Photo by Earl McKee “Blossom Peak” from Bar-O-Ranch

You know you are from Three Rivers when…

…you got a wave from Grandma Vines when you drove by and if you stopped you could get fresh eggs…and when you try something on at the Thingere and when you look in the mirror you realize you donated it………………………………………………………………….Sage Lee

…speaking of the Carnival earlier, who remembers the steam engine coming out of the wall on one of the original old school buildings that was painted by Bill Jones? It remained there until the buildings were torn down…sniff, sniff, sob……………………………………………………………………………………………………..Don Stivers

…you spend a small fortune to feed and keep the wild life in your yard…..when you spend a small fortune to keep the wild life out of your garden…………………………………………………………………………………..Maria Partin

…a Christmas Eve memory involves tying fishing line to Santa’s arm and making him wave to cars going by (almost caused Mike Scott to crash…again!)……………Jay O’Connell

…when you can ride your horse to the Three Rivers Market bareback, barefoot, and in a swimsuit…………………………………………………………………………..Megan Thorn

….You knew all the names of the plants and wild flowers before you knew your ABCs……………………………………………………………..Lindsay Boley Hendrix

…the Valley Oak Credit Union was in Gene and Marian Gray’s office at their house…Bob and I had just gotten married….had no credit at all…..found a car we wanted….drove it to the office….Gene came out and looked at the car….said it looked good to him…..we signed a 1 PAGE contract….he cut us a check on the spot! …………………………………………………………………….Kathy Johnson

…you tell someone you live in front of the rock house on Old Three Rivers Road………………………………………………………..Kathryn Frey Ramsey



…you only have 13 kids in your eighth grade graduation class………………..Michael Scott

…when every girl in the 8th grade was a cheer leader……………………..Sandy Wilson Myers

…when your dad not only gave hitch-hikers a lift, but actually brought them home to set up camp in the pasture…and you can walk 2 1/2 miles barefoot on hot pavement to get to the hot rocks that lead to your favourite swimming hole, and hardly flinch. (Feet of steel, thanks Three Rivers!)………………………………………….Deirdre Ohlwein Wolfgang



…I addressed a postcard with “Grandma and Grandpa, Three Rivers” and it was delivered to them!…and the local artists were Henrietta Siodmak, Eleanor Marshal, Jean Caulfeild, Frank Treuting, Jeri Crosby, Lorraine Young, Rosemary Packard, Carroll Barnes, Red Whitson, Lidabelle Wylie… and the weavers were at the Loom Room!………………………………………………………………..Sarah Barton Elliott



…A Farkle Burger and a Beer with an olive in it…. Sounds good…and the Post Office was next to the Three Rivers Market and there was only one Mail Lady for the whole town…. Lora… Loved her. She was my hero and my inspiration……………………………….Lori Bauman



…[you got a] short stack at the  Nosiy Water Cafe for 99 cents…I miss that place, home of the humming bird………………………………………………………………………………….Esther Garcia

….you know there’s a difference between the largest living thing and the tallest living thing…………………………………………………………………………………………………..Jay Emerson

…you are driving into Three Rivers and you are not driving around the lake but along the river where the lake bed is now………………………………………………………………..Elsah Cort

….when you get a week off of school each year just because you can’t cross a flooded bridge………………………………………………………………………………………Stephanie Noel Qullen

…Harold Kluck [rode] his pony cart down North Fork to town !!!!! There wasn’t much traffic then !!! …………………………………………………………………………………….Judy Onstot Will

…when walking up the slide at slicky was as much fun as going down it & when riding the rapids on the Kaweah without a raft was second nature……………………Alyssum Root

…when you miss being there!!! And ALL your FRIENDS!! ……………………Deonna Gardner

Visit the new Sierra Nevada Geotourism MapGuide.

The Sierra Nevada Conservancy and Sierra Business Council have partnered with the National Geographic Society to capture the history and heritage of the Sierra Nevada Region through an interactive Web site and print map. The Sierra Nevada Geotourism Project seeks to celebrate the Sierra Nevada as a world-class destination, while contributing to the economic health of the region by promoting sustainable tourism. History buffs and adventurers, backpackers and foodies, birders and sightseers can discover unique destinations based on recommendations from those who know best—residents of the Sierra Nevada.

Sierra residents and visitors, community organizations, tourism stakeholders and local businesses nominate sites for inclusion in a print MapGuide and interactive Web site. Unlike any other mapping project, a favorite local restaurant, farm, winery, hiking or biking trail, swimming hole, museum or artist gallery are samples of the type of nominations National Geographic and its project partners will be seeking. The web site will target a variety of growing travel niches—adventure and nature tourism, cultural heritage travel and agritourism—and allow for residents to select the one-of-a-kind places integral to a distinctive character of place.

The 38th Annual Redbud Arts and Crafts Festival will be held on May 7-8, 2011.
Saturday hours are from 10-5 pm, and Sunday hours are from 10-4 pm.

It is held at the Lions Roping Arena in Three Rivers, California. See directions here.

Moro Rock with redbud trees in bloom via Sequoia National Park website

From the National Park Foundation:  “Join us April 16th–24th as America celebrates National Park Week – a chance to hike, learn, share, and give back in the nation’s 394 national parks. Take this opportunity to come out and discover, or re-discover, 84 million acres of the world’s most spectacular scenery, historic landmarks and cultural treasures.

National Park Week is a chance for all Americans to experience the majesty of the national park system for FREE. Visit any of America’s national parks and enjoy free admission all week long!

Together, we are owners, protectors and lovers of this land. Whether you are visiting, volunteering or interested in sharing your national park experience with the world, below you will find all the resources you need to make your National Park Week experience a memorable one.”

Sequoia National Park is offering a Junior Ranger Family Event on Saturday, April 16, from 11am to 3 pm at Hospital Rock.  Families will check in at the Hospital Rock Picnic Area’s event information booth where participants will receive an activity sheet. Kids and families will stop at 6 or more stations, complete the related activities (of their choice), and obtain a stamp for each station. Kids and families will turn in their activity sheets at the event information booth, where they originally started. The ranger at event info booth will provide each child with a Sequoia and Kings Canyon Junior Ranger activity book. The event activities are equal to completion of one activity – attendance at a ranger-led program – in the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Junior Ranger activity book.

Another view of Moro Rock from the Middle Fork Trail in Sequoia National Park.

Actor, William Shatner, has graciously offered to share his beautiful Belle Reve Ranch for this one day special event. Guests will be able to visit his riverside Indian spirit gar…den and Little Grant’s Grove, in their beautiful natural settings along the South Fork of the Kaweah River.

Local artists, musicians, and a “Taste of Three Rivers,” provided by local restaurants will be offered at each garden, along with volunteers and docents, via the local Redbud Garden Club, will help guide you through the garden.

You can also enjoy the local wildflower bloom along your way.

The other five gardens on the Hidden Gardens Tour include
•a tropical garden, with hand-carved tikis, waterfalls, and an outdoor movie theater;
• an authentic early California garden and lavender farm, on a property with an historic adobe home
•a traditional terraced English country garden, complete with art studio and sunset views
•an expansive riverside garden, adjacent to a stunning South Fork waterfall, with a tour of the owners’ home, which was designed and built to the North Star
• a spiritual retreat garden where lawn and flowers meet oaks and granite.

Tickets are $35 each, available at Chumps in Three Rivers or online at trusfoundation.org. You will be able to exchange your ticket for a packet with a name badge, map and directions to each garden a week before the Tour at the Three Rivers Union School from 4-5:30 pm on Mon-Fri, or at Chump’s from 11-8 pm. Packets will also be available on the day of the Tour from 10- 1 pm at the school. Both Chump’s and the school are located on Hwy 198 in Three Rivers.

For more information, call Pam Lockhart at 559-471-6624.

All programs are free and open to the public, and will be held at the Three Rivers Arts Center on North Fork Drive in Three Rivers.

 

SATURDAY, JANUARY 29, 2011  7-8 pm
Climate is Changing and So Must We
Accelerated changes in climate and its impacts to water and ecosystems are already being observed in many parts of our planet, including the Southern Sierra Nevada, and more are projected. In the face of these unprecedented global changes, past conditions no longer provide us with sensible management targets. What are land managers to do? The future is uncertain, forcing us to think and act in fundamentally new ways. Koren Nydick, Science Coordinator, will address what the National Park Service and Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are doing to meet this challenge head-on.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2011   7-8 pm
Shifting Water Dynamics in the Sierra Nevada National Parks and their Consequences
Meet Jennie Skancke, the Sierra Network’s new physical scientist, and discover what profound implications warming temperatures and shifts from snow to rain in the Sierra Nevada will have for resources in the national parks and for state water management. Find out how anticipating and documenting these changes will allow the National Park Service resource managers and state water managers to focus their restoration or protection efforts.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2011   7-8 pm
Fire in the National Park Service: An Evolving Relationship
Patterns of fire occurrence in the Sierra Nevada are governed by biological factors, such as plant species composition and fuel production, and environmental and physical factors, such as topography, weather, and climate. Global climate change is likely to cause changes to these patterns. Tony Caprio, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park’s fire ecologist will look at past and contemporary patterns and consider how they may change in the future.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2011  7-8 pm
Taking the Long View: park biologists and citizen scientists working together to monitor alpine plant communities
Join Park Plant Ecologist, Sylvia Haultain, on a stunning photographic tour of the plants and animals that live above treeline. She will highlight the parks’ participation in the international Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments (GLORIA) network and the newly established High Sierra monitoring sites in the Mt. Langley area. Discover an exciting new program that engages you, citizen scientists, in documenting changes in the timing of life cycle events of local plants. Your observations can contribute to our understanding of local climate change effects.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2011  7-8 pm
A Legacy of Joseph Grinnell: predicting the future from the record of the past
Joseph Grinnell, the founding director of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at UC-Berkeley and an influential naturalist of the early 20th century, began his career at the museum with this vision: “…the greatest purpose of our museum…will not be realized until the lapse of many years, possibly a century…and this is that the student of the future will have access to the original record of vertebrate conditions in California.” Grinnell’s vision stemmed from his concern for the loss of nature habitats, but today we also face climate change.
Join Jim Patton, Curator and Professor Emeritus, from the University of California, Berkeley in his discussion of the Grinnell Resurvey Project. This project began in 2003 and centered along the length of the Sierra Nevada as a realization of Grinnell’s early vision. He will detail the changes in range distributions of small mammals and birds over the past century, discuss the potential forces underlying these shifts, and address the likely future for several of our most iconic terrestrial vertebrate species.

For more information, please call 559-565-4212.
Image source: nps.gov/seki

Tow truck via Pat O’Connell….
Santa courtesy of kindness, fun and imagination.

(photo source www.darnton.ws/~Pat_O’Connell)

“Pat owned three different service stations in the LA area, the last one being a Mobil station on the corner of Slauson and La Brea in Inglewood, CA. He was looking to leave because, frankly, he was sick of LA and thought there must be a better place to live and raise kids. Try to remember (those of you who were here at the time) what LA was like in the early ’60′s: most days the smog was so bad you could barely see one block, and breathing was a life-threatening experience. Only we older guys know: it’s actually a LOT better now.

Pat researched opportunities as far away as the Four Corners area and was close to making an offer on a station in Kaibab, AZ, north of the Grand Canyon, when he learned that the average snowfall there in winter is eight feet. This put him off, so he kept looking, with a preference for mountainous areas. He found what he wanted in Three Rivers, which, if you look on a map (or Google Earth) is about the same size as Kaibab, and I mean small. He and his wife sold the Inglewood station in 1964 and came the 225 miles north to move into a house on the property that was built in 1946. His wife died in 2005 after a long battle with cancer, and Pat has carried on alone. He told me that he never realized until after she died how much work women do to keep a house!” via the Darton Family Website

Pat O’Connell’s service station circa 2005

Pat O’Connell retired from his towing service in 2008…
read article in Kaweah Commonwealth.

The 25th annual Holiday Bazaar, sponsored by Three Rivers Senior League, will be held on Saturday, November 20, from 9-4 pm at the Three Rivers Memorial Building. It will offer more than 50 booths featuring handmade gifts, hot food, drinks, a bake sale and an auction and door prizes.

November 26-27:   Perfect Gift Boutique in Three Rivers

Six local artists will participate to provide the opportunity to find the perfect gift for everyone on their holiday shopping list. Sponsored by the Kaweah Artisans. Free admission.  Open from 10-4 pm at the Three Rivers Arts Center on North Fork Drive. Call 559-561-1307.

Three Rivers master handweaver, Nikki Crain, will be one of the artists exhibiting.

December 4:  First Saturday Arts Event

To learn more about this monthly event with local artists, see First Sat blog.

December 11: Holiday Music Concert in Three Rivers

The second of 6 concerts in the 2010/2011 Winter Concert Series, brought to you live by Three Rivers Performing Arts Institute (TRPAI), is the Holiday Concert featuring the College of the Sequoia (COS) Chamber Singers,  at 7 pm at Community Presbyterian Church, located at 43410 Sierra Dr (Hwy 198) in Three Rivers. Tickets are $12 each, or $72 for the series of 6 concerts, available at Chumps Video located at 41707 Sierra Dr (Hwy 198) in Three Rivers. For more information on this concert or TRPAI, call Bill Haxton at 559-561-0300.

December 12: Nation’s Christmas Tree Celebration in Grant Grove

The Sanger Chamber of Commerce sponsors the annual Christmas “Trek to the Tree” on the second Sunday of December at 2:30 pm. For more information, contact them at 559-875-4575.

This tree has inspired thousands of people including the late Charles E. Lee of Sanger, California. In 1924 he visited what was then General Grant National Park, and found himself standing by the Grant Tree with a little girl. As they admired the huge tree, the girl exclaimed, “what a wonderful Christmas tree it would be!”

The idea stayed with Mr. Lee, and in 1925 he organized the first Christmas program, held at the Grant Tree at noon on Christmas Day. Mr. Lee, then secretary of the Sanger Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. R.J. Senior, president of the Chamber, conceived the idea of an annual ceremony. Mr. Lee wrote to President Calvin Coolidge, who designated the General Grant as the Nation’s Christmas Tree on April 28, 1926.

It will be a day of food, fun, music, and history. And, best of all, the centennial event will help raise funds for the preservation of the historic post office. A wholesome experience awaits all who attend this Centennial Celebration where past and present meet…

Read the rest of this article by Brian Rothhammer at the Kaweah Commonwealth.
(Scroll down for second article at this link.)

Print from an original ink drawing by the late Pauline Whitsun,
a well known and beloved Three Rivers artist,
who used to organize group exhibitions at her Apple House gallery
on the North Fork in the 50′s and 60′s.
(photo source: group facebook page to Save the Kaweah Post Office)

painting by Paul Buxman

The Three Rivers Environmental Weekend was started four years ago, and is organized by the local group which calls itself the TREW Crew, led by Three Rivers artist, Mona Fox Selph.

The Green Faire, on October 2,  has designated “Food and Farming” as its main theme. Several presentations on this theme will be made during the Saturday event.  At 9:30 am,  Dr. Donald Mosley will speak on grass fed beef and other food animals, with additional information on organic gardening. He will share his personal story of transitioning from a dental practice in San Diego to a farmer in Three Rives, now practicing biodynamic farming and gardening with his wife Terez.

At 11 am, Paul Buxman, internationally known organic farmer and plein air artist from Dinuba, will speak on his 40 years’ experience as a farmer on his “Sweet Home Ranch.” His dedication to discovering clean, sustainable farming methods has influenced people world wide.  His farm has been the subject of many documentaries, including National Geographic, PBS, Sixty Minutes, Bill Moyers, CBS Nightly News, California Heartland, Canadian Public Broadcasting, Australian Public Broadcasting, and many local news broadcasts. Paul’s art has also had a strong impact on many people in America, not just collectors but painters as well. He teaches and “preaches” simplicity and honesty as key to great art. He encourages others to paint what they know. He says, “Paintings should be a visual autobiography. Paint those subjects with which you are most intimately acquainted.” Paul’s paintings have been displayed in the Senate Chambers, both in California and in Washington, D. C. The Green Faire is proud to also be displaying some of his paintings. Paul will bring his viola for a little music at the end of his program, accompanied on piano by his wife, Ruth, who will also be selling her homemade, organic jams.

At 1:15 pm, there will a preview showing of “Artists of the Great Western Divide”, a masterful short documentary created by the students of Reedley College. This thirty minute film features the founders of the Kaweah Land and Arts Festival, which will have it’s 2nd annual Festival on November 5-7, 2010. The film’s producer, Diran Lyons, will be on hand to introduce it, as well as artist Matthew Rangel who appears in the film.

At 2 pm, the Alta Peak Chapter of the California Native Plant Society will present its Fall Program called “What’s Cooking in the Foothills 600 Years Ago? Native Americans and Our Local Native Plants”, presented by Mary Gorden.  Have you ever wondered if you could survive without all the comforts you now enjoy? It is hard to imagine what life was like many years ago. Six hundred years ago the people in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and foothills lived a comfortable life. Historic evidence indicates that hunter-gatherers did about everything that farmers do, but they probably didn’t work as hard. Speaker, Mary Gorden, is a retired teacher who taught elementary and high school, in addition to college classes for teachers in history and archaeology. The class on “Native Plants and Their Uses” was the product of her research of early ethnographers in the San Joaquin Valley who recorded the culture of the Native Americans. Mary also worked as an archaeological assistant for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Following the CNPS Fall Program, Christina Roper Graber, lecturer on anthropology at California State Fresno, will continue the discussion of the fascinating subject of the local native people’s use of our local landscape’s plants and animals before the arrival of European settlers, including examples of some artifacts and their applications.

The Green Faire will be full of other things to see, and interesting information to know as well.  In addition to the morning native plant sale outside, a solar cooking demonstration will be featured, along with what’s new in home solar panels, art from natural and recycled materials, and green home products and practices.

Inside the Arts Center, many books will be available for perusal and purchase.  Local author Dr. Louise Jackson will be present to autograph her latest book, The Sierra Nevada Before History, Ancient Landscapes, Early Peoples.  Also present will be local author, painter, and poet, Sylvia Ross, with her two children’s books, Lion Singer and Blue Jay Girl. Local poet and cowboy, John Dofflemyer, will be on hand with his wonderful collection of poetry books. John Spivey’s book, The Great Western Divide, will also be for sale at the local author’s table.

The Tulare County Master Gardeners will be there with lots of helpful gardening information. The Three Rivers Arts Alliance will be selling California poppy seeds to support their art scholarship fund for area youth.  Spotted Owl researcher, Lori Werner, will share an owl display of interest to both children and adults. Local green builders will have a table with information on how to build and remodel using green resources. Family Farm Fresh will present some of their home delivery local produce, and information on Three Rivers’ Flora Bella Farm’s organic items will be on hand.  Both the California Native Plant Society and the Sequoia Natural History Association will have large displays. Tulare County Citizens for Responsible Growth, and a number of other information booths, will fill the Arts Center for the day.  A drawing for free door prizes will take place at 4:30 pm.

On Sunday, October 3, The Green Home Tour will visit five homes in Three Rivers as part of the American Solar Energy Society’s annual national solar tour.  All of the homes are either active or passive solar powered or assisted. Many homes incorporate recycled materials, earth forms and other natural materials, as well as green practices during construction and in use.  Besides being innovative, they are quite beautiful.  One of the homes this year, known locally as “the glass house” was Sunset Magazine’s small space winner for 2009-2010.

Reservations are required for the afternoon home tour. Tickets are $15 per person, or $25 per couple, with the proceeds going to the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund for specific legal support for the recent process of revising the Tulare County General Plan, supporting responsible growth instead of sprawl.  Call 561-4676 to reserve a place, with one of two tour groups. One starts at 12 noon, the other at 1 pm.