San Dieguito River Park
Preserving and interpreting the natural and cultural resources of the San Dieguito River Valley
No golden plated shovels at this ground-breaking, just getting to work breaking ground on the new Ranger Station at the lagoon. Here we are, 2019, the River Park’s 30th year. If you’ve been following our 30th anniversary blog series this past year you may have noticed that several projects were mentioned repeatedly over the course …
PAMO VALLEY Another year of efforts in the River Park have proven fruitful. Progress in Pamo Valley continued through the summer sun. The River Park received $25,000 in additional funds from the National Resources Agency to shape the Coast to Crest Trail in Pamo Valley. Specialized forestry contractor crews, archaeologists, biologists, volunteers, and rangers worked …
Lots of exciting things happened with the River Park in 2017. The whole state of California breathed a sigh of relief, as it was the first year of above average rainfall after several years of drought. This meant that for the first time in several years, Lake Hodges filled up, and there was water under …
In the year 2016, there were many accomplishments for San Dieguito River Park. During late winter and early spring, Park staff and Volunteers planted 13,198 plants throughout the River Park, in 15 different sites. Out of the total lump sum of those native plant species that we planted, 7,000 of those plants went to Bernardo …
In 2015, the San Dieguito River Park acquired 2 passenger vans and officially launched the Watershed Explorer Program. The program offers 5-day fieldtrips throughout the San Dieguito Watershed. Youths can enjoy the adventures and experiences to places such as: Volcan Mountain, Lake Sutherland, the San Diego Archaelogical Center, Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead, Lake Hodges and …
2014 would provide some great learning opportunities within the San Dieguito River Valley. Our executive director at the time Dick Bobertz along with Poway City Councilman Jim Cunningham and San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy board member Bill Simmons were finishing the final segment of their more than 72-mile trek of the Coast to Crest Trail …
The San Dieguito River Park has greatly benefited from the volunteer Mountain Bike Patrol program that Senior Park Ranger David Hekel, himself a mountain biker, started in June 2013. The park has always had volunteer trail patrol members, some of whom rode mountain bikes, that help provide extra eyes and ears on the trail and …
In early 2012, continuation of the Del Dios Gorge Riparian Restoration Project began downstream from the Del Dios Gorge Bridge. In total, approximately 21 acres of extremely dense eucalyptus trees were removed, allowing native riparian vegetation to grow. Plans were underway to develop and construct the Birdwing Open Air Classroom. The classroom provides a facility …
On October 8, 2011, the San Dieguito River Park celebrated the opening of a short trail with a long horizon – the Old Coach Trail – linking the Coast to Crest Trail in San Pasqual Valley to the City of Poway’s vast trail system including the regional Trans-County Trail. The 200 feet of new trail, …
The year 2010 had many accomplishments for the San Dieguito River Park JPA. The David Kreitzer Lake Hodges Bicycle Pedestrian Bridge had won many awards, and numerous grants were awarded for habitat restoration and new and improved trails throughout the Park. Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead post-fire reconstruction was completed and reopened to the public on …
In 2009, despite still recovering from recession, wildfires, no official office space, and a shortfall of member agency funding, the San Dieguito River Park, the JPA, and its partners had a huge year of monumental successes. At the San Dieguito Lagoon, Southern California Edison finished construction of their restoration project creating and/or enhancing 150 acres …
San Dieguito River Park (SDRP) has transformed and evolved tremendously over the past almost 12 years since the devastating Witch Creek Fire engulfed the San Pasqual Valley, Lake Hodges, and Santa Fe Valley trail systems. The fire burned 247,800 acres and devastated wildlife habitat. At the start of 2008, all the trails in the burn …
If you’ve been following these River Park 30th Anniversary posts by year, you\\\’ve noticed that the years leading up to and including 2007 were a time of great progress and expansion in the San Dieguito River Park. And although that progress continued through most of 2007 with extensions of the Coast to Crest Trail through …
After fifteen years of planning and two years of waiting for multiple government agencies to issue dozens of permits, construction was finally scheduled to start on the San Dieguito Lagoon Wetland Restoration Project. As mitigation/compensation for the loss of fish eggs and larvae attributed to the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station 33 miles north, Southern …
We all know that water plays a big part of our lives. It helps sustain habitats as well as erode them away. It can make our roads dangerous and our views and vistas more colorful with blooming vegetation. Looking back at the year 2005 here in San Diego we saw more than double our normal …
In 2004, San Dieguito River Park had 15 years experience building relationships, achieving goals to preserve, restore and acquire land, and establish 55 miles of trail for public recreation throughout the 92,000 acres of the focused planning area between Julian and Del Mar. The most outstanding accomplishment of 2004 was the purchase and protection of …
2003 marked my third year working for the San Dieguito River Park. I started out in 2000 working as a contracted Ranger Aide/ Maintenance worker and progressed to a full time Ranger later that year. As the park continued to grow and purchase the land needed to build the Coast to Crest Trail, we were …
Hot on the heels of being designated a State Wildlife Corridor the previous year, in 2002 the River Park purchased or assisted in the purchase of three major properties in the river valley to be used for habitat conservation- the Helms (Proudfoot) property between Sutherland Reservoir and Santa Ysabel Open Space Preserve West, the Derbas …
In the year 2001, the San Dieguito River Park was identified as a State Wildlife Corridor linkage by the California Department of Parks and Recreation. If you go to the California Parks website , you will see the Coast to Crest Trail is a highlighted corridor on the Southern California map. The San Dieguito River …
Besides breathing a collective sigh of relief that our computers turned from 1999 to 2000 without the world ending (and that the media would no longer be dominated by that story), what else was happening in 2000? Well for one, I was hired as the Park’s new Environmental Planner eager to take on new projects …
In 1999, the San Dieguito River Park JPA was celebrating its 10th anniversary, and there were so many active projects. The River Park had just been awarded a $3 million grant to fund the design and construction of the bicycle/pedestrian bridge across Lake Hodges and a grant for $212,000 from the City of San Diego to begin restoration planning …
In 1998, the big news in the River Park was the issuance of a Notice of Preparation/Intent to develop the Environmental Impact Statement/Report by the San Dieguito River Park JPA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for a project called the “San Dieguito Wetland Restoration Project”. I’d say the title possibly sells short what …
In 1997, I recall the atmosphere around the Park was optimistic. In the Park’s rear view mirror were the peaks and valleys associated with forming a new government agency, and the Park was confident with the success of important completed projects like the North Shore Trail I-15 Undercrossing and Highland Valley Trail. I was a …
The San Dieguito River Park is very unique in not only the diverse ecosystems that occupy the park, from coastal wetlands to oak woodlands, but also because of its multi-jurisdictional management areas. The park itself maintains open space in the County of San Diego as well as the cities of Del Mar, Escondido, Poway, San …
