Red Car Canyon: First Tree Down

Photos: Red Car Property Neighbor, January 12, 2023.  

A large Eucalyptus tree went down on the Lake View Ave side of Red Car Canyon. 

We’ve seen a number of Eucalyptus go down in the same part of the canyon over the past 3 decades.  

Eucalyptus do not hold hillsides together like native Coast Live Oak, Black Walnut and Toyon.

  

 

Red Car Canyon: Swampy

Photos: Red Car Property Neighbor, January 12, 2023.  

Two days after a major storm dumped around 6” of rain on the neighborhood, Red Car Canyon was swampy but walkable.

Just stop driving through the canyon. The Red Car Property is not a park, but it still looks like one.

The pine tree leaning at a 45 degree angle has been been held up by another tree for decades.

Red Car Property: Not A Park, Follow Us On Twitter

Photo: Diane Edwardson, November 17,  2017.  Not a park, it just looks like one.

We apologize to our readers.  Due to other commitments, we're slow to publish to the blog lately.  We hope to be publishing regularly soon.  For timely updates, follow us on Twitter: @RedCarProperty

Red Car Property: Not A Park, It Just Looks Like One

Photo: Diane Edwardson, November 17, 2017.  Red Car Property between Lake View Ave and Corralitas Drive includes the slopes up to the fences on either side of the canyon.  Many of the trees are recovering since they were toasted by the heat of the fire in 2016.

Photo: Jonathan Vandiveer, July 21, 2016. While shot from a different angle, the trees on the Lake View Ave side of Red Car Canyon showed the extent of the heat damage from the fire, a month earlier.  

December 1, 2011, we had a major windstorm that knocked down trees, knocked out power and started a fire on Lake View Ave.  
 

Red Car Canyon: Not A Park, It Just Looks Like One

Photo: Diane Edwardson, November 17, 2017.

Red Car Canyon: Not A Park, It Just Looks Like One

Photo: Diane Edwardson, November 17, 2017.  A pack of more than a dozen bicyclists sped north on the Red Car Property.  Luckily, no one was on Corralitas Walk, the public sidewalk between Allesandro Way and Corralitas Drive, when they came downhill dangerously fast, taking pedestrians on the Red Car Property by surprise.

Red Car Canyon: Shredding Trees, Spreading Dust, But What About Insects & Pathogens?

Red Car Canyon: hope you closed your windows before you went to work today- they're heading toward Riverside Pl now pic.twitter.com/B7Hq5mjsKZ

— Corralitas (@RedCarProperty) September 14, 2017

Video: Red Car Property Neighbor, September 14, 2017.  While it's technically OK per LAFD to spread the tree shred/mulch around to help retain moisture on the slopes, it's not exactly the best thing for air quality during the chipping or shredding.  There's also the question of spreading pathogens of the dead trees.

After consulting a neighbor who is a landscape designer, and reading up on some of the local insects and pathogens, I can wholeheartedly say, if you have a sick, dead or dying tree, consult a certified arborist.  This issue is way beyond my skill set to simplify beyond the following advice.  There are too many ways to infest/infect other trees depending on the insect and or pathogen, and you may be able to save your trees.  Your mature trees are an investment in not only your home's resale value, but also the future of our neighborhood and local air quality.

We've lost a lot of large trees in the neighborhood in the past few years.  Take care of your large and native trees.  Every tree counts.

Red Car Canyon: More Trees Coming Down

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor #1, September 14, 2017.  This morning, photos and videos came in from vigilant neighbors of more tree carnage in Red Car Canyon.  (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Neighbors report they seemed to be removing dead branches and trees.  Yet, photos appear to indicate smaller trees recovering from the 2016 fire appear cut down in recent weeks.  We'll run a comparison post soon.  (These things take time and are depressing as all hell to look at what we lost.)

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, September 14, 2017.  Enlarged from previous photo, you get a better idea of scale when you see the worker up on the tree trunk.

Red Car Canyon: TIMBER!!!! Eucalyptus on Lake View side pic.twitter.com/YDVui3KOhO

— Corralitas (@RedCarProperty) September 14, 2017

Video: Red Car Neighbor Property Neighbor #2, September 14, 2017.  Another neighbor captured the moment they felled the same Eucalyptus.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor #2, September 14, 2017.  Photo confirmed the same contractor who's been doing brush clearance for the past few weeks, was chopping up trees in the canyon today.  

Looks like our heat island is expanding.
 

Red Car Canyon: Chainsaws, Dry Brush, Dead Trees, Power Lines, What Could Go Wrong?

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor #1, July 17, 2017.  Around 10 AM the sound of chainsaws echoed through Red Car Canyon.  Luckily, there was no accidental sparking of fire. (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Red Car Property Neighbor #1 documented the canyon's dry brush on video (posted on our Twitter feed) with the sound of chainsaws grinding away in the background.  The video missed the tree going down, however the neighbor witnessed it happen, texting, "This guy chopped down a dead tree and NARROWLY MISSED THE POWER LINES." 

With so much dry brush on the Red Car Property, neighbors are always on fire watch and alert to potential hazards.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor #2, July 6, 2017.  We  published this photo last week.  Here, the photo is enlarged, with arrows added showing the location of the two dead trees that died prior to, but were also burned in the 2016 fire.  They appear to be on Lake View Ave lots near the power lines. The smaller of the two trees is the one Red Car Property Neighbor #1 witnessed falling to a chainsaw today. However, because the property lines have an odd arrangement right about there, it's hard to tell which lot the trees are on from the photos.

AT&T has been doing work on their lines on the telephone poles on the slope.  LADWP trimmed trees in April.  We were surprised DWP left the larger of the two trees, considering we'd had two fires in less than two years on the same slope. 

We know LAFD cited the Red Car Property owner as well as adjacent property owners who had not done their brush clearance.  Deadline for at least one adjacent property owner to comply with brush clearance was July 16, 2017.  According to the LAFD website, The Red Car Property owner was sent notice twice, and they failed to meet their compliance date of June 28, 2017.  

Since the first week of May, neighbors have been reminding LAFD Brush Unit and CD13, brush clearance had not been done on the Red Car Property.  We wonder when the property will be red tagged.  But it's not like the Red Car Property owner hasn't ignored the red tags for many years.  Even after last year's fire, they ignored the LAFD red tag order to comply.  LAFD brush clearance contractors cleared the property in December. 

Click here for all our brush clearance posts.

Red Car Property: "Today's Nature Walk, From Tinderbox To Rain Forest!"

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, July 2, 2017.  Another Red Car Property Neighbor had a prettier view of the depressingly dry conditions on the Corralitas end of the Red Car Property. (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, July 2, 2017.  Who was guarding the trees in Red Car Canyon? Summer is a great time of year to watch lizards in Red Car Canyon. The dappled light and cooler temps in the canyon attract lizards  and their insect prey. 

The LA County Natural History Museum wants your neighborhood photos of Lizards taken June 1 through July 31, 2017.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, July 2, 2017.  Mourning Doves tend to be nervous visitors to the shade of Red Car Canyon.  Cooper's Hawks tend to hunt birds and likely nest in the canyon too.  We've witnessed a number of Cooper's Hawk vs Great Horned Owl smackdowns in the canyon through the years.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, July 2, 2017.  Cooper's Hawks prefer the dense trees in Red Car Canyon.  They have  keen eyesight good maneuvering ability to catch prey by surprise in the high contrast lighting conditions in the Canyon.  It's hard to believe this scene is a few 100' from the first photo in the series.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, July 2, 2017.  And yes, the neighbor saw the No Trespassing signs on the ground.  

As always, we are grateful for the contributions of photos from our many Red Car Property neighbors.

Red Car Canyon: Brush Comparison 2017 - 2016 Before The Silver Lake Fire

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, May 30, 2017.  Neighbors are glad this year's more than 24" of rain helped the trees recover from last year's Silver Lake Fire. However, they're understandably nervous since the Red Car Property owner has failed to do brush clearance yet again. (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Photo: Diane Edwardson, May 21, 2016.  A year ago, as usual, the Red Car Property owner failed to do brush clearance.  Last year, the weeds were comparatively sparse.  The trees were dense and had not been thinned since 2013.

Photo: Gary Vlahakis, June 19, 2016.  Firefighters stopped the Silver Lake Fire in the middle of the canyon with endless water drops from helicopters, followed up with wildland fire crews and water from the ground level.   Neighbors had been complaining in writing, with photos, to CD13 and LAFD Brush Clearance Unit for at least a month before the fire.  The dry grass and high winds (that come up every afternoon from the 2 Freeway), spread the fire quickly north on property.  It burned right up to homes on Lake View Ave, Silver Ridge Ave and Corralitas Drive while simultaneously burning northbound on the 2 Freeway toward the 5 Freeway.  (Several homes suffered some damage.) 

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, June 19, 2016. If the fire had spread another 100' into Red Car Canyon, the dying Eucalyptus  would have exploded in flames, affecting the entire neighborhood.

The Red Car Property owner must have thought there was no need for brush clearance after the fire and never did any last year.  For months after the fire, neighbors requested brush clearance.  Even after LAFD red tagged the property in December, the owner still failed to do brush clearance. LAFD brush clearance contractors did the brush clearance in December 2016. 

Red Car Canyon: 2008-2017 Pine Tree Defying Gravity

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, April 28, 2017.  After more than 24 inches of rain this rain year, it would be easy to blame the rain for this skinny but apparently healthy pine tree in Red Car Canyon, near the public access easement trail down to Riverside Place.  (Click on photos to enlarge.)  

In fact, I thought this tree would have died last summer or been removed when the LAFD contractor did brush clearance in December.

However, while combing my files for similar photos, the tree has been in this position for a number of years. More interesting, is the ever changing landscape around the tree.  Very few native trees are growing in the canyon area.  However if you look up on the slopes, beneath the larger trees, you'll see smaller protected native California Black Walnuts and Coast Live Oaks as well as recently proposed for protection, native Blue Elderberry and Toyon.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, December 12, 2016.  LAFD Contractor did brush clearance and took down a large number of dead and dying trees in the canyon, but left the leaning pine tree. Its crown was still green, despite its awkward position.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, December 11, 2016.  Lots of trees were taken down or trimmed back.

Photo: Diane Edwardson, October 9, 2016. In 26 years, I had never seen more dead and dying trees in the canyon. Trees that did not burn in last year's fire, in just a few months, had succumbed to a variety of problems amplified by the fire and 5 years of unprecedented drought.

Photo: Diane Edwardson, May 19, 2016.  After five years of unprecedented drought, and one month before the fire, Red Car Canyon was still green.  It's hard to comprehend that even though the fire was stopped 100' away, it toasted all many of these trees.  Even days before the fire, the canyon was green. 

Photo: Diane Edwardson, June 12, 2015.  In 4 years of unprecedented drought, Red Car Canyon remained green.

Photo: Diane Edwardson, June 10, 2015.  That pile of brush was dumped almost a year earlier. 

Photo: Diane Edwardson, September 23, 2014.  A year earlier, the bamboo and other dry brush were freshly dumped.

Photo: Diane Edwardson, June 21, 2013. Red Car Property neighbors and friends celebrated Make Music LA Day at the Charles Lacey Memorial.  The leaning tree is not the first one, but it's in the background (arrow pointing to it.)  Sadly, the tree at the Lacy Memorial was cut down in December 2016 by the LAFD contractors.  It was one of many that was already suffering from 5 years of extreme drought prior to the June 19, 2016 fire.

Diane Edwardson, June 15, 2012.  Green trees, dumping and the leaning tree, so what else is new?

January 15, 2010. Until 2016, the only way you could tell the difference in photos between January and June, was the color of the grass.

Photo: Diane Edwardson, April 10, 2009.  The leaning tree had a markedly different angle in 2009.

Photo: Diane Edwardson, August 6, 2008.  The trees were so dense and green, you could barely make out the leaning tree.  Clearly this has always been a favorite dumping spot since it was hidden from the  neighboring upslope homes by the dense tree canopy.

Red Car Property: Dry Brush

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, May 5, 2017.  The good news is some of the big trees are recovering after the 2016 fire.  Bad news: dry brush is more dense than a year ago.  (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, May 12, 2017.  Some upslope neighbors did their brush clearance by May 1.  Understandably, it appears at least one went overboard clearing well past the property line.  (The power lines, halfway up the hill, are at the property line to the Red Car Property.)  Many of the protected native Black Walnuts and Coast Live Oaks are recovering from last year's fire, including trees LAFD's contractors cut down (that were not dead) 6 months after the fire. 

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, May 12, 2017.  A relatively small tree that did not recover from the fire and CalTrans' subsequent butchery, is still partially blocking Corralitas Walk, a public sidewalk between Corralitas Drive and Allesandro Way and Lake View Ave.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, May 5, 2017.  The dead tree still had its crown a week earlier.  Ironically, May 8, three days after this photo was taken, CalTrans sent me email confirmation that the fence had been fixed here on a complaint I'd made November 3, 2016, regarding fence damage between Rosebud/Corralitas and Allesandro Way/Lake View Ave.  I guess if they can't see it from their trucks, the problem doesn't exist.

Red Car Canyon: DWP Contractor Trimming Trees Near Power Lines

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, April 28, 2017.  This morning, tree trimmers were working in Red Car Canyon.  (Click on photos to enlarge.)

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, April 28, 2017.  It appears they were only trimming trees on the Lake View side up at the power lines, which is also the property line.  I confirmed by phone with Pacific Coast Tree Contractors that they were doing work in the area for the DWP today.  They've trimmed trees around the power lines on the Red Car Property for the DWP, for many years.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, April 28, 2017.  There has been no effort to clear brush on the Red Car Property.  Red Car Canyon is where LAFD and their partner agencies put a stop to last June's Silver Lake Fire.  It burned right up to adjacent homes on the west side of the property.  The property was not cleared of remaining brush and dead trees until the following December.

The May 1st deadline for brush clearance is Monday.  There has been no effort to clear brush on the Red Car Property.

Red Car Canyon: Not A Park...

Photo: S. Bartron, March 20, 2017.  It just looks like one.  (Click on photo to enlarge.)

LAFD deadline for brush clearance in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) is May 1, 2017.  In the past 26 years I've only seen the Red Car Property cleared a handful of times before the 4th of July.  Let's hope this year is different.

Red Car Canyon: Neighbors Suspect 2 Stolen Cars Abandoned

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor #1, March 2, 2017.  Yesterday, a longtime Red Car Property neighbor, who walks the property regularly, sent a photo of 2 cars that appeared to be stolen, abandoned on the Red Car Property.  If you look closely at the first photo, you can see the second car further back.  We have not been able to confirm if indeed these cars were stolen, but the story only gets stranger.

In the predawn hours, Thursday, another neighbor walking his dog, offered to call the police for a man without pants who was standing outside one of the cars.  The man declined.  As soon as I learned of the incident, word was sent to LAPD Senior Lead Officer Lenny Davis, CD13 and adjacent neighbors, including Rose Scharlin Co-op Nursery School. 

Longtime neighbors know the signs of abandoned stolen cars.  While the canyon is not a common place to dump stolen cars, it has happened in the past.  Often, neighbors have reported stolen cars abandoned on the Red Car Property, or on Rosebud under the 2 Freeway, hours or even days before the car owners reported their cars stolen.

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor #2, March 2, 2017.  Midday Thursday, LAPD came out to check on the car. They told a neighbor it was just stuck in the mud.  There appears to be considerable damage to the right rear bumper.

A third neighbor reported the car was pulled out of the mud by a white truck late Thursday afternoon.  The person who appeared to be with the Prius, was not wearing shoes.

The Red Car Property is not a park, nor is it a city street right of way.  It is private property.  In the early 1990s, there were heavy steel fire road gates that blocked traffic from portions of the property.  

We have long advocated for installation of gates similar to those on every fire road in Griffith and Elysian Parks to prevent all but police/fire/ambulance emergency access.  Fire road gates would enable pedestrians and non-motorized access to the property, while preventing people from driving cars from driving and dumping, joyriding or gathering for parties, which have been persistent problems.  Pedestrians help keep many bad uses out by their daily presence.  

In the past, the property owner threatened to fence off the entire site with chain link, but that would only keep the law-abiding neighbors off the property.  Fencing the entire property only creates a safe haven for bad uses.  Homeless and people looking to commit crimes, use drugs or party would then have free use of the property without the watchful eyes of pedestrians and families who use the property in a positive way.  

The Red Car Property is a lawless place.

Click here for all our stolen car posts.

Red Car Canyon: Rainfall Totals

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, February 18, 2017.  Red Car Canyon.

We're tracking rainfall totals in the Corralitas Drive rain gauge. 

February 24 - 26, 2017: 0.1"
Rain year to date:  23.37"

Dramatic Sky Over The Eastside

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, February 22, 2017.  Note to developers: the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is at the junction of the 2 and 134 Freeways  - Glendale.

Corralitas Red Car Property: Mudwatch, Rainfall Totals

Video: Red Car Property Neighbor, January 20, 2017, 11:20 AM.  After the second of three storms dumped 1.5" of rain on the Red Car Property, this morning alone, Lake Corralitas was overflowing its banks and heading toward the LA River via the Corralitas Drive storm drain (the inlet is about 150' down the street from here).  

The Corralitas Red Car Property serves as a natural catch basin for the stormwater runoff from the very steep slopes rising hundreds of feet to the top of Silver Ridge Ave.  The rain also collects in Red Car Canyon and flows both north (toward Riverside Place and India Street)  and south (toward Corralitas Drive)

In the video, you can catch a glimpse of the predictable mudslides on the Red Car Property portion of the slope, particularly noticeable since LAFD brush contractors took out trees six months after the Silver Lake Fire. 

We're tracking rainfall totals in the Corralitas Drive rain gauge:
January 20, 2017: 1.7"
Rain year to date: 15.35"

Storm #3 hitting Sunday, is supposed to be the largest of the three this week.  Batten down the hatches!

Red Car Canyon: Not A Park, Rainfall Totals

Photo: Red Car Property Neighbor, January 9, 2017.  Red Car Canyon Lakes are filling up fast this week.  Click on photo to enlarge.)

We're tracking rainfall totals in the Corralitas rain gauge:

January 10 - 11, 2017: 0.7" 
Rain year to date: 9.95"