Via Dave Mitchell's blog: "One of Point Reyes Station’s best-loved merchants, Chris Giacomini, proprietor of Toby’s Feed Barn, suffered serious injuries Tuesday, March 31, when he fell from a loft in the building. Chris fell about 20 feet, landing on the cement floor, breaking a wrist and shattering an elbow and heel. He’s already had surgery and is scheduled for more this coming week, but he is recovering, according to his family and staff. Get well cards can be dropped off at Toby’s."

Get better Chris!

http://www.sparselysageandtime

Rain! Looks like we almost got an inch out here last night. CHP is reporting lots of fender benders out there, roads are slick, drive safe.

Mystery mushrooms on the Grandi Building.

The MarinIJ interviewed Point Reyes Light Editor Tess Elliott. This sentence in particular stood out, "...I get the feeling that some people don’t grasp the point of journalism, so they blame the messenger." I think she is referring to what happened to Jim Kravets for his reporting on the Citizen/Light merger. Read more about that on his blog post below:

The backlash against Kravets:
http://westmarincitizensos.blo

Marin IJ fishbowl interview with Tess:
http://www.marinij.com/arts-an

There is an opening for late local artist Alexander Carl Bratenahl at Toby's tonight at 6pm with a KWMR dance party benefit in the barn from 6pm - 9pm followed by the High Tide Collective at The Western: http://www.marinij.com//arts-a

"On the day West Marin artist Alexander Carl Bratenahl was diagnosed with the AIDS virus that would take his young life, he went into his studio and painted what could very well be a self portrait - a sorrowful face with white hot tears streaming from sad green eyes."

Busy weekend: Easter, lunar eclipse, first full moon of Spring (Egg Moon, Sprouting Grass Moon, or Easter Moon) AND RAINNNNNNN. "Federal forecasters said a breezy Pacific storm will roll across the region early Sunday, bringing a quarter-inch of rain or more to the Bay Area."

Moon info:
http://earthsky.org/tonight/sh

Rain story:
http://www.marinij.com/general

Polish cyclists this morning: there is a great story here! Margit in the middle lives in Lagunitas and met Adela and Kris in Argentina a year and a half ago. Had not seen them or heard from them and then saw them on WM Feed this morning! And biked over to meet them!

A sign found on Sir Francis Drake Drive yesterday in Marin. Well played, sir. Photo by Dan Gebow.

I thought it was cold this morning. "Olema Valley with 33 degrees: Here is a sampling of low temperatures this morning in #BayArea http://go.usa.gov/DHxR" via Marin IJ

Two Polish bicyclists, Adela and Kris, who have been biking around the world for the last five years will be at the Point Reyes Post Office today around 10:00am. If you see them, say hello (and take a picture for TWMF). I love these stories. More info about their incredible journey at: http://www.biketheworld.pl/

Marine Mammal Center officials released Percevero, the sea lion pup found wandering around Route One near Lake Merced in February, back into the water Monday at Chimney Rock, Point Reyes National Seashore. Center officials also released six other sea lions into the ocean at the same time. A rough year for pups.

http://sfbay.ca/2015/03/31/sea

Anybody else noticing how often drivers are passing over double yellow lines on blind turns, or other areas where they are unable to see on-coming traffic? I have seen a huge increase lately.

Officially giving up hope for point reyes future. Only for the rich.

Via Elizabeth Barnet: "Road work in the next two weeks on Bear Valley Road. They are replacing culverts. The sign says delays can be up to 20 minutes though I only waited one today."

A warm sunset in spite of the bitter cold out at the beaches tonight.

Road work in the next two weeks on Bear Valley Road. They are replacing culverts. The sign says delays can be up to 20 minutes though I only waited one today.

Shot this Picture about 2 weeks ago at North Beach...

Via Barbara Romanoff, "I Just learned of changes pending at Millerton Point: "The project is in the initial planning and early design phase... scope of work will include installing accessible parking spaces, restroom improvements, a path of travel upgrade to a mile-long segment of the existing park road and road realignment in order to protect native bird nesting areas, and the bay’s wetlands." The "community information session" was last week Thursday, did anyone attend? http://www.parks.ca.gov/NewsRe

A beautiful photo essay by the locally based Global Oneness Institute showing how Mimi Luebbermann at Wind Rush Farms in Petaluma makes wool.
https://www.globalonenessproje

Larry Feurzeig found the lost ring at Drake's Beach! Thanks to everyone who gave their very helpful suggestions and thanks to the park for allowing them to look for it. Yay.

A local surfer lost his wedding ring in the beach break at Drake's Beach yesterday. He dropped it just before getting in the water and it disappeared right into the water and sand. Any advice on how to recover it? Has anyone had luck with a metal detector? Will the park let you use one looking for a lost item?

The bald eagles have landed. Richard James took these incredible shots on Tomales Bay this week. More photos on his blog: http://coastodian.org/birds-of

My work received a notice about the bridge EIS and proposal. The correct email to send your comments to is: oliver.iberien@dot.ca.gov

Old white dude with beard in white van let his dog loose at White House Pool this morning. Dog chases a buck and doe pair onto Levee Road. A speeding sedan hit the buck, throwing him 15 feet into the air; the doe ran into the marshes. The sedan never even applied it's brakes, just kept going.

Shortly after, the dog emerges from the bushes, frantic and wild-eyed. When the owner in his van pulls by, I tell him what happened. In a rural accent he says he hopes someone will "clean it up".

6:05am - SFD closed by Samuel P. Taylor due to an accident, not sure when it will re-open, plan your commute accordingly. If anyone finds out when it's open, let me know.

At the beginning of Bear Valley trail early this morning. Every hiking group stopped to read it while I was watching. people I spoke with had not heard of the accident.

it's a sad week in point reyes this week, alas

This is the crack in the bluff above Arch Rock moments before it collapsed yesterday. Apparently there were signs everywhere and people just ignored them. Not good.

http://www.sfgate.com/news/art

Photo from Ken Wayne: https://twitter.com/KenWayneKT

An incredible photo from the Henry 1 helicopter of the landslide that trapped two people at Arch Rock this evening. A lot of people work hard to keep us all safe. Thank you.

https://twitter.com/FriendsOfH

7:57pm - #BREAKING: The Coast Guard is working to rescue two people trapped on Arch Rock in Pt. Reyes. - @abc7newsBayArea

From the Sheriff's Calls: "POINT REYES STATION: At 6:01 p.m. a woman who had volunteered at a Geography of Hope event at Toby’s Feed Barn over the weekend said another female volunteer had thrown a rock at her." Almost sounds like The Onion.

http://www.ptreyeslight.com/sh

An update from Scott McMorrow from the Green Bridge retrofit meeting: " I attended this meeting last night, and spoke with the engineer who designed the four options. He stated that the current bridge is seismically deficient, and invited me to get underneath it and look up. He said that the current bridge is supported by what amounts to angle iron. This is considered very unsafe in an earthquake. There is also significant damage to the abutments. He felt that a new bridge would be designed to withstand a 6.7 – 7 magnitude quake (a 1000 year event).

A question was raised about “Why now? Why not wait for ‘big one’ and get a new bridge then.” My take on that is that if there is a Bay-area wide quake that causes extensive damage, we will be at the end of the line for a replacement. Larger population areas will be given priority. With this currently proposed project, we are at the front of the line. There is a proposed one-lane temporary bridge to handle traffic during construction. Traffic will be controlled by traffic lights on the one-laner, and emergency services vehicles will have the ability to override the traffic signals to gain priority access. There will be inconvenience during construction, for sure.

Yet, image the inconvenience if we lose the current bridge during an earthquake. Those of us on the West shore will have to drive the platform bridge route to get to PRS. Emergency vehicles will add 16 or so minutes of response time from PRS to the West shore and Bolinas."

Thanks Scott.

Photo from Dave Mitchell's blog post: http://www.sparselysageandtime

So sad. "A kayaker died in Tomales Bay on Wednesday after twice falling into the water, first from his own boat and then from the boat of a friend who tried to save him. The incident happened in the afternoon after the two kayakers had paddled from the Nick’s Cove area to Dillon Beach, Pittman said. As they were heading back, one man looked back to see that his friend had fallen from his boat in the rough conditions. He hoisted the victim into his own boat because the other was taking on water, but the victim fell back in again and was lost."

http://www.marinij.com/general

http://abc7news.com/uncategori

6:16pm - "@abc7newsBayArea: JUST IN: Marin County Sheriff's say 1 kayaker has died during a rescue at Dillon Beach & others are being rescued."

5:07pm - Kayakers in distress off of Dillon Beach. Search teams and a helicopter have been scrambled. Hopefully it all works out.

From Dave Mitchell's blog: "Caltrans plans to hold a public meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. this Thursday, March 9, at West Marin School to discuss replacing the Green Bridge which carries Highway 1 over Papermill Creek in Point Reyes Station.Caltrans, which wants to spend $1.58 million replacing this bridge, says it has come up with four designs for a new one. The public will have a chance Thursday to comment on them."

The whole post is really worth reading, some great info on other local bridges: http://www.sparselysageandtime

A Bald Eagle was spotted yesterday flying above SFD right by White House Pool with a huge clump of seaweed in its mouth. Keep your eyes open and on the sky (and the road)!

"A St. Patrick’s Day solar storm will send a torrent of green-hued northern lights across much of the United States on Tuesday evening, as a fierce solar storm impacts the Earth’s upper atmosphere. If it’s clear where you are, go outside. You won’t want to miss it. At its current intensity, San Francisco, Dallas, and Atlanta could see a glimpse—even as far south as northern Florida." Midnight on Mt. Vision anyone?

http://www.slate.com/content/s

Found this posted on a "Lost Marin" FB page. Labeled as Pt Reyes Hotel 1906. The statue was on the roof before the earthquake.
Is this really the Grandi Bldg ?

Seeing whales never gets old (especially with calves!), from the PRNSA: "150+ Gray whales counted this past weekend at the #PointReyes Headlands." I heard there are lots of dolphins out there too.

One of my favorite stories: "During an appearance last week at the Loyola Marymount University, Clint Eastwood talked about the "stark terror" he experienced during the 1950s when, as a soldier flying from visiting his parents in Seattle to Ford Ord in California, the Navy bomber on which he traveled crashed into the ocean near Point Reyes.

"What was going through my mind was just a stark fear, a stark terror, because (in the) first place, I didn't know anything about aviation at that particular time -- I was just hopping a ride," he said.

Depending on the source, Eastwood and at least one other soldier swam anywhere from a mile to three miles to shore."

http://www.mercurynews.com/cel

(This is not Clint's plane, but one like it)

Via Paul Rampel: "Recently an exchange took place on the West Marin Commons' soapbox forum, between Jim Kravets and Tess Elliot, regarding Jim's of an acquisition discussion between Pt. Reyes Light and West Marin Citizen. My post regarding this exchange is as follows: (go to http://www.westmarincommons.or for the entire thread)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tucked away in their rebuke of Jim for "jumping the gun, Linda, Tess & David ask all our help to make their deal happen. Fair enough: I agree we should all have a better understanding of the Point Reyes Light ownership - issues touched upon in Jim Kravet's blog before we endorse anything to do with this proposal.

For starters how about explaining the current structure of the Pt. Reyes Light ownership: The first sentence suggests that MMI will not be involved in the purchase - but this is hard to understand on its face. If MMI is the owner of the "Point Reyes Light Publishing Company L3C LLC" (PRL LLC"), and PRL LLC is the acquirer how can this not involve MMI, at least as a fiduciary, if not an active participant? MMI and PRL LLC are themselves opaque operations - since the founding of PRL LLC (see http://investigativereportingw the role of Cory Goodman appears to be a constant in the operation as a recent check of the online records of the Secretary of State of California still show Goodman as the agent (see http://kepler.sos.ca.gov/) yet there is no mention of Cory Goodman's role in this deal.

Reports have also appeared that state Mark Dowie is a part owner of the Light. This involvement appears to extend the role of Dowie beyond that of contributor, editor, and publisher into a new realm of involvement. (Citizen Dowie?) We should also be asking to understand the money - where exactly does the purchase price for the Citizen come from? Is this a payout based upon future expected cashflow of the combined operations, perhaps based upon unrealistic expectations of excess cash realized from "operating efficiancies" and increased (combined) advertising revenues, or is a separate investment being contemplated, and if so, from whom? For example, reports have previously circulated that Phyllis Faber was a major backer of MMI and PRL. Its time that we understand who the money players are. Yet, Tess et al suggest that the discussion is amongst Linda, Tess and her partner David.

This seems to be at best, incomplete disclosure - not a promising basis for an organization that is intended to provide a public service to the community.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the TWMF 'secret treasure' contest two weeks ago. The mystery bridge is a new bridge Nick Whitney put in next to the tennis courts in second valley. Go check it out, and the secret treasure is still hanging from below it. While you're there, be sure to wander up the trail and see the amazing new stairs the Inverness Association has built. It's a great walk and a great way to see Inverness.

Congratulations to Kerry Livingston who found the treasure first and to Dave (and Prarie) Press, Felipe and Mike Durrie/Catherine Lucas who all found it. Nice work! More to come...

Here is the original contest post:
https://www.facebook.com/54364

"Seemingly doomed to dismiss teachers at the end of this school year as a result of budget problems, West Marin’s Shoreline Unified School District avoided layoffs by negotiating five teacher retirements instead."

http://www.marinij.com/social-

9:14pm - One lane still closed on SFD just before Inverness due to truck in ditch. Everyone is ok.

9:00pm - Accident on Sir Francis Drake right before Inverness, car in ditch, one lane open. Drive carefully. (thx YP/AP)

Sunrise this morning.

One of my more hazardous duties.... Searching the streets and downtown Point Reyes for a 12 year old yellow lab named Daisy who according to the owner walked away from home. I assured she doesn't bite but this is one fugitive I hope to locate tonight!

Via Jim Kravets: "A tragedy is unfolding in West Marin. A community resource built by hundreds of people is quietly but hastily shutting down. It’s happening so suddenly that without this notice you almost certainly wouldn’t have learned about it until it was gone.
After some 400 issues and more than 8,000 pages spanning eight years, the community’s newspaper, the West Marin Citizen, will cease publication when the owner signs over rights any minute to the Point Reyes Light.
Follow this link to learn more:
http://westmarincitizensos.blo
Please forward this email to others who may care about West Marin's collective intellectual, cultural and spiritual prosperity."
---
I found this image on Dave Mitchell's blog in a post that describes the last time the Point Reyes Light and the West Marin Citizen had a close call.
http://www.sparselysageandtime

Greenbridge Gas says CHP has pulled over 3 people in the last 10 minutes. Be careful, as we should be!

Point Reyes and the Tule Elk are the cover story in The Bohemian this week. "Tule elk were thought extinct by 1874, when a wealthy rancher spared a few survivors he discovered while draining one of the Central Valley's once-vast marshlands. All of the approximately 4,000 tule elk in 22 herds on public and private land are descended from those."

http://www.bohemian.com/northb

You are warmly invited to the upcoming Inverness Almanac release party! On Friday, March 13th at 7 PM we will be hosting a Local Music Restoration Project show at the Dance Palace Church Space.
There will be readings by Almanac contributors as well as music by Mountain of Glow, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, and Dylan Squires. Come on out and celebrate with us as we release this project into the wilds of West Marin. Almanacs will be available for purchase and if you have already pre-ordered a copy you can pick it up.

$10-20, sliding scale.

In case you haven't heard, the Almanac is a new local print publication celebrating the land, art, and stories of West Marin. In addition to attending our upcoming event, please also consider making a donation to help us bring this project to our community.

donate.invernessalmanac.com

The Almanac is also available for pre-sale on our website.

See ya there,

Ben, Jordan, Katie, Nina, Jeremy

Inverness trying to be Santa Cruz? Do you know where this is and what a kook is?

Local nature photographer extraordinaire Carlos Porrata took this photo of a Peregrine Falcon in Point Reyes yesterday. Bonus Bird Question: Do you know what's happening here? Hint: Even educated fleas do it.

You can see more of his work in the lobby of The Dance Palace until March 16th.

https://dancepalace.org/events

Is there a Recycle Circus coming this year? Can't find any information on it for 2015.

Tonight’s full moon is the smallest full moon of the year. We’ve heard it called the micro-moon or mini-moon.

http://earthsky.org/tonight/mi

Point Reyes National Seashore is mentioned:
http://theplate.nationalgeogra

The full story of the cliff rescue this weekend, everyone involved are true heroes. There are good people in this world. "Joel Deering, 27, and Cody LaMonte, 26, hiked to the beach below the cliff and swam 30 meters to a rock outcropping where the injured man lay. They used a first-aid kit to splint the man’s broken bones and bandage his lacerations. They used blankets to keep him comfortable and held his head stable for 2 1/2 hours until a rescue team arrived in a helicopter.

http://www.modbee.com/news/loc

Anyone know why there are 1000s of sand dollars 1/4"-1" in diameter for 3 days now at Limantour...?

An incredible rescue yesterday at Arch Rock in Point Reyes after a man fell 60 feet off a cliff and two others scrambled down to help him.

"CHP Officer James Andrews said a 24-year-old Gilroy man was hiking with a church group from Gilroy near Arch Rock when either the ground gave way or he slipped, falling some 60 to 80 feet to the rocks below.

The man hit the rocks and ricocheted into the surf, but Andrews said he was able to pull himself out of the water and onto a rock outcropping.

Two good Samaritans ran down a narrow goat trail to the beach and then swam to the rock to assist him, Andrews said. The surf was coming in quickly, stranding the three people on the rock, Andrews said."

Full Story:
http://patch.com/california/sc

Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?