OPTIONAL
Technical Training Field Trips
(FEE: $50) -- Wednesday, July 22, 2009

RED Tour – Irvine Ranch Wildlands (Limited to 20 people)

  Bus Departs Hotel at 11:30am -- THIS TRIP IS FULL
  Returns to Hotel at 8:30pm

The Irvine Ranch Wildlands encompass nearly 40,000 acres of undeveloped habitat in southern California and include most of the acreage protected regionally under the Orange County Natural Community Conservation Plan. Situated in the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains, the northern portion of the Wildlands has retained much of its native fauna and flora, including regionally sensitive species such as mountain lion, arroyo toad, coast horned lizard, cactus wren, California gnatcatcher, white-tailed kite, and Tecate cypress. The land has, however, also experienced nearly 200 years of grazing and frequent fires; at least 5000 acres are partially or severely degraded and in need of repair. The Wildlands are currently owned by The Irvine Company, the County of Orange, the City of Irvine, and The Nature Conservancy and managed by the Irvine Ranch Conservancy (IRC). Restoration efforts by the IRC are focused on converting degraded habitat back into native coastal sage scrub, grassland, and oak-sycamore woodland cover at a large scale.

CLICK HERE for detailed tour information. -- THIS TRIP IS FULL

PURPLE Tour – Malibu Lagoon, Rindge Dam and Solstice Canyon(Limited to 50 people)-- THIS TRIP IS FULL

  Bus Departs Hotel at 11:30am
  Returns to Hotel at 8:30pm

Malibu Lagoon State Park is located 45 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles where Malibu Creek meets the Pacific Ocean. The lagoon includes tidal-pools, saltwater marsh, and wetlands. The parking lot has been created utilizing bio-swales, with runoff during storms directed away from the lagoon. Everyone should take advantage of CA State Parks & Recreation staff led discussions of restoration on the work completed and what is planned in the 2nd phase of restoration. It may be a work in-progress by next summer.

Rindge Dam was constructed by the Rindge family early in the last century for water storage as a water source to fight fires. Sheriff's Overlook is located immediately above the dam for a view of Rindge Dam, located several hundred feet below in a steep, narrow canyon. You get good views of the 100-ft high arch dam, built in 1926, a partial view of the spillway in the adjacent bedrock abutment, and the 750,000 cubic yards of impounded sediment. The feasibility of removing the dam is currently being studied by the US Army Corps of Engineers and local stakeholders.

Solstice Canyon is located off Pacific Coast Highway, approximately 45 minutes from downtown Los Angeles. Restoration includes a massive effort to control invasive weeds in order to encourage native re-sprouting following fire of 2007.

CLICK HERE for detailed tour information. -- THIS TRIP IS FULL

YELLOW Tour – Bolsa Chica & Upper Newport Bay
(Limited to 50 people)-- THIS TRIP IS FULL

  Bus Departs Hotel at 11:30am
  Returns to Hotel at 8:30pm

The Bolsa Chica wetland restoration was the largest coastal wetland restorations ever undertaken in Southern California. It includes over 1200 acres of undeveloped wetlands, lowlands and lower mesa. The area is rich with history beginning with the Native Americans who lived atop the mesas, to the oil production in the 20th century. Wetland restoration of nearly 600 acres of Bolsa Chica began in 2004, and in the summer of 2006 seawater flowed into the restored wetland for the first time in over 100 years.

The restoration plan called for the construction of a tidal inlet across the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), a complex tide control structure at the mouth to mute and lower the tidal range, a new PCH Bridge over the inlet, and modifications to the highway.

CLICK HERE for detailed tour information.-- THIS TRIP IS FULL

ORANGE Tour – Griffith Park Fire Restoration, Audubon Center at Ernest Debs Park, and Arroyo Seco Channel(Limited to 50 people)

  Bus Departs Hotel at 11:30am
  Returns to Hotel at 8:00pm   -- THIS TRIP IS FULL

In Griffith Park, one of the largest parks within an urban area, restoration includes repair and replacement of site amenities damaged during the recent fire, protection from erosion, recovery monitoring, wildlife studies and monitoring, replanting with an emphasis on natural recovery.

The Audubon Center at Eugene Debs Park is located approximately 5 miles from downtown, located in what is considered an underserved community in the northeastern area of downtown. The park is 15 acres of trails and a 5,000 sq. ft. Audubon Center. The Audubon Center building was the first in the nation to receive a “Platinum” rating from the US Green Council for its use of all natural materials and being “off the grid” utilizing solar systems for all its energy needs. A number of small mammals, lizards, butterflies, and birds can be observed in this oasis within the city. Habitats include restored chaparral, grassland, and riparian communities.

The Arroyo Seco Restoration Site is part of the Arroyo Seco Channel, with its head in the San Gabriel Mountains and flows into the Los Angeles River. Restoration includes native plant communities and the first restoration in California of the native fish, the Arroyo Chub.

CLICK HERE for detailed tour information.  -- THIS TRIP IS FULL

BLUE Tour – Matilija Dam (Limited to 50 people)

  Bus Departs Hotel at 11:30am -- THIS TRIP IS FULL
  Returns to Hotel at 9:30pm

The Matilija Dam is located approximately 16 miles north of the Pacific Ocean on Matilija Creek, which flows downstream from the dam for approximately 0.6 miles before joining the North Fork Matilija Creek and becoming the mainstem of the Ventura River.
The Matilija Dam was constructed in 1946-47 by the Ventura County Flood Control District (since renamed the Ventura County Watershed Protection District (VCWPD)) for the purpose of providing storage for agricultural water needs and for limited flood control. The reservoir was first completely filled with water in 1952.

CLICK HERE for detailed tour information. -- THIS TRIP IS FULL