Happy Trails

This morning was a bitter-sweet moment as guest gathered live in the KHUM studio for one last Happy Trails Episode. Emily Sinkhorn, my longest running co-host was also joined by Carol Vander Meer, Bruce Silvey, and Roger James. We talked about how much progress our trails sytem has had in the 12 years that Happy Trails has been a weekly feature on my show. We also looked ahead and what progress we can expect in the near future. This will be my final week on KHUM. Friday will be my last day. As I get ready to file my final paperwork with the county to qualify for the March 3rd ballot as I run for the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors, District 1. And although the election isn't until March, FCC equal time rules will keep me off the air. More info on the next phase of my life go to cliff4supervisor.com

This morning Stevie Luther and I spoke with Rees Hughes about current and future opportunities with the Volunteer Trail Steward program. For 10 years now Volunteer Trail Stewards have made it possible for the county and municipalities to expand our trail system. Maintenance and upkeep is always a concern, but volunteers have kept costs so low expansion is possible. More opportunities available at humtrails.org.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Ben Morehead of the Trinidad Coastal Land Trust and Jen Buck of Cal Trans about their collaborative work with the RCAA to get this one mile of trail linking the Hammond Trail to Trinidad and crossing Little River. This is a small but critical piece that will help create the regional trail system we have all dreamt of.

I had the pleasure of talking to Bruce Silvy, board member of the Humboldt Trails Council about how things are proceeding with closure of the NCRA and rail banking the rail corridor between Eureka and Willits. These are necessary steps to be taken before the corridor can be converted into one of the premier rail to trail projects in the country.

This morning Colin Fiske and I spoke with Arcata Community Development Director, David Loya about changes to CEQA and a new VMT (Vehicle Miles Traveled) standard being adopted in 2020. This could positivity effect trail development locally.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Dennis Houghton, Bigfoot Trail Alliance Volunteer Coordinator about this 300+ mile trail through some of the most beautiful wilderness in northern California. Over the summer some big improvements were made so areas that have not been touched in 30 years. We also talked about pending legislation from congressman Jerad Huffman and senator Kamala Harris that would impact this trail and wilderness area.

This morning my co-host Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Terri Klemetson, Redwoods Rural Health Center Facilities Manager about the Redway Community Walk and Observation that will take place tomrrow (Wednesday). Lack of sidewalks and walkways make it very difficult to navigate Redway on foot or on a bike. The community is invited to take part in this observation and planing activity. It will be at the Mateel Community Center from 11:30AM till 2:30PM. The walk and observation will take place from 12noon till around 1:15pm.

This morning Colin Fisk and I talked with Connor McGuigan about Humboldt Counties Climate Action Planning and how active transportation and trails are part of a way of Humboldt County reducing it's CO2 emissions now and into the future.

This morning Carol Vandermeer and I spoke with Hank Seemann, Deputy Director of Humboldt County Public Works about trail projects the county is working on. We talked extensively about the Humboldt Bay Trail, it's time table, and how it is getting woven into the the county's plans to deal with sea level rise. We also talked a lot about developments in the McKay Community Forest including adaptation to public input and the time table.

This morning Natalie Arroyo and I spoke with Sage Saatdjian, bike mechanic extraordinaire about their experience with QBP Woman's Bike Mechanic Training and how meaningful it was. Sage is the co-owner of Moon Cycles in Arcata.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Steve Pearl, the Mad River Enduro Race Director and Redwood Coast Association board member about this weekend's Mad River Enduro in Blue Lake. The event sold out in 4 hours to racers. The event is free and open to the public to watch. More info at redwoodcoastmtb.org.

This morning Colin Fisk and I spoke with Brian Pike and Juliannah Harris for Tri-County Independent Living about clear paths and accommodations for People with Disabilities. We also talked about the upcoming Disability and Senior Resource Expo coming up on September 5th at the Adorni Center from 10am till 3pm

Today Emily and I spoke with the Mendo Maidens about their organization and bike groups around the Mendocino area.

This morning Colin Fiske and I spoke with Mary Burke on the Mckinleyville Trails Coalition and Vice President of the McKinleyville Community Services District. We looked at the "Gateway Project" which looks at the corridor between the northbound 101 offramp to Central Ave. to Anna Sparks Way. This grant was put to Cal Trans Sustainable Communities program in October of 2018. Unfortunately this was not funded. A recent hit and run fatality right in that corridor makes this even more poignant. However, Cal Trans has suggested they come back with a wider proposal encompassing all the ins and outs of Mckinleyville.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Julie Clark, Park Ranger at the Headwaters Forest. A new trail will be having it's grand opening this Saturday from 10am till 2pm. This is the "South Side Trail." To get to it enter from Elk River Road. For more information about the park or the event, you can contact Julie at 825-2300.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn updated us on Safe Routes To School progress in Arcata, The Humboldt Bay Trail, The Eureka Waterfront Trail, and the Humboldt Bay Trail Fund which is now up over $300,000.00 for maintenance and upkeep.

This morning Colin Fisk and I spoke with Kate Beck, the Program Lead at Street Story in Berkley. This is an interactive website that is gathering information on areas that have had accidents and near misses to help both regular folks and municipalities gather data to improve safety at streetstory.berkeley.edu.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Fortuna City Manager, Merritt Perry about some of the trail project happening in and around the friendly city.

This morning Michael Kauffamnn and I spoke with Ian Nelson of the Pacific Crest Trail Association. The PCTA is in charge of managing this trail that goes from the Mexican border to the Canadian border. More info on this amazing national treasure at pcta.org.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Jenny Weiss, Humboldt County Safe Routes to School Task Force Coordinator and Projects Coordinator at RCAA.

The City of Eureka is planning for a new trail that connects the Sequoia Park Zoo with Tydd Street, in an effort to create better paths for non-motorized means of transportation. This morning Carole Vander Meer and I spoke with Eureka's Deputy Director of Public Works, Jessie Willor, about how the City of Eureka is working to create better paths for students to be able to walk through the city and to create a loop trail to connect with the Eureka Waterfront Trail.

This morning I spoke with Emily Sinkhorn about many things. We talked a lot about Bike Month, which is going on now. A lot more info and a calendar of events can be found at humboldtbikemonth.org. Annie & Mary Trail outreach is happing today with exciting plans for Northtown Arcata. We also spent some time recapping the events of the Trails Summit which took place on May 4th at HSU.

This morning I spoke with Happy Trails Co-Host, Michael Kauffmann about several opportunities folks will have this summer to help and and restore trails along the 300+ mile long Bigfoot Trail. More info at bigfoottrail.org. We started off our conversation this morning with a recap of Saturday's Trail Summit that took place at HSU.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Mark Mueller about Bike Month Humboldt and the Humboldt Bike Challenge. There are loads of events to participate in at bikemonthhumboldt.org. Also this Saturday from 9:30am till 12:30pm it's the Humboldt Trails Summit, at the Kate Buchanan Room at HSU. You will hear from Hank Seemann, and Senator Mike McGuire.

This morning Colin Fiske and I spoke with Oona Smith, Senior Planner at HCAOG about her regular commute between Arcata and Eureka. She bikes from her home in Arcata and then takes advantage of the bike lockers Humboldt Transit in Arcata, hops on the bus to Eureka and walks to bocks to HCAOG. However, for those of you who want to take your bikes with you, the busses are equipped with bike racks for bike/bus communing over longer distances.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Stephanie Tidwell, Executive Director of Friends of the Eel, about the final approval of the Settlement agreement with NCRA and Friends of the Eel and Californians for Alternatives to Toxics. This has made it possible to proceed with the implementation of SB1029 to create the Great Redwood Trail. Stephanie recently rafted a section of the eel River Canyon that may someday become part of the Great Redwood Trail. We also talked about the Humboldt Trails Summit on May 4, 9:30-12:30 which will include a Trails Showcase, Local updates and a Town Hall meeting with State Senator McGuire on the Great Redwood Trail. This will take place at the Kate Buchanan room at HSU.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Jaime and Areli Cupp about the upcoming Bike & Health Fair on Sunday at Fortuna Fireman's Pavilion in Rohner Park from 1:30 - 4:30pm. Jaime grew up in LA. Now in Fresno teaches kids about biking and working on their own gear to aid in diabetes prevention. He will be the guest speaker at the Bike & Health Fair.

This morning it was my pleasure to talk with Gabe Howe of the Siskiyou Mountain Club. They deal with maintaining and leading tours of about 300 miles of trails in South West Oregon and North West California. I spoke with Gabe this morning from his home in Ashland Oregon. Check out all that is going on at their website, siskiyoumountainclub.org

This morning our newest Happy Trails Co-Host, Colin Fiske and I spoke with Humboldt County Supervisor, Mike Wilson about his thoughts on personal transportation, public transportation, the future of public transportation and our local trails.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Stacy Becker about the value of Trail Stewards for our local trail system. Stacy was involved from the very beginning of the trail stewards program and had a lot to share about it. We also talked about the upcoming Trails Summit coming up on Saturday, May 4th at the Kate Buchanan room at HSU.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Sean Swanson with the River Life Foundation about a new trail that a big labor of love got made in the Fortuna Area called the Dennis Wendt Memorial Trail.

This morning Michael Kauffmann and I spoke with Ryan Henson of CalWild all the work they do in wilderness preservation. Ryan was part one of the people instrumental in helping to craft a Land Conservation Bill that passed both the House and Senate with an overwhelming bipartisan majority. In a time of fractured government, that in and of itself is a major victory.

Today we talked with a group of local youth representatives who traveled to New York to attend the Youth Bike Summit. Today they talked about their experience and their thoughts on biking and future of trails here in Humboldt County.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Caryl Hart who is on the board of the NCRA (North Coast Railroad Authority). Caryl is a recent appointee to the board who is tasked with aiding in the transition to from rail roads to this new 300 mile trail that has been mandated between Humboldt Bay and San Fransisco Bay.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Ingrid Kosek of Friends of the Annie & Mary Rail Trail. We spoke about their big fundraiser happening this weekend in Blue Lake called the Mad Scramble. This is a Cyclecross event taking place in the Powers Creek District off Taylor and Mondo Ways staging at Jewell Distillery on Saturday. The first race is at 11am. There will be 2 timed races: 30 minutes and 60 minute, and 2 kids races will take place between the races. Registration opens this Friday at 4pm at Mad River Brewing Company in Blue Lake. You can also register at the event starting at 9am. We also talked about the fact that funding for the final 4 miles of the Humboldt Bay Trail have been approved. Construction is expected to begin in 2021.

This morning Michael Kauffmann and I spoke with Chris Valle-Riestra, a dedicated steward and volunteer for the Six Rivers National Forest were he manages man trails.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Julie Neander, City of Arcata Deputy Director of Environmental Services as we talked about the Annie & Mary Trail Connectivity Project. To that end the City of Arcata invites community input on the Annie & Mary Trail to improve walking and biking connections through northeast Arcata. Attend a workshop Monday, February 4th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the D Street Community Center.

This morning Carole Vander Meer and I spoke with Neil Davis, director of Walk & Bike Mendocino. Like Humboldt County, they too were awarded funds from Active Transportation funds for this year to work projects. Willits and Ukiah both have trails through their towns and look to be part of the Great Redwood Trail, as we do here in Humboldt.

The first Happy Trails Show of 2019 was filled with Very Exciting News! Over the holiday break, the state announced the staff recommendations for projects to be funded by Active Transportation Funds. The souther portion of the Humboldt Bay Trail, commonly known as "The Final Four," was 5th on the list, with over 13 million dollars to complete the Humboldt Bay Trail. This is the section between Bracut and Eureka. The staff recommendations are expected to be ratified by the end of this month. If all goes acording to plan, construction could begin by early 2021.

This morning, Carole Vander Meer and I talk with Julie Clark , Ranger at the Headwaters Reserve about the trail through the Headwaters that interprets the history of the Town of Falk. She will be at Booklegger to sign copies of her new book, Falk: Company Lumber Town of the American West. Once a thriving community of 400 people, Falk was eventually abandoned, and became a ghost town. Traces of the town remain at Headwaters. The 7,472-acre Headwaters Forest Reserve (Reserve) was established in 1999 after a decade-long grassroots effort to protect the world’s last unprotected, intact, old-growth redwood forest ecosystem. There are two public trails in the Reserve. The Elk River Trail winds along the South Fork Elk River for 3 miles, followed by a 2-mile ascent to a short loop through an old-growth redwood forest. Interpretive signs along the first mile of trail describe the history of Falk, the historic company mill town once located along this section of trail.

Today Emily Sinkhorn and I speak with Kathleen Sonn of Mountain Community and Culture about getting Measure Z funds to help improve walkability and safety of Willow Creek.

This morning Michael Kauffmann and I talked about some wonderful hikes to be had here locally during the rainy season. Our region is considered a Temperate Rainforest with the largest amount of biomass on the planet. Our area also supports some of the most ancient forms of plant life you can find on earth.

This morning Roger James and I spoke with Ben Morehead, the Executive Director of the Trinidad Coastal Land Trust. They have been working diligently with Green Dimond to purchase the land to create the Strawberry Rock Redwood Forest Trail. Their work has also included work to bridge the gap in the California Coastal Trail that would link the Hammond Trail with Trinidad, called the Little River Trail.

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with Monica Bueno. The newly installed coordinator of all the volunteer trail steward coordinators. Lately there has been an explosion of trail development with the newly completed Eureka Waterfront Trail, the first half of the Bay Trail and new creation of the Great Redwood Trail Authority, a more coordinated effort was needed to head the efforts of the hundreds of volunteers.

This morning, my co-host, Emily Sinkhorn and had bunch of folks in the studio this morning to help promote an upcoming screening of the film "Blood Road," November 29th at the Arcata Theater Lounge to benefit Humboldt Composite High School Mountain Bike Team and the local Veteran's Hotline. This fill chronicles the bike journey of Rebecca Rusch along the entire 1200 miles of the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Vietnam. Rusch's father was a fighter pilot and was shot down in 1971. Her journey is to try and find her father's crash site. Joining me in the studio are Sean Robertson, Johnny Calkins, Meigan Butler, Tommy Robinson, and of course Emily Sinkhorn.

This morning Roger James and I spoke with Dennis Houghton, trail advocate and formerly with the City of Arcata. He will be giving a talk on The Art and Science of Sustainable Trail Building at about 6:30pm on Thursday, November 8th. However, there will be a free Fish Taco Dinner before hand at 5pm. It all takes place at the D Street Community Center in Arcata.

This morning Michael Kauffmann and I spoke with Deborah Zeirten from Save The Redwoods League. The organization is one of the oldest conservation groups in the country and this year is celebrating its centennial. Deborah is in charge of education, focusing on grades 6-12. SRL organizes field trips to the redwoods and takes care of the transportation. Educations who want to take advantage of this should email Deborah at [email protected].

This morning Carol Vander Meer and I spoke with 5th District Supervisor Elect, Steven Madrone. He has a long history of trail work dating back to the 80s with Annie and Mary, rail banking and the Hammond Trail. We got his perspective on current trail project, Senator McGuire's bill to create the Great Redwood trail, and other future projects.

This morning Carol Vandermeer and I talked with Rees Hughs, trail advocate and author of "Hiking Humboldt, Volume 2." We looked at some of the choice spots in Humboldt County that are great for a Fall Hike.

This morning Emily Sinkhorn and I spoke with Brian Gerving, City of Eureka Public Works Director about Eureka's Measure "I", which would add 1/4 of a cent to the sales tax for the next 20 years. The money could only be used for road maintenance in the city. We also looked at CA Proposition 6. This would eliminate the gasoline tax imposed by SB1. The elimination of this gas tax would impact road maintenance and trail projects statewide and here in Humboldt County. We strongly urge all voters to read then voter information packet before heading the the polls in November.