Injured hiker rescued near Dante's View

*Injured Hiker* Griffith Park near Dante's Peak; MAP 593-J2; FS 35; PRELIM: Adult male hiker fell on remote trail; LAFD air/ground response; NFD (No Further Details) Ch:7,12 @ 7:42 AM -Brian Humphrey ###

Tue, Apr 19, 2011, 08:08 UPDATE: Griffith Park/Dante's Peak* LAFD copter found patient, lowered medics to ground; Ground transport anticipated - Brian Humphrey###

Good thing LAFD has a helicopter, because Park Rangers don't go on duty in Griffith Park until 10am anymore.

Note to LAFD: There is no "Dante's Peak" in Griffith Park. Only in Hollywoodland where Pierce Brosnan engaged a Mt. St. Helens lookalike in a silly movie.  Dantes' View is on Mt. Hollywood in Griffith Park, but the Hollywood Sign is not. The Hollywood Sign is on Mt. Lee.  Everyone got that? 

First step was a doozy

A horse and rider went ass-over-tea kettle down a 300' slope near Dantes' View in Griffith Park yesterday evening.

Thankfully, both horse and rider were unhurt.

This is probably a good place to put in a PSA on the importance of always wearing a safety helmet.

Dantes View of hell

Dante's View engulfed by the inferno during the 2007 Griffith Park fire.

Just a little reminder that fire season is right around the corner. This year promises to be a bad one with all the extra brush growth from spring rains. Without our firefighting park rangers patrolling the parks, the outlook is not a good one.

If park rangers aren't patrolling the parks, where exactly are they?

Ten public officer park rangers have been pulled from park patrol, and are now paid to do effectively nothing. Some are rumored to be using "on duty" time to catch up on their tv viewing. Meanwhile a popular chief park ranger with 30 years experience is sitting in an office downtown, having been moved there by Recreation and Parks with no substantiated reason for having done so. Three of the four remaining senior peace officer park rangers took E-RIP to escape unqualified management, and will not be replaced.

That's eleven qualified park rangers who have been removed from patrol duty, and three veterans chased out of the department. Why?

The Department has no good answer for either. Regarding the ten public officers, the department's only direct public comment answering the question has been that '...the parks are too dangerous for (public officers) to patrol'.*

That's a huge admission, saying that City parks are too dangerous for even park rangers. A darned scary statement, too, given that public officers are a class in the CA Penal Code (sections 830.7, 831) that, although not full peace officers, have a certain level of enforcement ability and the knowledge and training to carry it out. The public officer park rangers'  MOU with the department states explicitly that they can and do perform patrol duties.

The park ranger buck stops with the department's general manager - Jon Kirk Mukri. Drop him a line  - JonKirk.Mukri(at)lacity.org - and ask why. See what reason/excuse you're fed. Then post it here in comments so the public can dissect the baloney.



*Assistant GM Kevin Regan to the Sepulveda WASC Committee (October 2009)

Ranger images hat tip to:  Daylife.com/Getty Images  and MikesPhotos.us

Start 2010 with a "three-garden" hike in GP

The Los Angeles Hiking Meet-Up group is hosting a hiking tour of the three iconic gardens in Griffith Park on January 3rd.  Well, two of the three and a part of the third, any rate: Amir's Garden, Dantes View, and a recent extension to Captain's Roost they're calling "Felix's Garden".  (Sadly, Captain's Roost still lies in ruins a full 2 1/2 years after the Griffith Park Fire.)

The hike starts Sunday January 3rd at 9:30am in the Griffith Park Merry-Go-Round parking lot #2.

Hike level: Moderate (= 5 out of 10 max),  1250 feet gain /loss 6 miles roundtrip, slow uphill,  medium pace downhill

Kids are welcome if they're in shape for this hike, and dogs are welcome on-leash.

Contact Jose with the Hiking Meet-Up group for more information.

Stranded hiker rescued today

At approximately 4pm this afternoon, Park Rangers responded to a call about a stranded person on a cliff face just north of Dante's View in Griffith Park.

Park Rangers located the idiot  victim  where they had no earthly business being  on a cliff face 50' below the garden and escorted the LAFD to the scene where the Park Rangers and the LAFD then engaged in a joint rescue operation, air lifting the Darwin awards candidate  person to safety.

Thankfully there were no injuries to either the person or the rescuers, but Common Sense sure took a beating.

Principal funds fire restoration

Why do we care? Because...ostensibly....Ms. Principal paid for the restoration of Dantes' View in Griffith Park, too. (see article below)


She did? This is news to us! We know Tom LaBonge got state money for both Dantes' View ($225,000) and Captain's Roost ($110,000). Today Dantes' View looks pretty good (top photo) while Captain's Roost  (bottom photo) still  lies in ruins.

Makes ya think.


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From Tree People:

On October 30, actress, activist and entrepreneur Victoria Principal joined nonprofit TreePeople and the U.S. Forest Service to announce a $25,000 gift to support TreePeople’s fire restoration efforts in the Angeles National Forest. Victoria Principal’s gift kicks off a fundraising goal of $250,000 to help restore the Angeles National Forest following the 2009 Station fires that burned 144,000 acres, the largest fire in Los Angeles County history. The announcement took place at TreePeople’s headquarters in Coldwater Canyon Park, Los Angeles. “I am grateful for the long relationship I’ve had with TreePeople,” said Victoria Principal. “Because of this enduring collaboration, I am confident that the funds I’m providing will be used for thoughtful restoration, to benefit the earth, and to support my California neighbors.”

Victoria Principal joined Jody Noiron, U.S. Forest Supervisor for the Angeles National Forest, and TreePeople founder Andy Lipkis to transplant Jeffrey pine tree seedlings originating from the devastated Angeles National Forest. “We’re grateful to Victoria Principal for her foresight and generosity in stepping forward with leadership funds to help launch TreePeople’s restoration of the Angeles National Forest after the recent fires,” said TreePeople Founder and President Andy Lipkis. “We are very excited that this lead gift will inspire others, and will enable us, together with the U.S. Forest Service, to engage thousands of volunteers to revitalize the forest so it can be healthy for generations to come and provide critical water supply, air protection, habitat and recreation.”

Victoria Principal’s donation supports TreePeople’s partnering with the U.S. Forest service to restore the fire-damaged Angeles National Forest as part of Forest Aid. Forest Aid was created after Southern California’s 2007 and 2003 wildfires where 185,000 acres burned in the San Bernardino National Forest. The partnership includes the U.S. Forest Service, the San Bernardino National Forest Association (SBNFA) and TreePeople. Forest Aid is funded by generous grants from The Walt Disney Company and The Boeing Company. For more than 20 years Victoria Principal has been one of the most generous individual donors to TreePeople’s wildfire recovery efforts. Her commitment to urban parks and national forests is a model for other Hollywood philanthropists to follow. She provided funds for the restoration plan for Griffith Park after the 2007 fire and individually funded the restoration of "Dante’s Peak." [sic]  Over the years Ms. Principal has been an activist for fire restoration, water conservation, clean air and clean oceans in California. Victoria Principal’s Angeles Forest donation will be used for tree and native species planting, invasive species removal, and community outreach and education. TreePeople is an environmental nonprofit that unites the power of trees, people and technology to grow a sustainable future for Los Angeles.

More information at www.treepeople.org or www.forestaid.net