What Open Feels Like
Honestly? Awesome. Rewarding, satisfying, gratifying, and “Finally!” After the Eaton Fire delayed opening in early January, guests are now finally hiking up and staying in Camp, enjoying some exceptionally gorgeous “California winter” weather.
Confusion about road and trail access after the Fire muted early bookings, but now the road IS open and it’s clear most trails ARE open, so the number of bookings is rising alongside the number of weekend day hikers. In the Lodge and cabins, it’s been a nice mix of families and friend groups, with several large all-Camp organized groups scheduled in May.
The old saying is proving true: “A pleasure shared is a pleasure doubled.” Having people relaxing, laughing, cooking and playing in Camp is transforming the last four years of work into a real pleasure. See you in Camp!
Board Ponders Settlement
Unfortunately, California wildfires are now a regular news feature, and with that, questions of cause, blame, and recuperative lawsuits. The Bobcat Fire, which destroyed one cabin at Camp and two water tanks, was determined to have been caused by Southern California Edison: Now, five years later, the Sturtevant Conservancy has reached a mediated settlement with Edison for damages and lost revenue.
Thanks go to founding Conservancy Board President Deb Burgess, who, as CEO at the time, added the Conservancy to the Canyon’s suite of claims brought against Edison after the fire (Deb also lost her own private cabin in the Canyon to the fire.) The lengthy litigation that followed was mostly mechanical: fires and Edison and claims have become so frequent that settlement was not so much a question of IF but When.
But explaining the Camp’s unique circumstances and its losses was complicated: one cost was the “removal of all hazardous burn debris” required by LA County. Explaining that burros had to pack out that debris, what a burro pack train is, and that they require a passable trail, which was not passable for nearly three years, meant that a specific dollar number was not yet possible for the claim: all that took some ‘splainin’.
The Board agreed to the settlement based on the advice of its legal counsel. Once it was confirmed, the Directors met to explore the implications, and to consider effective stewardship of the settlement funds. In general, a dual focus seemed clear: the Camp itself (buildings and infrastructure), and the mission of the Conservancy, which is to develop the general public’s use of the Camp.
Takeaways from the meeting included practical matters to research, and building a wish-list for the Camp and its use. And for the first time after four years in survival mode, the Directors took a big breath and said, “Seems like the right time for some strategic planning!” Luckily, the Board has dibs on a wonderful place in the mountains for just that kind of retreat. Stay tuned!
La Bella Luna
Camp guests gathered after dinner on the heliport Saturday, April 12 to watch the full “Pink” moonrise. It was a calm, clear, cool evening as the initial glow on the eastern edge of the Canyon finally emerged with a nearly piercing light—enough to cast everyone’s shadows and causing everyone to exclaim with awe and delight. As sunset and dusk turned to full darkness, multiple cell phones with apps for identifying stars, planets and constellations were held in the air. The mini-field trip concluded with a collective howling at La Bella Luna.
Mainstream Maintenance
The trails are open, the Camp is open, water is safely in the new tanks and guests are enjoying their hot showers: what else is there to do? Plenty.
Layers and layers of deferred maintenance and repairs have accumulated over the four years of the Bobcat closure. After September 2020, all work was invested in getting the trail open (and keeping it open), and at the same time urgent repairs from bear and weather damage had to be addressed, all while rebuilding a new and more durable water system.
Now the work is becoming mundane, yet still crucial: top of the list is nearly all buildings’ roofs need to be re-shingled; replacement doors on several building can’t be installed until the door frames are significantly rebuilt from the combined effects of bears, termites, and decades of use. Many cabins desperately need the windows to be completely reglazed, and most need entirely new screens. And everything could use a good coat of fresh paint.
So… would you like to leave your mark, make a difference, practice a skill, or learn one? Sign up here to get in on the action. Note: some hiking required.
TRAILS UPDATE
All trails in and out of the Big Santa Anita Canyon are now OPEN, with the practical exception of the Mt. Zion trail. Although technically “passable”, it is not the pleasant, rewarding hike it was and will be after reconstruction work is completed later this spring. More than unpleasant, some of it remains quite risky.
Day hikers can have good up-and-back from Camp to the Zion saddle; however the Winter Creek approach remains very sketchy. For the latest trail updates, check Wilbur Sturtevant’s Facebook page: we are monitoring progress almost daily and will post updates starting there.
Coming this summer: new schwag in Camp, events for autumn, and whatever stories guests and hikers generate on their visits to Sturtevant Camp.
