High-Marking Blinn Ranch Trail

Today I took an 11-mile hike on the east and north sides of Santa Margarita Lake (Salinas Reservoir) within the Santa Margarita Lake Park boundaries. The temperature was unseasonably mild but nonetheless warm. For years I had never traversed the Blinn Ranch Trail beyond a certain point and today I significantly breached that boundary. Most of the images shown here (all but the first two) were taken in the "new" territory.

There are Native America grinding holes in some nearby rock formations including just to the left of this image.

When I was here last spring at this very spot there was clear, standing water of significant depth.

This is the view east showing Blinn Ranch Trail

The eastward extension of the lake is a mere ribbon of water.

I've always seen these interesting rock formations from the main area of the park on the south side but today I was actually with them.

There are many rigorous ups and downs for most of Blinn Ranch Trail.

This image was captured from atop one of the rock formation pictured elsewhere in this column.

As you can well see this is extreme fire country due to the terrain and the fuels and now add our ongoing drought.

Note the rock formations all tilted up diagonally in the same orientation.

Currently this reservoir is at 26.7 % capacity.

These pine trees are "Gray Pines" formerly called "Digger Pines".

These are old riverine deposits forming the most interesting rock formation I encountered all day.
All photos by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

A Christmas Public Service Announcement

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas!

"51 in Quarters"

Today I had the privilege of attending the "51 in Quarters" Emergency! TV series reunion at Los Angeles County Fire Department Station #127 in Carson, CA. This event was hosted by the Los Angeles County Fire Museum located in Bellflower, CA. This event served multiple functions. It was a fundraiser for the museum and the first public reunion for the fans and two cast-members as well as with the original Squad 51 and both Engine 51's used in the series, to wit, both the older open-cab engine as well as the newer closed-cab engine). The closed-cab engine which was the more famous of the two was only just finished being fully restored within days of this event. In attendance was series leading man Randolph Mantooth who played the character of. paramedic Johnny Gage and Mike Stoker  who was a real firefighter with LACoFD but who had a Screen Actor's Guild card and appeared as himself. A series of speeches was made early on during the assembly by various local pubahs most of which were not particularly memorable. However, Randolph Mantooth and LACoFD Chief Daryl Osby gave superb and memorable and weighty speeches well worth listening to which I hope show up on Youtube at some point. It is worth noting that Chief Osby is the first LACoFD chief who came up through the paramedic program as well as being the first black chief. I stood in line with my companions and got a couple of their memorabilia items autographed by both Mantooth and Stoker. Mantooth was the more outgoing and effusive of the two but both were friendly and affable even after many hours of signing autographs and shaking people's hands and having to small-talk with perfect strangers.

223rd Street in Carson was partially shut down for this assembly.

Westward view on 223rd Street.

Eastward view on 223rd Street.

Station #127 from the middle 223rd Street in Carson, CA.

Looking west from in front of the station.

R.A. Cinader was the true creator of and driving force behind the show.

Two LACoFD firefighters dressed in the uniform of the time period of the show.

Classic ambulance model from the 1950's through 1960's.

Fully restored LACoFD Rescue 11.

The original close-cabbed "Engine 51"

LACoFD Explorers mill around behind older Engine #51.

Back view of the station which oft-appeared in the TV show.

Hundreds of fans waited for hours to purchase memorabilia and get autographs.

Quintessential Southern California backdrop... date palms.

Interior of the station's recreation room.

Kitchen area that was oft the center of social interaction in the TV show.

Fire department patches rim the margins of the old wall map oft-seen in the TV series.

Squad #51 was restored about a decade ago.

Newer Engine #51 fully-restored to its original glory.

LACoFD Engine #127 from Station #127 which was Station #51 in the TV show.

LACoFD Ladder #127 parked on 223rd Street to make room for the event.

Static display of various LACoFD apparatus across the street from Station #127.

LACoFD Mobile Air/Light Unit #115

LACoFD hybrid crew bus.

LACoFD Urban Search & Rescue Squad #103

LACoFD Urban Search & Rescue #103

LACoFD Engine #10 (Carson)

LACoFD Hazardous Materials Squad #105

LACoFD Hazardous Materials Squad #105

LACoFD Heavy Rescue #103

Close-up of seal on Heavy Rescue #103

Close-up of Heavy Rescue #103.

LACoFD Mobile Incident Command Post #2

LACoFD Command #2

Interior of LACoFD Mobile Command Post

Live image of outside from tower cam on top of vehicle.

The men

LACoFD's OES Engine #8134

Air Squad #11 approaching the scene of the assembly.

Air Squad #11 became another part of the static display of apparatus.

A genuine medical aid occurred at the static apparatus display.

An ambulance was dispatched to the scene for a heat stroke.

Squad #36 was also dispatched to the scene.

As the hours passed the line never seemed to shorten.

The crowd milling around greatly thinned by mid-afternoon.

For most of the day the station garage was packed with people.

By the afternoon the crowd thinned even while the line did not.

An endless procession of people posed by the primary movie props.

All photos by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).