CINCO DE MAYO FIESTA
• Terrific food and ice-cold drinks – we’ve missed it the last two years, now it’s back at the Johnson Valley Community Center on Saturday afternoon, May 7th!
Admission is 10.00 per person – and that includes a free frozen margarita, your dinner from the Taco Grill plus yummy treats from the Dessert Bar! If you want another margarita, it’s 3.00.
Doors open at 2:30 p.m., but you may pick out a favorite place indoors or outdoors to enjoy the afternoon. You will see the Margaritaville Bar set up from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. under the shade pergola at the front entry (chips and dips available with your margaritas). The Taco Grill will be serving from 4:00 to 5:30, also under the pergola.
The 10-day forecast says temps in the low 70s, and breezes. That’s only a weather forecast; we could have a quick climate change, but I believe your hat won’t blow off. Updates next week; closer to Fiesta time!
Find a table on the back patio if you wish, or head over to the Paul Van Hook Desert Dreams Garden next to the parking area. We hear the crew plans to run trains on at least two of the garden railway track layouts! (Please help keep kids out of the layout; jarring or kicking dirt onto the tracks stops all the action!)
If you have not been to the JV Center before, it’s easy to find, with pavement all the way. From Hwy 247, turn at the big red Johnson Valley sign onto Larrea Road, and go 1-3/4 miles up to Quailbush Rd. You will see the Community Center on your left at the corner of Quailbush Rd.
Everyone welcome!
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OHV AREA CLOSURE
• Offroaders reminder: The Marines’ closure of the Johnson Valley Shared Use Area for training starts tomorrow, Friday, April 29, through 10:00 a.m., Monday, May 9. (The closure date was April 26 but got postponed.)
The JV OHV Area to the west around Cougar Buttes remains open for all recreational purposes; access from Hwy 247 via Bessemer Mine Road or Camp Rock Road.
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ILLEGAL POT FARMS
• Operation Hammerstrike put in a good two weeks: the latest summary report lists San Bernardino County Sheriff’s personnel locating and arresting 33 suspects.
Investigators seized:
-59,724 marijuana plants,
-2,199.8 pounds of processed marijuana,
-six guns,
and over $131,000.00 in cash.
All this is from locations in Adelanto, Apple Valley, Oak Hills, Hesperia, Lucerne Valley, Phelan, Victorville, Redlands, Newberry Springs, Pomona, and Hinkley.
They eradicated a total of 257 greenhouses and eight indoor locations. Investigators mitigated two electrical bypasses (extreme fire hazards) and recovered one stolen vehicle.
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RIP: UPPER JV RANCH OWNER JOHN KING IN FATAL CRASH
• JVIA member Dr. Chris Lawrence read the news and saw a photo of the scene:
http://www.kathrynsreport.com/2022/04/cessna-337-super-skymaster-n143jb-fatal.html
He suspected this was a neighbor, John King, owner of Abraham Ranch.
Later, when asked how he had known it was King, Chris replied,
“1. I recognized the plane.
2. They supplied us with the ‘N’ number (tail number) which is registered with the FAA, and I was able to confirm it in the film footage.
3. I knew of his ‘home’ airport as Whiteman airport.
4. He had an apt in the area of Sylmar/Pacoima.
“I was 99% sure. Now it’s in the headlines.
“I knew him for about 15 years.
Lots of speculation regarding cause of crash. By far the majority of them are due to ‘pilot error,’ regardless.”
John King, 62, died at the scene of the crash, which occurred around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday [April 20], according to the coroner’s office. King was the only person aboard the plane, Eva Lee Ngai of the FAA said.
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TO THE BACK OF BEYOND
• We are delighted to read in Supervisor Cook’s newsletter that the Providence Mountains State Recreation Area in the Mojave National Preserve has resumed its public tours of Mitchell Caverns after a seven-year closure. The trail from the Visitor Center to the caverns has been very carefully rebuilt – a three-year project – and also the bridge.
The description: “This unique and remote travel destination offers a frontier experience of timeless landscapes and breathtaking views” ain’t just a-whistlin’ Dixie. Hiking the 1.5-mile trail to the caverns rates as a sightseeing experience in itself.
But the biggest thrill on your trip is the amazing Mitchell Caverns’ limestone cave formations, some rarely seen anywhere else, that host unique wildlife!
Be prepared to travel across wildlands largely unchanged since the Chemehuevi lived in the Providence Mountains some 1,000 years ago. That means more water than you think you need, gasoline, and food. No pets are allowed in the caverns. Check out what to do to make sure you don’t contaminate the bats’ home by spreading White Nose Syndrome.
Log onto https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=615
Keep scrolling down, read everything about the park and the caverns, and TONS of info on preparations and precautions.
You are heading out to the back-of-beyond after all. (If you figure you won’t have the time or the ability to head out, there are TONS of fascinating items and vintage photos on the website anyway.)
From Johnson Valley, go via Twentynine Palms and Amboy Road to Route 66, turn right. Turn left at Kelbaker Road (paved), turn right at the I-40 to Essex Road (exit 100), then turn left over the highway.
You are now heading into the Mojave National Preserve toward your goal, the Providence Mountains. Total trip, about 150 miles.
Plan to arrive early! Reservation holders must have paid for the tours at least 15 minutes before scheduled departure.
Admission:
10.00 per adult,
5.00 per child 16 and younger, and
9.00 per senior.
Cash preferred, credit card accepted.
To reserve your spot, call 760-928-2586 on Mondays only, between 8:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. Tours will be offered to start at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Fridays through Sundays (and Holiday Mondays) throughout May.
I know this isn’t exactly JV News, but –
Been There, Done That, Will Never Forget It!😄
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To new members of the Johnson Valley Improvement Association recently added to this e-mail contacts list:
This JV NEWS e-mail comes out every week or two and brings the news in a more timely manner than the Johnson Valley Journal mailing every two months.
The items expand and add to those published online in the community column in the Hi-Desert Star Weekender. Other notices of particular interest to Johnson Valley residents and property owners also circulate to this list.
If you do not wish to receive this information, just reply and tell me to remove your name.
P.s. Members’ JV Journals mailed out on Tuesday, should be in your mailbox soon – Thanks to VIP Printing in Yucca Valley, Cathy Janowicz and Kim Abramson for producing the address labels, Don Minnix and Court Prittie for stuffing and labeling envelopes, and the Lucerne Valley Post Office for quick service.
(I might have sent this advice to you already, but that little elf is giving me fits)
Keep smilin’
Betty
Betty Munson
c/o Ship-It-Shop
51720 Hacienda Rd.
Johnson Valley CA 92285