The Bay Area Ridge Trail Council’s fifth annual Ridge Trail Cruz is planned for Saturday, September 11 in the Santa Cruz Mountains. This event is a fun opportunity for the public, families and outdoor enthusiasts to enjoy trails and stunning views while raising money and support to complete a public trail encircling the ridgetops around the San Francisco Bay. The event features hikes, horseback rides and mountain bike rides for all ages, experience and endurance levels.  NEW this year: shorter hikes and the family hike will visit the Daniels Nature Center.

Attendance is limited and advance registration is required. The registration fee allows for a fully supported day including guides, maps, light breakfast, gourmet buffet lunch, rest stops, and a shuttle bus for hikers and cyclists. By joining the optional Cruz-a-thon, participants can raise funds through pledges and win prizes including REI gear. For event and registration details visit http://www.ridgetrail.org or call (415) 561-2595.

Over 325 of the total 550 miles of the Bay Area Ridge Trail are complete, many of them traversing Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District preserves. The Ridge Trail Council has partnered with the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, Santa Clara County Parks, California State Parks, Responsible Organized Mountain Pedalers and Equestrian Trail Riders Action Committee to put on this year’s event.

The Bay Area Ridge Trail Council is a nonprofit organization that plans, acquires builds, maintains, and promotes the Ridge Trail. http://www.ridgetrail.org

The semi-annual 360 Degrees of Pacifica Hike is this Saturday, September 4th.  I’m sorry for the late notice, but would  a), love to have you come, and b)appreciate it if you could post this in your newspaper/website/committee list.

Here’s the description:  Join Park Ranger George Durgerian on a grand tour of the National Parks of Pacifica.  We’ll hike a gorgeous loop of ridges, from Milagra to Sweeney to Mori Ridge, all the while uncovering the stories of bombs, butterflies and bulldozers that make these sites special. Approx 7 miles, and fairly strenuous, but with plenty of stops.  Bring lunch, water and layers.

Meet at Salada Beach Café, 220 Paloma Ave in Pacifica.

We meet at 9 (if you want coffee or breakfast) and leave at 9:30, returning around 3.

George Durgerian
Park Ranger, GGNRA: Ocean District

We experience poor DSL service from AT&T.  Because I work from home and use the Internet extensively, it is vital to me that DSL service function properly.  Comcast does not service this area.  If you also have DSL service in or near the Miramar area, you probably are experiencing DSL problems also.

I am reaching out to you because I believe that we are more likely to cause AT&T to make the necessary investment that would provide good DSL service if we all share a common understanding of what the issues are, and know how to effectively act on that information.  If you get your service from Coastside.net you are also affected by these issues because AT&T provides the basic connectivity.  My hope is that this letter will give you the information for you to discover if your service is substandard, and the instructions on how to navigate AT&T will allow you to add your voice to mine in requesting an improvement in service quality for this neighborhood.

Symptoms are any of the following: Internet videos such as YouTube and Netflix do not play smoothly; web pages take a long time to load; downloads go very slowly; voice conversations using Skype do not work well and/or your modem lights frequently turn red.

The main reason for poor DSL service is that AT&T’s central office (often referred to as the CO) is too far away, in downtown Half Moon Bay.  DSL is not supposed to reach this far.  However, before moving here I contacted AT&T to verify that DSL was available for this neighborhood, and I was told that 3Mb/s was available.  Based on that information we moved in.  The first problem, then, is that AT&T’s sales team is selling a defective product.  AT&T can make this right by investing in additional equipment.

The County Times has a good summary of the Half Moon Bay city council’s threatened dissolution if its proposed 1% sales tax increase is rejected by voters. The full article is well worth reading.

“The council has done everything in its power to keep the city whole,” [city county member John] Muller said. “If it doesn’t pass, we could seriously not be in business much longer.” [...]

City Manager Michael Dolder admits disincorporation is one of the options on the table now. The City Council already cut $900,000 from the current budget—including half its employees—and imposed furloughs on those who remain. Some of the cuts were needed to pay for the Beachwood lawsuit settlement, a $15 million burden the city will shoulder in bond payments for the next 20 years.

Despite those efforts, the city will finish the current fiscal year with a deficit north of $500,000. And tourist dollars, the city’s economic mainstay, aren’t likely to flow in anytime soon.[...]

Although the law lays out a clear procedure for disincorporation, including public meetings and a final majority vote by residents, it’s unclear how it could work from a practical standpoint, said Martha Poyatos, executive director of the San Mateo County Local Agency Formation Commission.

“We’re in uncharted territory,” she said.

One thing is certain: disincorporation is not a bailout. The county would lay claim to revenues, including Half Moon Bay’s property taxes, sales taxes and hotel taxes, but not its liabilities. Today’s Half Moon Bay residents would be required to assume the debt burden of Beachwood bond payments, which would likely be added as a lien on their properties, according to Assistant County Controller Bob Adler.

Disincorporation: how would it work?

• A City Council, school district, special district or group of residents can initiate disincorporation with the Local Agency Formation Commission, or LAFCo, by presenting a petition signed by 25 percent of voters.
• LAFCo would then hold public hearings and choose whether to affirm the proposal with conditions or deny it.
• A special election would be held, in which a majority of voters have to approve the terms of disincorporation.
• The county Board of Supervisors would work with LAFCo and the city on disposition of the city’s assets.
• Note: Disincorporation proceedings can be subject to legal challenges.

Pacifica police are warning the public about a great white shark seen attacking a sea lion near Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, reports the AP. The shark was spotted about 200 yards offshore about 1pm on Monday.

[Pacifica police Capt. Fernando] Realyvasquez said a surfer in the water at the time saw a large amount of blood in the water as the shark thrashed about with the sea lion in its mouth.

Witnesses estimated the shark was anywhere from 18 to 25 feet long. After the sighting, two men in a small boat drove up and down the beach warning swimmers to get out of the water.

Huge book sale Saturday, September 4th and Sunday, September 5th from 9am to 3pm. Also Monday, September 6th from 9am to 1pm. Located at Coastside Lutheran Church at 900 N. Cabrillo Highway in Half Moon Bay. Features sorted fiction and non-fiction adult and children’s books, videos, dvds, cds, audiobooks, games and puzzles. Hardback books $1.00 and paperback books $0.50.

Coastside Campfire & Community Sing-Along join us at the Outback @ Cameron’s Corral, coming up:

• Tuesday, Aug 31, 7:00 - 9:00pm
• Sunday, Sept. 12, 5:30 - 8:00pm
• Sunday, Sept 26, 5:30 - 8:00pm

Good-spirited music for all ages, featuring contemporary and classic songs to sing together. Words provided, instruments encouraged. Hot beverages & good food available, plus FREE S’MORES! Dress warm, come hungry, & sing well!

Cameron’s Pub @ 1410 S. Cabrillo Hwy, just south of downtown Half Moon Bay For more information, lyrics to the songs, and a forum to suggest songs, go to: http://coastsidecampfire.com

A full volume test of the Coastside tsunami warning sirens is scheduled for 10:00 AM on Wednesday, September 1.

Eight sirens will be tested on Wednesday, September 1st. On the Coastside, sirens are located in Princeton, El Granada, Miramar and Half Moon Bay and should be heard in the beach areas west of Highway 1 as far south as Kelly Street in Half Moon Bay. In Pacifica they sirens should be heard in the Linda Mar Beach, Rockaway Beach and Sharp Park areas west of Highway 1.  A siren will also be tested in the town of Pescadero.

The test will last between one and three minutes to insure all the sirens to reach their peak sound level. Even at full volume, sirens may not be heard inside. In an actual emergency the Emergency Alert System and a Telephone Emergency Notification System would also be activated to notify people indoors.

In an emergency, the sirens will sound continuously for several minutes. Should this occur, people should immediately leave the beach areas and tune their radios (KCBS 740 AM or KQED 88.5 FM) for official information and evacuation instructions.

The Coastside Film Society proudly presents: Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North (86 mins)

“A far-reaching personal documentary examination of the slave trade. The implications of the film are devastating.” Stephen Holden, The New York Times

What would you do if you discovered one of your ancestors was one of the greatest slave traders of all time? Director Katrina Browne’s reaction was to invite members of her family to travel with her to Africa to explore and confront the implications of this shocking family discovery. Nine of Browne’s relatives took up her challenge and traveled with her on the long road from Ghana, to Cuba, and back to New England tracing the steps of the slave trade that made her family so rich.

Who should pay for the sins of our fathers? It is tough question to ask, and harder to answer. Holly Fulton, one of Katrina Browne’s relatives who appears in the film will be on hand to discuss her take on this most difficult of questions.

Friday, August 27 at 8:00 pm Suggested adult donation, $6.00, Kids $3.00 (The film makers feel this film is appropriate for kids from the 5th grade and up.) United Methodist Sanctuary 777 Miramontes at Johnson, Half Moon Bay

More info: www.HMBFilm.org