019 at 12:36 PM
The Coast Guard (working without pay due to the government shutdown) this morning authorized the reopening of the Humboldt Bay harbor after heavy surf Thursday prompted the closure.
The waves upwards of 30 feet, which damaged at least eight homes in Shelter Cove, also necessitated the closure of Centerville Road due to hazardous conditions. (If you are wondering why, check out the video below.)
But the rain is sticking around for a while, at least through Sunday, and the Eureka office of the National Weather Service has issued a flood watch beginning at 4 p.m. today through late Saturday for areas of Del Norte and northern Humboldt County.
For the latest information about specific areas of Humboldt, visit the National Weather Service website here and enter a city or ZIP code in the top left-hand corner search box.
The waves upwards of 30 feet, which damaged at least eight homes in Shelter Cove, also necessitated the closure of Centerville Road due to hazardous conditions. (If you are wondering why, check out the video below.)
But the rain is sticking around for a while, at least through Sunday, and the Eureka office of the National Weather Service has issued a flood watch beginning at 4 p.m. today through late Saturday for areas of Del Norte and northern Humboldt County.
For the latest information about specific areas of Humboldt, visit the National Weather Service website here and enter a city or ZIP code in the top left-hand corner search box.
Thursday, January 17, 2019
UPDATE: Waves Upwards of 30 Feet Expected to Pound the Coast
Posted By Kimberly Wear and Kym Kemp on Thu, Jan 17, 2019 at 8:34 AM
UPDATE:
The National Weather Service is reporting: As of 8 am: The Coast Guard has observed 20 foot or greater breaking waves at Noyo, Humboldt, and Crescent City - Safety zones now enforced.
PREVIOUS:
As rain, high winds, as well as thunder and lightning pound the North Coast, local roadways are taking a beating. Though almost all of the main roads are open, there are many minor impacts from ponding on the roads to power lines down. Cheryl Antony from Shelter Cove Fire reminds people, “Slow down. There will be more trees down … and flooding.”
The National Weather Service is warning of hazardous ocean conditions today, with gale force winds early on and waves upwards of 30 feet predicted to pummel the shore. The high seas are expected to impact local crabbers, who were already hit with major delay for the recreational season.
“The Humboldt Bay bar will likely close at some point due to the high waves on Thursday,” according to a NWS post.
The National Weather Service is reporting: As of 8 am: The Coast Guard has observed 20 foot or greater breaking waves at Noyo, Humboldt, and Crescent City - Safety zones now enforced.
PREVIOUS:
As rain, high winds, as well as thunder and lightning pound the North Coast, local roadways are taking a beating. Though almost all of the main roads are open, there are many minor impacts from ponding on the roads to power lines down. Cheryl Antony from Shelter Cove Fire reminds people, “Slow down. There will be more trees down … and flooding.”
The National Weather Service is warning of hazardous ocean conditions today, with gale force winds early on and waves upwards of 30 feet predicted to pummel the shore. The high seas are expected to impact local crabbers, who were already hit with major delay for the recreational season.
“The Humboldt Bay bar will likely close at some point due to the high waves on Thursday,” according to a NWS post.
The large surf prompted the county to close Centerville Road, which is not slated to reopen until Friday morning. Read previous coverage here.As of 8 am: The Coast Guard has observed 20 foot or greater breaking waves at Noyo, Humboldt, and Crescent City - Safety zones now enforced: pic.twitter.com/LOhdDh0z49
— NWS Eureka (@NWSEureka) January 17, 2019
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
Grove of Titans Preservation Project Makes $1M Goal
Posted By Iridian Casarez on Wed, Jan 16, 2019 at 4:21 PM
There will be no more Grove of Titans treasure hunts for hikers seeking the ultimate selfie as Save the Redwoods League reached its fundraising goal of $1 million.
The old growth redwood grove located in the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, which was only “discovered” two decades ago, gained an almost cult-like status in certain circles after being featured in the book The Wild Trees. Soon afterward, people made visiting the ancient landscape their new must-see ticket item and would seek out the grove by walking off-trails, trampling through ferns and fallen logs to get to the Grove of Titans.
“This large increase in daily foot traffic has caused substantial damage to these larger-than-life redwood trees and the fragile forest floor,” a Save the Redwood League release states.
In November, California State Parks, Save the Redwoods League, the National Park Service and the Redwood Parks Conservancy unveiled a three-year project to safeguard the grove by installing a 1,300-foot-long elevated walkway linking the grove to the existing Mill Creek Trail, while also restoring the impacted areas around the grove.
The old growth redwood grove located in the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, which was only “discovered” two decades ago, gained an almost cult-like status in certain circles after being featured in the book The Wild Trees. Soon afterward, people made visiting the ancient landscape their new must-see ticket item and would seek out the grove by walking off-trails, trampling through ferns and fallen logs to get to the Grove of Titans.
“This large increase in daily foot traffic has caused substantial damage to these larger-than-life redwood trees and the fragile forest floor,” a Save the Redwood League release states.
In November, California State Parks, Save the Redwoods League, the National Park Service and the Redwood Parks Conservancy unveiled a three-year project to safeguard the grove by installing a 1,300-foot-long elevated walkway linking the grove to the existing Mill Creek Trail, while also restoring the impacted areas around the grove.
North Coast Night Lights: A Bit of Whimsy
Posted By David Wilson on Wed, Jan 16, 2019 at 12:29 PM
It’s not for everyone to take the world seriously all of the time, though some people probably need to, at least a little bit. But I don’t think I’m one of them. I surmise folks like that need people like me to keep things in balance, so this week I am taking creative license to present a handful of images of our North Coast through the looking glass of whimsy. Or is that mimsy?
Taking an early morning walk in the woods after the first rains, one finds mushrooms in many forms and colors pushing up through the debris on the forest floor. Some are small, some are large. Once while hiking with friends after sunset along the continent’s edge where the forest overlooks the broad Pacific, we spied a mushroom taller than the rest, a veritable tree it was. I joked that we could climb to the top of it, though I’m not really fond of heights. But when my friend Bill from SoCal began scrambling up a tuft of moss leaning on the mushroom’s side, there was nothing for it but to climb up with him. From the mushroom’s summit we watched as the crescent moon set into the ocean. Friends Morgan and Miranda stayed below and spoke in whispers over a glowing orb. I think they kept us safe.
Taking an early morning walk in the woods after the first rains, one finds mushrooms in many forms and colors pushing up through the debris on the forest floor. Some are small, some are large. Once while hiking with friends after sunset along the continent’s edge where the forest overlooks the broad Pacific, we spied a mushroom taller than the rest, a veritable tree it was. I joked that we could climb to the top of it, though I’m not really fond of heights. But when my friend Bill from SoCal began scrambling up a tuft of moss leaning on the mushroom’s side, there was nothing for it but to climb up with him. From the mushroom’s summit we watched as the crescent moon set into the ocean. Friends Morgan and Miranda stayed below and spoke in whispers over a glowing orb. I think they kept us safe.
Tuesday, January 15, 2019
Rescuers Face 'Treacherous Terrain' in Recovery Effort at Wedding Rock
Posted By Kym Kemp on Tue, Jan 15, 2019 at 9:45 AM
The effort to recover the body of a 33-year-old Arcata woman who went missing Sunday night near Wedding Rock in Patrick’s Point State Park took most of Monday and included dozens of people.
“Ground search crews and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter began searching for the hiker again on January 14 at 8 a.m.,” the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office stated in a press release Monday.
Multiple agencies and volunteer organizations struggled in grueling conditions to recover the woman whose body was located about 220 feet down in the bottom of a crevice east of Wedding Rock.
The first night of the search had to be put on hold due to “treacherous terrain, dangerous conditions and darkness,” the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office explained. Late the next morning, the searchers found the woman’s body.
But then it needed to be gently hauled up a narrow crevice.
“It went as smooth as we could possibly hope getting her out before dark,” Kai Ostrow of the Southern Humboldt County Technical Rescue said about the recovery.
“Ground search crews and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter began searching for the hiker again on January 14 at 8 a.m.,” the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office stated in a press release Monday.
Multiple agencies and volunteer organizations struggled in grueling conditions to recover the woman whose body was located about 220 feet down in the bottom of a crevice east of Wedding Rock.
The first night of the search had to be put on hold due to “treacherous terrain, dangerous conditions and darkness,” the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office explained. Late the next morning, the searchers found the woman’s body.
But then it needed to be gently hauled up a narrow crevice.
“It went as smooth as we could possibly hope getting her out before dark,” Kai Ostrow of the Southern Humboldt County Technical Rescue said about the recovery.
Saturday, January 12, 2019
Community / Emergency / Government / Outdoors
Search Suspended for Missing Canadian Hiker
Posted By Kimberly Wear on Sat, Jan 12, 2019 at 4:04 PM
The search for a missing Canadian hiker was suspended this afternoon after four days of what the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office described as “intensive searching by crews from eight different agencies” that was hampered by “bad weather, high tides and large surf.”
Rick Raymond Eastep of Ontario sent a text earlier this week reporting that he was injured while traversing the Lost Coast. A backpack and supplies belonging to the 32 year old were found by rescue crews and appear to have been washed up by the surf, according to the HCSO release today.
The search effort included “helicopters, fixed wing aircraft, ATVs, ocean rescue boats and specialized search and rescue teams, including dog teams, to search over 26 miles of rugged water and coastline, and 16 miles of wilderness trails,” the release states.
“During that search, several other items belonging to Eastep were located. No sign or evidence other than the items previously mentioned have been located as of Jan. 12,” according to the HCSO.
Rick Raymond Eastep of Ontario sent a text earlier this week reporting that he was injured while traversing the Lost Coast. A backpack and supplies belonging to the 32 year old were found by rescue crews and appear to have been washed up by the surf, according to the HCSO release today.
The search effort included “helicopters, fixed wing aircraft, ATVs, ocean rescue boats and specialized search and rescue teams, including dog teams, to search over 26 miles of rugged water and coastline, and 16 miles of wilderness trails,” the release states.
“During that search, several other items belonging to Eastep were located. No sign or evidence other than the items previously mentioned have been located as of Jan. 12,” according to the HCSO.
Thursday, January 10, 2019
UPDATE: Search on for Missing Canadian Hiking the Lost Coast
Posted By Kym Kemp on Thu, Jan 10, 2019 at 10:07 AM
UPDATE:
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office identified the missing Canadian hiker as Rick Raymond Eastep of Ontario.
The 32 year old apparently sent a text on Monday saying he had been injured but the message was not received until late Wednesday.
An extensive ground search by numerous agencies is ongoing.
PREVIOUS:
As last night’s stormy weather threw high waves at the Lost Coast, multiple agencies searched for a missing Canadian hiker. Shelter Cove Fire Department spokesperson Nick Pape said his crew had “been working it since 7:50 last night.”
Shelter Cove Fire, Southern Humboldt Technical Rescue, Cal Fire, the Coast Guard and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office have been searching for a “guy hiking the Lost Coast from out of the area,” according to Pape.
The man was traveling the famous remote trail north of Shelter Cove. According to Cheryl Antony, spokesperson for Shelter Cove Fire, “[The hiker’s] car is in the parking lot. … He texted someone three days ago saying he hurt his back and was at Miller’s Flat.”
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office identified the missing Canadian hiker as Rick Raymond Eastep of Ontario.
The 32 year old apparently sent a text on Monday saying he had been injured but the message was not received until late Wednesday.
An extensive ground search by numerous agencies is ongoing.
PREVIOUS:
As last night’s stormy weather threw high waves at the Lost Coast, multiple agencies searched for a missing Canadian hiker. Shelter Cove Fire Department spokesperson Nick Pape said his crew had “been working it since 7:50 last night.”
Shelter Cove Fire, Southern Humboldt Technical Rescue, Cal Fire, the Coast Guard and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office have been searching for a “guy hiking the Lost Coast from out of the area,” according to Pape.
The man was traveling the famous remote trail north of Shelter Cove. According to Cheryl Antony, spokesperson for Shelter Cove Fire, “[The hiker’s] car is in the parking lot. … He texted someone three days ago saying he hurt his back and was at Miller’s Flat.”
Monday, December 31, 2018
State Staff Recommends Funding Final Leg of Bay Trail
Posted By Thadeus Greenson on Mon, Dec 31, 2018 at 12:01 PM
Folks eagerly awaiting the completion of the Humboldt Bay Trail got a bit of a New Year's gift this morning with the county's announcement that state staff is recommending allocating a $13.3 million grant to finish the last 4-mile stretch of waterfront trail.
The recommendations will come before the California Transportation Commission at its Jan. 31 meeting.
The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors approved an environmental impact report for the project back in July and, assuming the commission follows staff's recommendation to fund the project next month, construction is expected to begin in 2021.
See the full release from the county copied below:
The recommendations will come before the California Transportation Commission at its Jan. 31 meeting.
The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors approved an environmental impact report for the project back in July and, assuming the commission follows staff's recommendation to fund the project next month, construction is expected to begin in 2021.
See the full release from the county copied below:
Thursday, December 27, 2018
North Coast Night Lights: The Changing Milky Way
Posted By David Wilson on Thu, Dec 27, 2018 at 10:58 AM
I think many people take the night sky for granted, not realizing all that is happening in our view. It’s the night sky, what is there to think about, right? When the weather is clear, it is full of stars, there is a moon, which is probably full or else it’s a crescent, and maybe the Milky Way. Oh, and some of those stars could be planets. And, hey look, isn’t that the Big Dipper? But as I have been photographing and observing the heavens, my own appreciation has grown.
Admittedly, I’m no authority on the subject of astronomy. But my nighttime photographs do serve as studies of the sky. And, though, while taking them my thoughts are mostly on the aesthetics of the shot, examining the images I’ve taken over the last year does reveal to me some of the ways our night sky changes through the months and seasons.
In particular, the portion of the Milky Way that we can see shifts dramatically through the year as Earth’s night side — our window to the stars — changes its angle of view night by night in our journey around the sun.
Admittedly, I’m no authority on the subject of astronomy. But my nighttime photographs do serve as studies of the sky. And, though, while taking them my thoughts are mostly on the aesthetics of the shot, examining the images I’ve taken over the last year does reveal to me some of the ways our night sky changes through the months and seasons.
In particular, the portion of the Milky Way that we can see shifts dramatically through the year as Earth’s night side — our window to the stars — changes its angle of view night by night in our journey around the sun.
Wednesday, December 19, 2018
Mysterious Light in the Sky and Smoke Trail Likely a Meteor
Posted By Kym Kemp on Wed, Dec 19, 2018 at 8:11 PM
A mysterious light and what appeared be smoke trailing behind it blazed across the sky around 5:40 p.m. Residents of the North Coast as well as people in Reno, the Bay Area and beyond spotted the bright light followed by a curvy tail of smoke. Several sent us photos and video.
Many at first thought this was the Delta IV rocket Launch that had been scheduled at 5:44 p.m. but it had been cancelled due to a hydrogen leak. News organizations and scientists scrambled to explain what had happened.
Many at first thought this was the Delta IV rocket Launch that had been scheduled at 5:44 p.m. but it had been cancelled due to a hydrogen leak. News organizations and scientists scrambled to explain what had happened.
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