By Mandy Feder —
A man came into the office and asked me about the Konocti Trails a few months back. He said he was unable to hike the mountain and always wanted to visit Mary Downen”s cabin. He asked if it was possible to take a bus up the majestic mountain.
I told him motorized vehicles were not permitted up there at that time.
He wondered if anyone had access to a recent photo of it.
As it happens, I was on the mountain for a tour with county officials not long before and shot photos of the cabin.
I left a disk with the front desk and he picked it up.
The receptionist told me the man gave her $50 to give me “for my troubles.”
“Oh no,” I said to her. She told me she tried to follow him to the parking lot but, for someone who couldn”t hike the mountain, he sure had cat-like speed reflexes. And like that, he was gone.
I found his phone number listed and called to tell him that I needed to send him his money back.
He sort of scoffed and said, “It”s my money. I”ll do what I want with it.”
I finally got him to agree to take it back.
This week he came in and held up a beautiful painting he commissioned an artist to create from the photo.
I was so happy he brought it in to share.
He then told me he had something for me in his car and when he returned he handed me a smaller framed version of the work of art complete with a museum-style nameplate.
I was happy to report to him that I went with the park docents on a trial run with Lake Transit Authority (LTA).
Docent Tom Nixon stood at the front of the bus and shared an immense amount of history and information as we ascended the dusty road.
Everybody should see the meadows, the mighty Canyon Oak tree that is approximately 500-plus-year-old immense oak tree, “Mary”s cabin,” wildflowers, remnants from the plane crash in the 1970s and the breathtaking panoramic view.
Euvelle Howard chose to be buried on Mount Konocti. Howard was responsible for changing the name of the mountain back to its original Indian name after 60 years as “Uncle Sam.”
On Tuesday the Board of Supervisors will discuss the possibility of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the County of Lake and LTA to allow the initiation, on a pilot basis, of limited seasonal bus trips by pre-paid reservations to the county”s newest park, Mount Konocti.
The MOU was approved by LTA at its board meeting on May 9.
Many of the people who are requesting access to the mountain are not all physically capable of making the six-mile round trip hike.
They would like to visit the mountain they”ve seen from afar.
I was aboard when the route was tested to ensure LTA was capable of navigating the road safely.
It was a pretty smooth ride.
Buses will be ADA-equipped and radio-equipped to provide maximum accessibility and safety.
The county stepped up to the plate to preserve this area of beauty and history and it”s my hope that all members of the public can experience it with all of their senses.
When I see Downen”s humble cabin where she chose to live, I reflect on Henry David Thoreau”s passion for Walden, a place where everyone was welcomed, where slaves would find safety and fences did not exclude any human or animal.
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” ? Henry David Thoreau
Mandy Feder is the Managing Editor at Lake County Publishing. She can be reached at mandyfeder@yahoo.com or 263-5636 ext. 32. Follow on Twitter @mandyfeder1.
Editor”s note: On Monday I received not one, but two calls from a man who said he is my “biggest fan.”
I heard on my voicemail: “I look forward to every Friday and I wish you wrote a column seven days a week.”
I am not writing this to brag, I promise. He gave me a great idea for an article and I really wanted to talk to him about it. The problem is, sometimes my phone has issues and the message was cut off both times and I didn”t get his full name or complete phone number. So, a message to my biggest fan: Thank you so much for making my Monday awesome and please call me back.
