Meet You at the Park

Another Day in the Park?     

No it is not just another day in the park. Today I am meeting with Gae Henry and Henry Bornstein with Anderson Marsh Interpretive Association (AMIA). We’re meeting at the park, and it is a glorious day! Just a bit of overcast, which has made the day not too hot. Just perfect!

Gae and Henry joined AMIA even before they moved here in 2007. The two had been visiting the area for years. They even managed Wilbur Hot Springs before finding the perfect fit in Lake County. They fell in love with Anderson Marsh State Park because of the closeness you become with the wildlife here.

Kayaking Clear Lake and Cache Creek allows them to access Anderson Marsh’s water trails. Both the land and water trails have brought them up close to golden eagle, river otters, beavers, white pelican, acorn woodpeckers, cormorants, wood ducks, green herons, black tailed deer, black shouldered kite, and osprey. They even rescued a pelican once from fishing line!

Anderson Marsh holds magic here; one feels a connection with the land, wildlife and history. It is evident as you stand in the presence of the Anderson House. The Grigsby brothers built the house in 1855. In 1866 a dam was built on Cache Creek.   The next two years of heavy rain caused extensive flooding.  After unsuccessful litigation, a group of vigilantes destroyed the dam.  The Grisgbys eventually sold the property to the water company in 1870. After 15 years as an Agricultural research station (what could grow in an area that periodically flooded?) the property was sold to the Anderson family in 1886, who added onto the Ranch house then, and in 1923 when electricity came to Lake County. Mora Anderson, who arrived from Scotlandwith her family as an 8 year old was the  last Anderson to live in the house. She passed on in 1966. In 1983, Anderson Marsh became part of the State Park system.

Now visitors can enjoy many environments within the park, and at special events can take tours of the interior of the historic Ranch house. These tours are provided by AMIA volunteers who have been providing funding and services for the park since 1984. AMIA will sponsor three major events this year:

Old Fashioned Day in Your Park in June

Local bluegrass bands performed. There were tours of the historic Ranch House, guided Nature Walks and old-fashioned games for kids, including sack and wheel barrow races. The Lower Lake High School Culinary Program had sausages, chili and drinks for sale.

Old Time Bluegrass Festival, September 12

This year’s Festival features national bluegrass artists Laurie Lewis & Nina Gerber and Susie Glaze and the Hilonesome Band plus local favorites like Pat Ikes and Bound to Ride. A fun, family event, this is a community benefit, helping support education and preservation activities at the Marsh, and also generates funds for local schools, youth and service groups. 

Christmas at the Ranch December 12

Experience a Victorian Christmas with your children in the Historic Ranch House. Gather in the parlor in front of the fire for Christmas music performed by local musicians. Sing Christmas carols and visit with Santa Claus.

AMIA partners with Children’s Museum of Art & Science (CMAS) to organize educational day camps and field trips for Lake County youth to learn from Anderson Marsh. It is here you can see our recent European history, those who have immigrated here as pioneers. There are several Native American archeological sites which share the Pomo history dating back over 10,000 years right here in Anderson Marsh. One of the highest concentrations of archeological sites in California is found in the park.  Evidence points to continuous occupation of the area by pre-historic people from 10,000 years ago until the first European contact in the 1800’s and to the present.  My family has lived here in Lake County eight years. There are families who live here in Lake County who can say their family has lived here 10,000 years. That is just amazing to me. It was only when taking a hike with retired ranger Tom Nixon who shared with us on a measuring tape the difference between Europeans settling here (he pulled out the measuring tape about 2 inches) and how long the Native Americans have lived here (he then walked across the yard with the measuring tape fully extended). I needed to see the time distance visually to fully understand the magnitude of the difference. I find this fascinating! 

There is so much we can gain from visiting Anderson Marsh. The park protects several habitats including freshwater marsh, oak woodland, grasslands, and riparian woodland. The Marsh constitutes the major remaining portion of Clear Lake’s wetland ecosystem and is one of the most important fish spawning areas on the lake.  It is the combination of these habitats with the continuous habitation by humans that make Anderson Marsh so special.

Anderson Marsh State Historic Park is unique in many ways.  One way it is unique is that “it was really acquired through a grassroots effort,”said former Ranger Bill Beat in 1983.  “The broad-based local support was unusual and it was because of this support that the land was purchased.”

AMIA is working toward the vision of a Discovery Center – currently AMIA is establishing a space in the South Barn to enable them to continue to host student field trips and provide a place to show visitors some of the history of the area.  AMIA is also coordinating a group of volunteers to staff the Ranch house for tours on weekends during the summer months. 

Just this week, the Governor announced a new proposal to eliminate state funding for our state park system – which will close over 200 state parks, including Anderson Marsh. His proposal to cut $143 million from our state parks is 10 times worse than last year’s proposal.

The Budget Conference Committee voted to adopt a State Park Access Pass that would institute a $15 surcharge on California vehicle license fees that would then allow free day-use access to parks within the system.

Elizabeth Goldstein, president of the California State Park Foundation, stated to the press this week, that not only will the State Park Access Pass keep the open to the public, they also serve as a valuable source of revenue for the state.

“In these tough times, Californians are choosing high-value, low cost options for spending their financial resources,” says Goldstein.  “The Committee recognized that closing state parks won’t save money, it will cost the state dearly.”  Visitors to California state parks spend nearly $4.2 billion dollars annually.

The proposal will still need to be passed by Legislature as part of the budget bill and be approved by Governor Schwarzenegger before going into affect.

Up to forty Washington State parks faced a similar fate earlier this year and were saved by a similar fee tagged onto vehicle license renewals.

If you are interested in more information about the State Park Access Pass, you can visit www.calparks.org/park-access/state-park-access-pass_faq.pdf

For information about Anderson Marsh you can call 707.995.2658 or visit online at www.andersonmarsh.org.