Results tagged “nature”

       

We're big fans of looking at nature photos taken in and around Los Angeles. We've seen bobcats, mountain lions, waterfalls, scenic views through the lenses of photographers who really haven't traveled that far, sometimes only minutes from Hollywood. It's just some of the best delicious eye candy of Southern California in our opinion.

The Station Fire has slowed significantly, but that doesn't mean its impact is any less significant as it continues to burn through ravines full of dry brush and vegetation on its eastern front. As of yesterday, the total acreage the blaze has consumed reached 157,220 according to the LA Times, and is burning "a safe distance from populated areas."

When Casey Schreiner graduated from Boston University, the Connecticut native moved to Los Angeles, like many, with a dream of landing an entertainment industry job. "I flew out here with a duffel bag and an air mattress, hoping to land some sort of writing job," he explained. And a job he got--a fun one, too. The 28-year-old West Hollywood resident (just moved from the Miracle Mile) has been writing for G4’s “Attack of the Show” since its beginning days. "It’s a great place to get my hands the latest gadgets, technology, and web sites--and has been a good outlet for all of the jokes about Mac OS X and Star Trek fan-fic that I can’t make in mixed company."

Unless you are a basketball or baseball fan, this weekend's options are kind of slim - feel free to sift through our picks - what are you going to watch? If it's not on our list, let us know and we'll talk about it.

The Internet is abuzz today with promotion of HBO's "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" to air this Sunday. Some writer's are pointing out that the show doesn't address any of the problems going on in Africa these days (AIDS, war, famine, rape, pillaging of natural resource) - instead it depicts a laid-back and idyllic place with only quaint soap opera-esque concerns.

                     

Who wants to spend hundreds of dollars a year on a gym membership when Mother Nature gave us California's glorious and varied landscape to explore for free, right? Some of the spots get talked about more than others, while others just sit quietly, doing their thing, and possibly remain unexplored. Up above Burbank are some lovely hills--you may have driven up there to have a meal with a view at Castaways, or you may have stuck to the lowlands--and they boast Wildwood Canyon park. There are a couple of miles worth of trails (described as "moderately strenuous") open inside the park, so grab your shoes and some water, and head on over.

In the next few days and weeks, cherry blossoms are about to blanket the branches of local trees with their gorgeous blooms. Last weekend LAist headed out to Encino to the Lake Balboa area to see some early blooms, and today the Daily News has a listing of other places around town where you and yours can enjoy the cheerful springtime sight of cherry blossoms, take a stroll, snap some picks, and get outside.

This Sunday is the SAG awards and while we're excited that there (probably) won't be a strike any time soon we're even more excited to be covering the SAG awards from the red carpet to the winners. Follow our posts here on Sunday or this Twitter feed as we'll be taking photos and posting them from around 3:30pm Pacific until whenever the event wraps up.

       

Today, Pinnacles National Monument begins its second 100 years. It's not exactly local to Los Angeles, but it's one of the many California wonders run by the National Park Service and here at LAist, we always encourage the exploration of the region and state.

Three wildlife bills, passed yesterday in a rare Sunday session of the Senate, paved the way to give California more than 700,000 acres of protected land. "It would designate as wilderness -- the government's highest protection -- about 190,000 acres in Riverside County, including parts of Joshua Tree National Park; about 450,000 acres in the Eastern Sierra and San Gabriel Mountains north of Los Angeles; and about 90,000 acres in Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks, including John Krebs Wilderness," reported the LA Times.

Today is the first day you can see the floats for Thursday's parade. People will still be putting the final touches on them, but if you don't plan on attending or watching on TV, this your alternative. Some people find this more fun anyway.

National Forests began in 1891 at the hands of Congress as a way to protect the land from cut-and-run logging. Today the system covers 190 million acres in 155 National Forests, but surveys are finding a decline in visits and use.

       

Just 130 miles north of Los Angeles lies some spectacular desert scenery. Red Rock Canyon State Park, in Kern County bears the mark of prehistoric lakes, rivers and glaciers in the colorful striations on the cliffs and the rock formations that rise out from the forest of Joshua trees

              

Yesterday afternoon was day one of George Wolfe's LA River expedition where he and a group of twelve kayakers intended to prove that the LA River is a river that is navigable, something that is contrary to what the Army Corps of Engineers concluded last month.

This afternoon in Canoga Park, 12 kayakers are going to begin a 51-mile, three-day journey down the LA River to Long Beach. They have no permit to enter the river, but that's part of the point. The Army Corps of Engineers caused a stir in the community last month when they declared that the Los Angeles River was not, in fact, a river because it was not navigable, save for two spots.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has found the Los Angeles River unnavigable, therefore it is not a river. Critics say it will weaken rules that protect the watershed under the Clean Water Act. "They believe the ripple effect of the decision will make is easier to develop large areas of the Santa Susana, Santa Monica and San Gabriel mountains because landowners will not be required to obtain certain federal permits," the LA Times reports. "Some federal and state officials fear that the decision also may undermine rules against discharging wastewater and storm water into the river's tributaries."

For twenty-four hours starting tomorrow at noon, 120 scientists, 1,400 LAUSD students and community members will embark on the 2nd National Geographic BioBlitz in the Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area (though some say it's essentially a National Park), which stretches from the ocean to Cahuenga Pass at the 101 Freeway. Together they will comb the area, as well as Griffith Park, observing and recording as many plant and animal species as possible in 24 hours. Think of it as part scientific endeavor, part festival and part outdoor classroom.

Yesterday, in another timely Earth Day announcement, Governor Schwarzenegger announced California's first natural landmark in Orange County. 40,000 acres of the Irvine Ranch may be recognized with the title, but it does not mean the land is protected or open to the public. Rather, it is to help bring awareness to the land and focus on long-term public preservation.

Getty has its first fridays program. So does the Natural History Museum. However, there's a smaller First Friday in Los Angeles, one with a less grandiose budget, little advertising, but is worth a look at. For the past couple years merchants of Abbot Kinney in Venice stay open until 10pm and often host art gallery openings, live music, or in store events.

Looks like the Academy Awards don't have the same in with Mother Nature and the big meteorologist in the sky the way the Tournament of Roses Parade does.

Photo © Copyright 2008 by Jonathan Alcorn (Sundogg) via the LAist Featured Photos Pool on Flickr

Image credit: Nature abhors a vacuum

LA readings and book signings around town for January 28th - Februar 3rd including Judith Freeman, Ron Jeremy, Tamara Jenkins, Mary McNamara, Sam Jones and Tom Dolby.

Torchwood is a guilty pleasure and its new season starts tonight on the BBCA. If you've ever been in a foreign land and seen a slightly dated American TV program come on and felt that queasy embarrassment then you know what watching Torchwood is like. It's cheesy and over-the-top science fiction with British accents and the odd dashing American thrown in. Everyone is hyper-sexed and they don't seem to discriminate between whichever sex they are attracted to at a particular moment and despite all the sexiness and the fact that it's a Euro import, I'm always a little dismayed at the lack of skin and even more dismayed at some of the gay-'80s hairdos. Still, it's well shot, good for a few laughs, and the way things are going with US licensing of UK shows, you'll be seeing it on one of the big four before you know it.

Occidental Professor Robert Gottlieb's latest book -- Reinventing Los Angeles: Nature and Community in the Global City -- is going to be awfully tempting to Angelenos who care about urban planning, the environment and social change. Get a taste when he reads today at Dutton's at 2pm -- and then ask the store to order a copy for you.

International markets are like a culinary Disneyland. I can waste hours wandering the aisles, peeking into jars of unfamiliar grocery items, buying things that I don't know how to cook, and exploring brave new worlds of snacking. Nothing beats a Saturday afternoon at the Armenian market, Nature's Pride Golden Farms. Most of the products are Russian, with a few British items thrown in amongst the American and Mexican groceries.

Five reasons I am thankful to be living in this city... 1. Urban + Nature It's truly the best of two worlds to live in Los Angeles. My native Angeleno ex-girlfriend used to ask why would anyone want to leave LA? You can surf in the morning and ski at night. She didn't do either and, well, she eventually moved away. Still, pick up a Southern California hiking book or two and you'll find...

Hear that sucking sound? The media's commitment to learning from its many recent mistakes in reporting ethics and the semantics thereof is again being sucked out of the collective memory hole. Two years ago, Hurricane Katrina survivors were initially referred to by numerous media outlets as "refugees." While "refugee" can be inferred to be descriptive of one who "takes refuge," the fact is that -- at least since the 1951 approval of the UN Convention...

Release Date: 09/25/07