Over3

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Crescenta Valley View

Rim Hike

1

Kat High 1

Brunch 1

Events

and

Outings

2

Golf

Course

DEIR

2

Survival

Show &

Tell

4

John Muir

B: 4/21/1838

D: 12/24/1914

Chair Fred Dong

Vice Chair Jeffrey Wilson

Secretary Marlene Plummer

Treasurer Jerry Burnham

ExCom Representative John Lajeuness

Webmaster Chuck Gooley

Programs Wayne Fisher

Membership & Outings Silvia Darie

Conservation & Newsletter Bettie Pearson

VOLUME III, ISSUE I Crescenta Valley Sierra Club Monthly Newsletter January 2016

Management Committee

(See Brunch, Page 3)

The Crescenta Valley Group pre-

sents Kat High, Tuesday, January

12th, 7:30 p.m., at the Los Angeles

County Public Library, 2809 Foothill

Boulevard, La Crescenta.

Ms. High brings her knowledge of

plants and their important healing,

curative qualities to her presentation.

She will show how these plants can

be found in our local mountains and

bring samples and demonstrate how

they are best used.

With considerations for the New

Year, Kat will bring handouts and

native food tasting, such as acorn

coffee, acorn bread and elderflower

fizz, to drink.

Kat is of Hupa descent, and the

former director of the Haramokngna

American Indian Center and current-

ly on the board of the Gabrielino

Tongva Springs Foundation. She al-

so teaches workshops on California

Indian material, culture and cooking.

News of Conservation and Out-

ings will precede our program. Eve-

ryone is welcome. Refreshments will

be served.

Please contact Wayne Fisher at

818 353-4181, for more information.

Great food and lively con-

servation made for a very

pleasant atmosphere at this

year’s Christmas brunch.

Some of us spruced up a

Crescenta Valley Group Enjoys Christmas Brunch

This Deukmejian Wil-

derness Park to Rim of the

Valley Trail hike is being

brought to you by Crescen-

ta Valley Group and Pasa-

dena Group.

This beautiful 6-mile

round trip hike with about

little for the occasion.

Others played it safe,

dressing casually. (Well,

Rim of the Valley Hike – January 9th

1200’ gain will be through

chaparral hills and cool

canyon, with spectacular

views of Crescenta Valley

and the Los Angeles ba-

sin. The trail begins at a

(See Hike, Page 3)

Kat High Presents Medicinal Native Plants Program

PAGE 2 January 2016

CRESCENTA VALLEY VIEW

Conservation

At a recent meeting of the

Land Use Committee of Sunland

Tujunga Neighborhood council,

community members were updat-

ed on the planned development of

the Verdugo Hills Golf Course.

Members of the Sunland

Tujunga Neighborhood Council

(STNC) in collaboration with

V.O.I.C.E. are recommending that

the community comment on the

DEIR recently published by the

City of LA.

Marc Stirdivant of the

V.O.I.C.E. (Volunteers Organized

in Conserving the Environment)

stated that his organization had

been seeking funding to buy the

property and transform it into a

regional park. He and members

of the STNC asked residents to

request the City to extend the

Events and Outings

Date and Time

Hike, Deukmejian Wilderness Park, 3429 Markridge Rd,

La Crescenta, CA

Saturday, January 9, 2016, 8:00 a.m.

Kat High, Los Angeles County Library, 2809 Foothill

Blvd., La Crescenta, CA

Tuesday, January 12, 2016, 7:30 p.m.

Robert Klean, Los Angeles County Library, 2809 Foot-

hill Blvd., La Crescenta, CA Tuesday, February 9, 2016, 7:30 p.m.

Wild Borneo, Land of the Headhunters Fred Dong - 818-545-3878

madelinesdad@earthlink.net

Stephanie Gross - 818-545-3878

madelinesmother@gmail.com

Sunday, March 27, 2016 to Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Grand tour of 3 National Parks in the Canadian

Rockies, Banff, Jasper, and Yoho on a trip spon-

sored jointly by the Loma Prieta & Angeles Chap-

ters.

Fred Dong - 818-545-3878 madelinesdad@earthlink.net

Clifford Caplan - 310-376-9105 caplan04@yahoo.com

Stephanie Gross - 818-545-3878 madelinesmoth-

er@gmail.com

Monday, July 25, 2016 to Sunday, July 31, 2016

comment period from its current

January 19, 2016 deadline.

Hopefully, the new comment

period will have as great a re-

sponse as the one from 2009.

When the DEIR was released to

the public for review and com-

ment in 2009, hundreds re-

sponded with comment letters.

On December 3rd, the City

published Recirculated Portions

of the Draft Environment Im-

pact Report (DEIR). The city is

accepting comments on three

sections: Traffic, Cultural Re-

sources, and Green House Gas-

es, along with two new alterna-

tives – an 86 unit equestrian al-

ternative and a 221-unit residen-

tial alternative.

Since 2005, the community

has been involved a campaign

to save the historic Verdugo

Hills Golf Course from a pro-

posed housing development by

Snowball West Investments. The

landmark golf course has been

part of the Sunland-Tujunga

community since 1960.

DEIR update on Residential Development of Golf Course

Verdugo Hills Golf Course

PAGE 3 January 2016

CRESCENTA VALLEY VIEW

chocolate sauce won’t ruin an old

tee shirt.)

Twenty eight of Sierra Club

members and guests feasted on a

variety of pasta dishes, seafood,

salads, meat dishes, and, yes,

fancy desserts. There was a wide

selection and enough choices to

appeal to all appetites.

The Odyssey Restaurant, in

Granada Hills, is known for its

broad assortment of brunch items.

So we came with healthy appe-

tites to sample as many of those

dishes as our tummies could han-

dle. And it seemed that everyone

enjoy the culinary journey that

included chocolate fountain,

omelet bar, steak sandwiches,

barbecue chickens, many types of

vegetables, and of course, des-

serts.

For those who wanted a little

spirit, there was champagne. This

combined with the array of delec-

table delights, and easy conversa-

tion made for a beautiful affair. To

top it all off, Group Chair Fred

Dong gave each of us desk or wall

calendar, a gift from the CV group

of the Sierra Club.

The popular restaurant classi-

Nadie, Jeff, Audrey, and Silvia and their guests at the Christmas

brunch fies itself as a “contemporary steak-

house with a local twist.”

From where we were seated, we

couldn’t see it but the Odyssey, ac-

cording to its website, owns a farm.

The 1 ¼ acre ranch produces vege-

tables and fruits that the chefs use

to prepare delicious dishes.

Veggies picked just steps from

the kitchen mean a fresher plate,

this is according to the restaurant’s

website.

The Odyssey Farm is not open

to the public nor does it sell any of

its goods to the public.

Brunch, from Page 1

gradual climb, drops into a canyon

stream bed, and then climbs up

steeply to Haynes Canyon Road

(which links Glendale to the Rim

of the Valley Trail system).

Meet 8 a.m., Le Mesnager

Barn, Deukmejian Wilderness

Park, 3429 Markridge Rd, La

Crescenta. Bring hiking boots, hat,

water, snacks. Leaders: Bonnie

Strand, Karen Buehler. Rain can-

cels.

Brunch goers delight in delicious food and stimulating conservation

Hike, from Page 1

PAGE 4

January 2016

CRESCENTA VALLEY VIEW

An assembly that in-

cluded a CV group member

gathered at Hahamongna

Watershed Park, located in

Pasadena, for a knife and

survival pack discussion and

show-and-tell. Participants

brought a variety of items

including a handmade

Above – An oyster mushroom is edible but ac-

cording to experts on the tour, should be first

cooked – preferably in a little butter and garlic.

Hemlock

Feverfew plant

Christopher Nyerges

hammock. Botanist and

outdoors instructor Chris-

topher Nyerges led the

discussion and a short

walk through the park

where he pointed out edi-

ble and nonedible plants,

collecting many of the

edibles for his lunch.

Survival Show & Tell

led by Chris N.

A type of mustard Jimson Weed