FORT Ord Recreation Trails Friends

Welcome!

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www.FORTFriends.net


Fort Ord - FORT Friends

PO Box 1349
Marina, CA 93933 Fort Ord - FORT Friends
Ft Friends Trail Report


Learn About Fort Friends(pdf)

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 Individual/Family (Voting Membership)(pdf)
Trail Supporter(pdf)
Commercial Patron (Coming Soon)




Live link to United States National Weather Service
Click for Up-To-Date Weather Information





Rain?

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Click and See What Happens when You Ride in the Rain...

Contact Fort Ord BLM
(831) 394-8314



FORT ORD'S NEWEST TRAILHEAD



The children of Toro Park Elementary prepare to cut the ribbon to officially open Badger Hills Trailhead

The dedication ceremony for Badger Hills Trailhead was held today (3/1/13) and by all accounts was a complete success. The ceremony for the public was led by Eric Morgan, Fort Ord National Monument Manager. The new trailhead which consists of restrooms, ample paved parking, and easy trail access is among the first major accomplishments since the Fort became a National Monument last April. The crowd also included elected officials and dignitaries. Attending were individuals or representatives from the following entities; Sam Farr - U.S. Congress, Jim Kenna - BLM California Director, Dave Potter - Monterey County Supervisors, Toro Park Elementary School, BETA, MORCA, Fort Friends, KFOW, FORA, and more. The trailhead is located on Highway 68 directly across from
Toro Place Cafe Map



Badger Triplets



Like and Hike Fort Ord Badger Hills on Facebook



CONGRATULATIONS HENRI!!!



Henrietta Stern, President of FORT Friends, recipient of BLM award for service. The award was presented during ceremonies on BLM Public Lands Day.








Click to Download NEW! Fort Ord Map and Pamphlet (pdf)

Visit Fort Ord's New National Monument Website





The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

 For Immediate Release

April 20, 2012



Presidential Proclamation -- Establishment of the Fort Ord National Monument

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FORT ORD NATIONAL MONUMENT
 - - - - - - -
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION

Click to Visit Presidential Proclamation



"Before I refuse to take your questions, I have an opening statement." -Ronald Reagan



Remember this... Brown Trail Marker = Fragile Trail.

Avoid for 24 hours following inclement weather.





Henrietta Returns to Washington D.C.



Communicae From Henrietta

"I was invited to this 'White House Conference on Conservation' on March 2 and did not think much of it. However, over the past 24 hours, the Conservation Lands Foundation (CLF) folks have convinced me to attend. I learned this morning that some bigtime officials plus Monterey County politicians will be there as well as economic development/eco-tourism committee folks. I feel FORTFriends etc should be represented. This will be an opportunity to hopefully do one last push on the National Monument.

There is a very outside chance that Obama will make a brief appearance -- My Fantasy: 'Hey Mr. President, come bring your family to Fort Ord and Monterey for some outdoor fun, and bring a Proclamation with you!' You never know! :-)

Seriously, this also could be a very good chance to talk with Monterey tourism officials about potential funding for trailheads, visitor centers and other needs for the integrated trail network through tourism dollars, not just endowment funds--and to emphasize the economic value of open space. Ironically, I may have more of a chance to talk with those folks at this conference than in Monterey. And also learn from others from all over the country.

Carpe diem!!!

-Henri

***

The Visit

Read About it in the Monterey Herald

Read About it in the Monterey Herald (pdf)



Fort Ord trail users Henrietta Stern (FORT Friends), Gordon Smith (Veterans of Foreign Wars and Keep Fort Ord Wild) and Gary Courtright (MORCA, a Chapter of IMBA) were among a delegation of Monterey County representatives honored to briefly meet with President Obama at a conference in Washington DC on March 2, 2012. We each had a few seconds to urge him to approve the Fort Ord Soldiers National Monument. We also got to speak with Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and other high-ranking officials.

Letter from United States Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to DOI Staff (pdf)

DOI Livestream.com Replay



"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek." -Barack Obama





Whispering Oaks Rescinded

February 14, 2012



The FORT Friends mission statement calls for an integrated trail network, and we support win-win solutions to local issues. In the wake of the County's decision on Whispering Oaks, FORT Friends encourages MST, Monterey County and FORA to work with the local community to develop positive solutions that meet economic needs while sustaining trails and trail access. -Henri

Supes Rescind Approval of Whispering Oaks Project
The Monterey County Herald
Herald Staff
Posted: 02/14/2012 11:34:59 AM PST
February 15, 2012 12:8 AM GMT Updated: 02/14/2012 04:08:04 PM PST

By a 4-1 vote, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors overturned its earlier approval of Whispering Oaks, the 58-acre business park project on county-owned Fort Ord property. The project, which included a new Monterey-Salinas Transit headquarters, was the target of a referendum petition signed by 18,000 people and a lawsuit from LandWatch challenging the project's environmental review.

About three dozen people spoke against the site at Thursday's meeting. MST has asked for more than $800,000 back from the county as a result of the approval being rescinded.

...this forwarded from Jason

 We saved a trail! Thank you everybody who helped stop, that's right, STOP the MST project at Whispering Oaks! We did it, the Board of Supervisors did it...now it's time to find a better location for the MST facility. As I'm prone to do, I'm copying an announcement from someone more deserving and serving than me.

Kay of Sustainable Seaside

Dear All,

MST/WO is finished!! The vote was 4-1. 37 people spoke. There was a moving poem by an 8th grade student, elequent students from CSUMB, professors, teachers, lawyers, sustainability folks, blue collars, green collars, etc and all requesting the supervisors to rescind their decisions.

What a day! A true Valentine for the earth. A huge thank you to all for letters, thoughts, prayers, talking it up and showing up..today public participation made a difference. The trees sleep well tonight!

With much gratitude,

-Kay






"All my life I have tried to pluck a thistle and plant a flower wherever the flower would grow in thought and mind." -Abraham Lincoln



New! Fort Friends Legislatures List... Visit Elected Officials

New! Fort Friends Monterey County Departments List... Visit Departments





Welcome to the Fort Ord Recreation Trails (FORT) Friends website.

United by our passion for the trails and respect for the land, FORT Friends is an organization where member groups and individuals come together to achieve mutual goals as they relate to preservation and enhancement of public access to trails in the Fort Ord area. We also serve as a means for trail users to collaborate with each other as well as property managers and regulators on problem solving and win-win solutions.

FORT Friends in the News

US Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar visits Fort Ord



Mission Statement:

The mission of the FORT Friends is to cooperatively develop a comprehensive, integrated Fort Ord Trails Plan with future land owners and affected city/county planning staff to foster human-powered (non-motorized) recreation and transportation on and near the former Fort Ord, consistent with development zones and management goals to maintain the integrity of high-quality natural habitats as described in the Fort Ord Reuse Plan, city/county General Plans, and state/federal regulatory mandates for sustainable communities and environmental protection.

Contact us at answers@fortfriends.net



The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness. -John Muir





Henrietta and Gordon Smith of Keep Fort Ord Wild prepare to visit Washington. Fort Friends on the Move.

Click to Learn More





WELCOME To Monterey County Search And Rescue Dogs

Welcome to Fort Friends Website. Our friend Jim Lacalamita represented MCSARD as a Fort Friends founder. MCSARD takes its rightful place and is now a Fort Friends banner organization. Visit MCSARD at
www.MCSARD.org



A road is a dagger placed in the heart of a wilderness. -William O. Douglas, in Ghost Grizzlies





Visit Destruction of Trail One



BURMESE TRAIL OPENS ON FORT ORD

Dr Kent Adams, Director of California State University Monterey Bay Exercise Physiology Laboratory returns from a test ride on the newly opened Fort Ord Burmese Trail. The trail, near Machine Gun Flats promises to take its place among the legendary Fort Trails. "It's right up there with Blair Witch and the 49/50 complex." - one wag was overheard to say.











One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. -Shakespeare, Trollus and Cressida



Fort Ord Trailwork
"Before"
Photos by James Beam

Look at what Trail Friends working together were able to accomplish on a recent Saturday Morning



"After"



Click Here for a Photo Show of the BETA/MORCA Trailwork Day



I thought of that while riding my bicycle. -- Albert Einstein

Mountain Lion Sighting - Morning of 4/6/10

MORCA Member Anna spotted this large cat this morning while mountain biking.

Anna's description...
 "I was about half way up the first half of the grind... (Pilarcitos Canyon Road) right where they armored a few years ago. This is looking left, whereas looking right you'll see a big stump under the oaks. I had just passed that section where the oaks meet overhead and there's lots of Spanish moss, just before a little bit of hill."



"All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking." -F. Nietzsche



Hot Line for Illegal Dumping on Ft Ord - 831-883-3506



Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.
~John Muir





Today, members of BETA met with members of MORCA and spent the morning working at Fort Ord on the Goat Trail. Led by Ranger Tammy, we carpooled out to the Goat Trail midpoint and began working. We cut some water bars and did tread work to improve trail drainage. The trails are in perfect condition for working.



Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

-Robert Frost



Gigling Road - Origins

In 1917, the area known today as the East Garrison was known as the Gigling Military Reservation. The name Gigling originated from a German family that had once held title to the property in that general area. So the Fort's official title became Camp Gigling. Between the end of World War I and pre-World War II Camp Gigling was primarily used as a maneuver area for the 11th "Black Horse" Cavalry and an artillery target range for the 76th Field Artillery. Both units were stationed at the Presidio of Monterey.

By 1933 when the reservation's name was changed to Camp Ord. It's landscaping was brush covered and almost impenetrable in many places. A simple dirt and gravel road connected the East Garrison and Gigling railroad spur located on Highway #1. There was a water well, a caretaker's house in the center of the reservation and a few bivouac sites. But other than these limited improvements. No additional changes were made at Camp Ord until 1938.



"A red pony colt was looking at him out of the stall. Its ears were forward and a light of disobedience was in its eyes. Its coat was rough and thick as an airedale's fur and its mane was long and tangled. Jody's throat collapsed in on itself and cut his breath short." -- John Steinbeck (Jody's first encounter with the Red Pony)



A WORD ABOUT FORT FRIENDS
Fort Friends Established 2010
Providing Information, Intelligence and Cohesiveness to the Fort Ord Trails Community as Bicyclists, Equestrians and as Hikers with knowledge, care, and pride.