SIMI VOLUNTEER GROUP IMPROVES TRAIL.Byline: Phil O'Donoghue Daily News Staff Writer While most people spent Saturday relaxing, nine hardy Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. residents toiled under the hot sun using only hand tools to build a new section of a parks trail in steep, brushy country near Simi Peak Simi Peak is a peak in Simi Hills. It is the highest peak in Simi Hills. Simi Peak is 2,403 feet (732 m) and is located in eastern Ventura County, California, near the city of Los Angeles, which is just to the east. in Oak Park. Like thousands of similar groups throughout the state, the group, the Rancho Simi Rancho San José de Nuestra Senora de Altagarcia y Simi is one of the land grants in California by the Spanish government. The name derives from Shimiji, the name of the Chumash village here before the Spanish. Trailblazers, was doing the work to celebrate California Trails California Trail route used by pioneers, extending from Wyoming to Sacramento. [Am. Hist.: WB, 21: 440f] See : Wild West Day weekend, when volunteers annually roll up their sleeves and improve parks in their localities. ``We rerouted the trail,'' said Lisa Klockenteger, vice chairwoman of the group, pointing at a quarter-mile section of the China Flat trail that the group was working on. Lisa's mom, Marty Richardson, took a breather and laid down her Polaski, a rake-like tool used by firefighters that is also useful for trail building. ``We did it all by hand because of fire danger (of using power tools),'' said Richardson, wearing the group's emblem, the hummingbird hummingbird, common name for members of the family Trochilidae, small, strictly New World birds, related to the swifts, and found chiefly in the mountains of South America. Hummingbirds vary in size from a 2 1-4-in. . The group formed in 1994 during construction of the Hummingbird Trail in Simi Valley, and adopted the bird as its symbol. Surveying his trusty crew was Michael Kuhn, chairman of the group, which is composed of 150 families. ``They got a lot of work done today,'' said Kuhn. ``We were really surprised as to how far they've gotten.'' Kuhn said the new section was necessary to replace part of the trail that's very steep and dangerous for the many hikers and mountain bikers who use it. In addition, the new section will lead trail users away from houses on nearby King James Court, where some residents had complained about their lack of privacy, members of the work crew said. The two-mile trail begins on Lindero Canyon Road and meanders north up along hump-backed ridges before reaching China Flat, just below the ridge formed by the Simi Hills The Simi Hills are a low rocky mountain range in Southern California. Geography Simi Hills is located on the western edge of the San Fernando Valley, United States. They run east-west and they extend 26 miles east-west, and 7 miles north-south. . Earlier in the morning, Kuhn had led a group of adults along the Hummingbird Trail, teaching them the fundamentals of hiking hiking Walking, often among hills or mountains, as recreational sport. It represents an activity in its own right and also figures in backpacking, camping, hunting, mountaineering, and orienteering. . So he arrived to help the trail-building crew a few hours after they began the work on the trail. Wearing hats, long pants and long-sleeved shirts for protection against the sun and scrub, the crew lugged backpacks full of water bottles and snacks as well as tools, including picks, shears and Polaskis, up the trail at about 8 a.m. and finished just before 2 p.m., tired and thirsty thirst·y adj. thirst·i·er, thirst·i·est 1. Desiring to drink. 2. Arid; parched: thirsty fields. 3. Craving something: thirsty for news. . But more work remains to be done to finish the section and the crew, which ranges in age from the early 30s to the mid-70s, will be back today to continue the back-breaking work, said John Downey John Downey may refer to:
``It's surprising we got as much done as we did today,'' he said. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1-2--Color) (Photo 2 ran in Simi Edition only) Above, John Downey, 72, of Simi Valley, clears away shrubs to divert a trail. His group, the Rancho Simi Trailblazers, also includes, at left, Gary Cremeans, left, Lisa Klockenteger, and Bill Cespedes. Joe Binoya/Special to the Daily News |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion