Work is under way on the second phase of Corral Trail Enhancement Project in partnership with TAMBA and the U.S. Forest Service. This means more berms jumps and rollers.

Volunteers are needed to help with the work and donations to help cover some of the costs. Trail days are June 23, June 25 and June 27. Meet at 9am at the lower parking lot. Wear study shoes, long pants and long sleeves. Bring a bike and helmet to test ride. The day ends at 4pm, but working only part of the time is fine.

The new Snapdragon Trail in Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park is expected to be done by mid-July.

People are needed to work on the trail June 24. Meet at 9am behind the Tunnel Creek Cafe in Incline Village. It’s a three mile 4-wheel drive caravan-carpool up to the worksite. Bring a bike and helmet if you want to leave early. Trail days will go to about 3pm. Bring a lunch and water and wear long sleeves and long pants.

By Associated Press

FRESNO — Three California irrigation districts sued the state on Friday, claiming officials overstepped their authority by ordering farmers with some of the strongest water rights to stop pumping from some rivers during the drought.

The legal challenges came from three districts that provide water to farmers in the San Joaquin River watershed — prime California farmland that relies on the river to produce a significant portion of the nation’s fruits, nuts and vegetables.

The districts allege the state Water Resources Control Board threatened them with financial ruin and violated their rights last week when it sent orders to 114 water users that hold senior water rights dating back to 1914 and earlier.

“This is our water,” Oakdale Irrigation District general manager Steve Knell said in a statement. “We firmly believe in that fact and we are willing to take on the state bureaucracy to protect that right.”

Peter Rietkerk of the Patterson Irrigation District said the walnut and almond orchards of growers could wither and die, costing them half-a-billion dollars.

George Kostyrko, a spokesman for the state Water Resources Control Board, declined to comment, saying the agency will respond in court.

California is enduring its driest four-year period in recorded history. The water board action marked the first time since a 1977 drought that California has directed a significant number of senior water rights holders to stop pumping.

The South San Joaquin Irrigation District in Manteca and Patterson Irrigation District also filed lawsuits. The Banta-Carbona Irrigation District in Tracy filed a day earlier.

“I can only think they do not understand the devastation their actions will cause in our district and in the local economy,” Rietkerk said of state officials.

Sections of highways 49, 70, 89 and 267 will be used during USA Cycling junior national road races on June 24. Motorists should expect delays throughout the day.

There will be seven races for the various age groups starting at 7:30am and concluding at about 8:30pm.

On the shortest course, 70 km, riders will start in Loyalton and finish at Northstar. The longer courses will start and finish at Northstar and race along Highway 89 into Sierra County, loop around and then head back on Highway 89 toward Truckee onto Highway 267. Delays could be up to one hour for motorists traveling Highway 89 between Truckee and Sierraville.

Electronic message boards have been placed along the routes advising motorists of the delays. The California Highway Patrol will provide traffic control during the races, which will include rolling closures of intersections as cyclists come through.

For more information, go online.

By Dale Kasler and Phillip Reese, Sacramento Bee

A group of water districts sued California regulators Friday over the state’s order prohibiting holders of some of the oldest water rights from pumping water out of rivers and streams.

The lawsuit, filed in Stanislaus Superior Court, challenges the State Water Resources Control Board’s decision last week to ban diversions by 114 different rights holders in the Sacramento and San Joaquin river watersheds.

The affected groups are senior water rights holders. That means they’ve held the right to divert water since before 1914, when California established its rights system. Last week’s decision by the water board marked the first time since the drought of 1977 that any senior rights have been curtailed.

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Robert McClain Bellemore

On June 17, 2015, Robert McClain Bellemore passed away at Carson Tahoe Hospital in the company of his family at the age of 76 and a half.

Robert was born on Jan. 5, 1939, in Toledo, Ohio, to Capt. Douglas Hamilton Bellemore and Margaret Stewart Bellemore.

While attending high school in Boston and Summit, N.J., he discovered his talent in sales. In 1964 he moved to the Tahoe-Carson area where he started his family and began his automobile sales career. He owned several used car lots in South Lake Tahoe and Gardnerville, as well as a Chevrolet dealership in Yerington. He earned his customers’ respect as a fair and honest car dealer.

Bob was a longtime member of Kiwanis and later Rotary International. He was an avid car collector. He enjoyed boating on Lake Tahoe, long drives in western Nevada and hiking in the Sierra with those close to him.

The man who enjoyed fast cars, rare steaks and big cigars will be remembered as an engaging storyteller and a person who brought humor into the lives of the people he cared for.

He is survived by his wife Linda; his brother David and his wife Judy Bellemore; his three children, Robert Bellemore, Brian Bellemore and Patricia Alexander; and his grandchildren Mitch Chambers, Melody Lococo, Melinda Champion, Carson, Malia and Savanna Alexander.

A celebration of his life will be at Carson Valley United Methodist Church, 1375 Centerville Lane, Gardnerville on June 26 at 2pm.

By KOLO-TV

Evacuation calls were sent out to more than 28,000 people in the North Lake Tahoe area during an evacuation drill June . Yet, only 8,100 people were actually contacted.

According to fire officials, two main lessons were learned from the exercise. First the call only went out in English.

Second lesson was the call did not come from a 775 area code.

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By Steven Petrow, New York Times

Leap Year Day, 1986: I drove up to a ramshackle house in Berkeley to pick out my first dog. It was a month before my two-year cancer anniversary, at which point I would be considered “cured,” and I was ready to make a commitment – to life, longevity and a puppy.

In a local paper I had seen an ad for a litter of cocker spaniels; among the nine pups I watched the runt get trampled over and pushed aside from the kibble. Too small for the forces stacked against her, but determined to stay in the game, the little female struck a chord in me. “That’s my dog,” I said as I paid two Benjamins for her. I know it sounds treacly, but it truly was “puppy love” at first sight.

It didn’t matter a bit to me that she was fully accredited by the American Kennel Club (which I figure is akin to being a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution). I was much more enthralled by her political lineage. Her “mother” and “father” had joined many Vietnam-era protests. Soon enough, this little dog would make her debut in San Francisco’s Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day Parade.

For 13 years, “Billie” was the four-legged love of my life. She was fearless: On hot days, she would leap into our backyard pool and then paddle to the steps, climb out, and do it all over again. She was peripatetic: Over her lifetime she obtained elite status on United, having flown miles and miles in the airline’s friendly skies. And she was smart: able to open doors with a single paw.

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Wendy and Lena are a bonded mother and daughter, 5- and 3-years-old. Wendy has a beautiful brown and white striped coat with cinnamon bursts. Also a beauty, Lena is brown and white striped.

They are both very friendly and love attention. These girls are indoor kitties and are litterbox trained. They were brought to the shelter when their owner passed away, and have been at the shelter for over a month patiently waiting to find their new home.

Wendy and Lena would do best as indoor cats in a calm, quiet household. Somewhat shy to begin with, they warm up quickly.

Wendy and Lena are spayed, microchipped, tested for FIV, and vaccinated. They are at the El Dorado County Animal Services shelter in Meyers, along with many other cats and dogs who are waiting for their new homes. Go to the Tahoe animal shelter’s Facebook page to see photos and descriptions of all available pets at the shelter.

Call Animal Services at 530.573.7925 for directions, hours, and other information on adopting a pet.

For spay-neuter assistance for South Tahoe residents, go online.

— Dale Payne

By Kathryn Reed

Aramark will continue to only have one paddle-wheeler plying the waters of Lake Tahoe for the unforeseeable future.

This is because the company’s permit with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency does not allow both boats to operate out of Zephyr Cove. Normally the Tahoe Queen is docked at Ski Run Marina, but it has been running out of the Nevada marina because the lake is too low at the California site for it to reach the dock. The other reason the Queen has been operating from Zephyr Cove is the M.S. Dixie II is undergoing a seven-figure remodel.

“The permit allows Aramark to operate the Dixie out of Zephyr Cove and the Tahoe Queen out of Ski Run Marina. Because the Dixie is not operating and getting her engines rebuilt/replaced, and because the Tahoe Queen is unable to operate out of Ski Run Marina because of low water levels, TRPA has authorized Aramark to operate the Tahoe Queen out of Zephyr Cove until the Dixie is operating again,” Tom Lotshaw with TRPA told Lake Tahoe News.

The exception to both being operational out of Zephyr will be Labor Day weekend for the annual race between the two paddle-wheelers.

The interior of the M.S. Dixie on June 15 shows much work still needs to be done. Photos/Kathryn Reed

It is Aramark’s responsibility to dredge the Ski Run channel – not the marina owner. Aramark has not sought a permit to do so. The last time it was dredged was 24 years ago.

“We have to dredge in order for us to go back there. At this point in the season it is not doable,” Joao Rodrigues, who oversees Aramark’s water and marine operations at Lake Tahoe, told Lake Tahoe News. “They would have to block off the whole channel to do dredging.”

Rodrigues said the dredging might occur in the fall.

Aramark is shooting for the Dixie to be back in operation by July 1. The plan is for three cruises seven days a week instead of the normal two. The idea is this will help compensate for the Queen being idle. The Dixie can hold 500 people.

The major part of the renovation is the engines, which were the original ones – and 21 years old.

Rodrigues said today it would be impossible to build a paddle-wheeler like the Queen or Dixie at Tahoe because of TRPA regulations. He said refurbishing the boat is costing about what it did to build it in 1994.

The M.S. Dixie has new engines.

The engines are the latest model – tier four – to meet all of the Environmental Protection Agency regulations. The work is being done with the boat in the water at Zephyr.

Skipperliner out of Wisconsin, which built the original engines, has manufactured the new ones.

Last week the vessel looked very much like a construction site. Crews were cutting pipes. The interior was total chaos.

The inside and outside will be receiving a fresh coat of paint. New carpet will be laid.

“The carpets are a different patter. The walls are a different color. It brightens up the rom,” Rodrigues said.

Rodrigues said renovating the two bars might not make the July 1 deadline.

By Frank Bruni, New York Times

Remember the AIDS crisis? If you lived in a big American city during its spread, you were witness to constant sorrow and countless examples of gay people treated as second-class citizens.

One was almost certainly this: the steadfast, heartbroken man being shut out of his beloved’s final weeks — not allowed in the hospital room, not welcomed at the grave — because some family members disapproved and no law trumped their bigotry.

This was a recurring story, an infuriating leitmotif, and many gays and our allies remarked and railed that it wouldn’t be happening if committed same-sex relationships got the legal recognition that heterosexual ones did.

Sometimes we even used the word “marriage.”

That was 30 years ago.

Now we stand nervously and hopefully on the brink of a milestone. Before the end of June, a month associated with wedding bells and wedding cake, the Supreme Court will issue a major decision about the right of two men or two women to exchange vows in a manner honored by the government. It may well extend same-sex marriage to all 50 states, making it the law of the land.

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