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California State Parks is excited to welcome outdoor enthusiasts to the state’s diverse landscapes of trails, beaches, lakes, mountains and deserts this Labor Day weekend.

In Lake County, Clear Lake State Park in Kelseyville and Anderson Marsh Historic State Park offer opportunities for recreation on Labor Day weekend and year-round.

However, to ensure the safety and enjoyment of all visitors, the department encourages visitors to "Recreate Responsibly" by following important safety tips such as Know Before You Go, Plan and Prepare, Play It Safe and Leave No Trace.

To further enhance safety and park experiences, State Parks also invites visitors to use the department’s innovative smartphone apps—what3words and OuterSpatial.

“This Labor Day weekend, make the most of your outdoor adventures by putting safety first,” stated California State Parks Director Armando Quintero. “By adhering to responsible recreation practices, safety and leveraging innovative tools, you can create unforgettable memories while preserving the natural beauty of California's state parks.”

Here are some safety tips for the Labor Day holiday weekend and links to the what3words and OuterSpatial apps:

Know Before You Go: Before embarking on your outdoor journey, it is crucial to gather essential information about the park unit you intend to visit. Check for any current park updates, trail closures or other unforeseen circumstances. Additionally, keep an eye on local weather forecasts to prepare adequately for your trip. Access the park unit webpage or social media channels of your destination to stay informed and well-prepared.

Plan and Prepare: Certain park activities, camping or recreational pursuits might require permits or reservations. Make sure you are aware of these requirements and secure them in advance. Equally important is having the right gear for your chosen activity. Adequate equipment can significantly enhance your experience and safety. Always have a backup plan in case your original destination or activity is unavailable.

Play It Safe: Be cautious and avoid underestimating factors like temperatures and hiking distances. Inform someone about your plans, especially if you are undertaking longer hikes. If you plan to enter bodies of water such as rivers, lakes or oceans, only do so where it is safe and recommended. When in or on water, wear a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket. Always adhere to signs and guidelines for a secure experience.

Leave No Trace: Preserving the beauty of California's state parks is a shared responsibility. Stay on designated trails and carry out all your trash. Refrain from disturbing wildlife or removing plants. Please leave these areas better than you found them for future generations to enjoy.

Use apps to stay safe and enhance your experience in the outdoors:

what3words: Use the what3words app to communicate precise locations within any of the 280 state parks using just three words. This tool aids dispatchers in emergency situations, enabling assistance to those in need. Share locations with family and friends, and provide directions to events, trails or campsites using this convenient app. To learn more on how the app works, visit parks.ca.gov/what3words.

OuterSpatial: Discover the ultimate guide to California's state parks with the OuterSpatial app. Navigate through interactive maps, receive real-time updates and stay connected with fellow outdoor enthusiasts. Enhance your exploration by monitoring visits, completing challenges like the Passport to Your California State Parks and sharing memorable experiences.

For more information and resources, please visit https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=29142.

What's up for September? Venus returns to the morning sky, the harvest moon and in search of zodiacal light.

After brightening our evening skies for most of this year, Venus has now switched over to being a morning sky object.

Look for the superheated, cloud-covered planet as a bright beacon in the eastern sky before sunrise throughout the month.

It will appear fairly high in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere — reaching 30 to 40 degrees above the horizon by month's end, depending on your latitude.

Meanwhile, Saturn and Jupiter continue this month as easy-to-observe planets. Find Saturn low in the southeast after sunset, with Jupiter rising a couple of hours later. Saturn then sets a couple of hours before sunrise, leaving Jupiter to rule the sky on its own until the Sun comes up. You'll find Jupiter together with the Moon, high in the southwest before dawn on Sept. 4.

The full moon on Sept. 29 will be the fourth and final supermoon of the year. As we mentioned in last month's video, supermoons are full moons that occur when the Moon is near the closest point in its orbit around Earth.

This month's full moon is also known as the Harvest Moon, being the closest full moon to the September equinox. This is around the time when lots of crops in the Northern Hemisphere reach their peak. The harvest moon provides a few days of bright moonlight right after sunset, which traditionally helped farmers have a bit more time to bring in their crops in advance of the first frost.

On cool, moonless September mornings before dawn, you might have an opportunity to search for the zodiacal light. It's a triangular or cone-shaped pillar of faint light that stretches upward from the horizon, and it's easiest to observe around the time of the equinoxes in March and September.

The zodiacal light is sunlight reflecting off of an interplanetary dust cloud. This dust fills the inner solar system out to the inner fringes of the main asteroid belt, just past Mars.

In September, Northern Hemisphere skywatchers should look for the zodiacal light in the east during the hour or so before morning twilight begins. Southern Hemisphere observers will want to look to the west in the hour following evening twilight.

Relatively dark skies give you the best chance to observe it, and the Moon will be absent from pre-dawn skies during the latter half of September, making zodiacal light easier to spot north of the equator during that time.

Now, most of this dust orbits the Sun in the same plane as the planets do. So it's like looking out, into the disk of the solar system. It's thought to have several potential sources including comets, the planet Mars, and asteroids.

And speaking of asteroids, we'll soon have opportunities to study one here on Earth, when NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission delivers its samples from asteroid Bennu this month. The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collected a sample of rocks and dust from the surface of the near-Earth asteroid in 2020, and it's now approaching Earth to return them for study. As it nears Earth, the spacecraft will release its sample return capsule, which will land in Utah on September 24th.

Stay up to date with all of NASA's missions to explore the solar system and beyond at nasa.gov.

Preston Dyches works for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

LAKEPORT, Calif. — Labor Day weekend is the traditional “end of summer” but it’s not the end of the mosquitoes.

The Lake County Vector Control District reminds everyone to avoid mosquito bites this weekend.

“If you’re outside around dusk or dawn, wear long pants and sleeves and use a mosquito repellent that contains Picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus, or DEET,” said Jamesina Scott, Ph.D., district manager and research director of the Lake County Vector Control District.

The district confirmed that two more mosquito samples from Lake County tested positive for West Nile virus this week.

“We’ve found West Nile virus throughout the county this year in Clearlake Oaks, Cobb, Kelseyville, Lakeport, Lower Lake, Middletown and Upper Lake,” said Scott.

In addition to 15 mosquito samples and two dead birds that were positive for West Nile virus, four residents have been confirmed with West Nile virus, including one fatal case.

West Nile virus, or WNV, is found every year in California, including Lake County.

WNV is transmitted to people and animals through the bite of an infected mosquito, and there is no cure or human vaccine so avoiding mosquito bites is the best protection.

People who are over 50 or have chronic health conditions are at higher risk for getting sick from West Nile virus.

Most people who are infected with West Nile virus will have no symptoms, but about 20% will get sick with symptoms that may include fever, headache, fatigue, body aches, nausea, or a skin rash.

“The average person who gets sick from West Nile virus misses two weeks of work or school, and reports that it takes up to 6 months to feel ‘back to normal,’” said Scott.

About one in 150 people infected with the virus will be hospitalized with severe symptoms including high fever, intense headache, confusion, dizziness, muscle weakness, neck stiffness, coma, paralysis and possibly death.

Mosquitoes develop in water. Residents should take the following precautions to remove mosquito sources in their yards:

• Dump and drain any containers filled with water at least once a week;
• Clean and scrub bird baths and pet water bowls weekly;
• Dump water from potted plant saucers;
• Do not transport or share plant stems rooted in water;
• Drill a hole or puncture containers to eliminate standing water.

For water sources that can’t be drained, like an ornamental pond, livestock watering trough, water feature, or an out-of-service (green) swimming pool, residents can contact the district for free mosquito-eating fish to prevent mosquitoes from growing there.

To prevent mosquito bites, the district offers the following tips:

• Apply mosquito repellents to exposed skin before going outdoors; reapply as recommended.
• Wear repellent containing Picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus, or DEET.
• Close all unscreened doors and windows to prevent mosquitoes from entering your home or space; repair broken or damaged screens.
• Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants, and opt for lighter-colored clothing.

This year 35 California counties have detected WNV, mainly in mosquitoes.

As of Aug. 31, 55 human cases of West Nile virus illness have been reported in California residents.

Residents with questions or who would like help with a mosquito problem, including reporting a neglected pool or spa, or have an in-ground yellowjacket nest on their property that they want treated, should contact the Lake County Vector Control District at 707-263-4770 or submit a request online www.lcvcd.org.

For more information about West Nile virus or to report a dead bird, visit https://westnile.ca.gov/.

Information about mosquito repellents can be found on the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at www.cdc.gov/westnile/faq/repellent.

California State Parks invites the public to become community scientists and celebrate California Biodiversity Day, Sept. 7.

More than 40 parks statewide will be hosting more than 60 special events and engaging activities all week long from Sept. 2 to 10.

The public is also invited to a friendly bioblitz competition to see who can record the highest number of species of plants and animals in California’s State Park System. Humboldt Redwoods State Park currently holds the record of 380 species identified in 2022.

Join the bioblitz for Clear Lake State Park here.

This year marks the fifth annual celebration of California Biodiversity Day since it was first established in 2018.

Since then, several executive orders and other actions by the Newsom Administration — such as the Pathways to 30x30 strategy, California’s initiative to conserve 30 percent of lands and coastal waters by 2030 — have built on this foundation to understand and protect California’s unique and precious natural resources.

Using the free iNaturalist app, participants can use their smartphones to record the different species of animals, insects, plants, fungi and more thriving within the parks.

The photographs and locations of species captured during the bioblitzes in iNaturalist will help monitor the presence and range of species and contribute to an overall understanding of California’s extraordinary biodiversity.

As the popularity of electric bikes, or e-bikes, continues to skyrocket, the California Highway Patrol is launching an online e-bike safety and training program to help keep commuters and recreational cyclists safe.

“With the rise in popularity of e-bikes across the state, the CHP worked with Governor Newsom’s Administration, the Legislature, and key stakeholders to develop California’s first e-bike safety and training program,” said CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee. “The CHP’s program can be accessed on our website and is designed to promote safety for those who choose to ride this alternative mode of transportation.”

Assembly Bill 1946, which was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom and took effect on Jan. 1, 2023, required the CHP to work with relevant stakeholders to develop an online training program that offers information on e-bike safety, emergency maneuver skills, rules of the road, and laws related to e-bikes.

The e-bike safety and training program features tutorials, videos, a quiz, and other interactive elements with an easy-to-follow, intuitive presentation to help make the material engaging, practical and informative.

Electric bicycles are heavier and faster than standard bicycles and, without the proper safety education and training, e-bike riders have a higher risk of becoming severely injured or killed in a crash.

As e-bikes become more commonplace, it’s also important for drivers to familiarize themselves with sharing the road with e-bike riders.

According to preliminary data from the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System, there were more than 9,600 bicycle-involved crashes in 2022.

At least 225 of those crashes involved an e-bike, including four which resulted in fatal injuries. This reflects a significant increase from the previous year when there were 80 e-bike crashes reported in California.

The CHP’s online e-bike safety and training program is designed to help riders of all abilities and all ages identify potential hazards, while offering information on safe riding practices and hazard-avoidance maneuvers.

The CHP collaborated with, and would like to thank, the many stakeholders who assisted with the content and creation of the e-bike safety and training program.

This diverse group of safety stakeholders includes several leading organizations committed to bicycle safety; federal, state and local government traffic safety partners; and injury prevention coordinators from hospitals throughout the state.

Through these partnerships, and other safety programs, the CHP is committed to enhancing safe travel for all road users.

NORTH COAST, Calif. — The State Controller’s Office on Thursday said it is conducting an audit into the annual financial statements of the county of Mendocino.

State Controller Malia M. Cohen’s office confirmed that Cohen authorized an audit of Mendocino County after conversations with county officials who expressed concerns as to whether the annual financial reports required to be prepared and delivered to the state are correct and complete.

Controller Cohen acknowledged receipt of the request for an audit from the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors, which voted unanimously to request the State Controller’s Office’s assistance to resolve what some officials have referred to as a ‘fiscal crisis’ within the county.

“As California’s chief fiscal officer, the financial health of all 58 counties is of paramount importance to the overall fiscal wellbeing of the state,” said Controller Cohen.

Controller Cohen’s action also follows a recent warning issued that the county’s rating may be placed under review for possible withdrawal of credit rating unless the county completes its now-delinquent annual financial statements.

In response to the county officials’ statements concerning the fiscal uncertainty and instability of the county, Controller Cohen said: “My office will review the county’s internal controls. The failure to deliver timely financial reports as mandated by law could place the county at a competitive disadvantage and may drive up the interest rate beyond what the county would typically pay for such issuance.”

The audit has commenced and is underway.