Congressional Hearings on HR-780, the House version of the Cranston/Levine Desert Protection Act, will have their 3rd session on February 10th, somewhere on the West Side of Metro L.A. All DPS members who have not attended the Bishop or Barstow Hearings should attend. Location will be announced in the Southern Sierran & elsewhere. These hearings will profoundly affect the way we all enjoy and/or preserve the desert! I attended the Barstow hearings & found them fascinating. Mel Levine chaired the Barstow hearings superbly, gaveling down applause for the proponents as vigorously as applause for opponents. The other 4 congressmen at the hearings opposed the bill; Jerry Lewis (sponsor of a competing, less extensive bill), and congressmen from Utah & Idaho used up nearly an hour of time interjecting their opinions. People testified in groups. of 4, two for, two con, and were given 3 minutes each, later cut to 2 minutes as time started to run out, as testimony was heard continuously from about 10 A.M. until 4 P.M. 1500-2000 showed up at Barstow, about equally split between pro & con. Supporters were sold, then given, yellow tee shirts. Opponents wore orange stickers. Forests of posters waved outside but were not allowed in. Bags were searched on entry as security was tight. Few of us were wearing neither yellow nor orange! Mine & ranch employees were bussed to Barstow to show opposition, but the Sierra Club bussed in supporters. I was pleasantly surprised by the intelligence of most testimony on both sides, and tempers rarely flared. When the doors to the auditorium opened, most of the opponents were attending a rally away from the doors, so, supporters filled more seats than opponents. Who won? I'd call the Barstow hearings dead even, but others say one side or the other won. SET FEB 10 ASIDE ON YOUR CALENDER; IT'LL BE THE BEST SHOW IN TOWN!
The DPS has a FIRETUB; we just bought a washtub ($15), 21"D, 11"H, for desert campfires in locations where GROUND fires are not allowed, but container fires are O.K. These include Phinney Canyon for Grapevine & Palmer, 1. mi. E of Teakettle Junction for Tin & Dry, and others. Desert Bill passage will multiply these sites.
DPS Haberdasher Randy B has great DPS sweatshirts & tee shirts in wild new colors. Available at DPS meetings, which have featured superb all-desert programs this season (I can't even show my slides of Jordan, Israel & the Sinai!) First Wednesdays, 7:30, Cal Fed, Vermont & Beverly.
The California Mountaineering Club, CMC, (Yes that's the name now, no more GROPe or XYZ!) had it's first outing over the New Year's weekend, with 20 to 25 people climbing SIGNAL (Kofa) on Saturday, Castle Dome on Sunday, & "Little" Picacho on Monday. Ron Jones led the first two days, Randy B the third. Great weather & fun. Coining: Spring Sierra Snow Climbs & More! The Chapter EXCOM reportedly voted to include CMC trips in the Angeles Chapter Schedule. (!!???)