Jan. 13, 2010 - During the winter months, when snow and mud cover local bicycle trails in the foothills, a 32-mile long bike trail in Sacramento County offers a paved sinuous path through the heart of the American River Parkway.
Known as the Jedediah Smith Memorial Bicycle Trail, the path flows from Folsom Lake at Beal's Point State Park and ends at Discovery Park just outside downtown Sacramento where the Sacramento and American rivers converge.
Begun in the 1950's as a way to protect a slice of open space from development, the parkway is a natural unbroken corridor managed mostly by the Sacramento County parks department and kept tidy by area non-profit groups and volunteers.
Though surrounded by busy city and suburban life, the 5,000-acre interior of the parkway offers an outdoor sanctuary for people, wildlife and native plants.
Photo: Laura Brown
"You really feel like you're in the middle of nowhere. You can get away, where you can't hear sounds, of traffic, or anything," said Annie Parker, spokesperson for Sacramento County parks department.
Each year, five million people come to picnic, ride horses or bicycles, hike, walk the dog, bird watch and enjoy native flora.
"We get more visitors than Yosemite," said David H. Lukenbill, founder of the American River Parkway Preservation Society.
To Nevada County residents with a different perception of what wild is, the parkway isn't exactly solitude and chances are slim that you will encounter a bear or mountain lion during your visit. Look for egrets and hawks, Blue and Live Oak, mining and Native American history and soon spring wildflowers. For those who struggle with steep foothill bicycle climbs, the Jedediah Smith trail is relatively level spotted with a few manageable hills.
"It's a gorgeous ride that borders the river the entire time," said Dianna Poggetto, executive director of the American River Parkway Foundation.
"It's full of different nooks and crannies for everybody."
Follow the Path
Photo: Laura Brown
On a recent foggy outing, my husband and I hopped on our mountain bikes and left our vehicle behind at Beal's Point State Park where California manages the first section of the parkway within the Folsom Lake Recreation Area.
At one bend in the path, we came to a river canyon overlook guarded by chain link fencing and barbed wire. Below, cranes and heavy equipment moved earth and rock at the base of the Folsom Dam where a safety improvement project is underway. A short distance downriver, we glimpsed the stone and concrete buildings of the correctional facility made famous by Johnny Cash, Folsom State Prison.
After passing a few neighborhoods, our views significantly improved. We rode through shady oak woodlands sprouting spring-like grasses among rock outcroppings and stone ruins where long forgotten fig trees grew. We stopped to snap photos of a trio of bridges reflected in water protruding with large granite boulders. Grinding holes used for mashing acorns can still be found from Native Americans that once lived in these parts.
Ducks skirted the edge of the tranquil waters of Lake Natoma, considered one of the finest rowing lakes in the United States. More experienced cyclists dressed in spandex called out, "on your left," before zooming passed us.
We made it as far as Nimbus Dam, the starting point of the wild and scenic stretch of the lower American River. Above the stern-looking barricade, cliff swallows swooped and circled. Below, fishermen dressed in hip waiters stood in the frigid water, waiting for the return of salmon. As we turned around, a steady rain began to fall for the remaining four-mile ride back to the car.
Hard times
Photo: Laura Brown
Like many California counties, budget woes stemming from negative property and sales tax dollars have forced Sacramento County to make cuts to its parks department. Last year, the county closed five access parking lots in the parkway as well as a popular recreation area known as Gibson Ranch.
If the parkway is to sustain itself for long the county may have to look at a different management model. Already, the county is talking about more collaboration with area non-profits, community volunteers and state, federal and city governments to help with funding, said Parker.
"To maintain the infrastructure we have to maintain it as an asset," said Poggetto who believes the future of the parkway must include more community involvement and understanding of how the parkway is maintained. The foundation has already stepped up work being done by volunteer "mile stewards," the folks who pitch in to eradicate invasive plants and cleanup trash and graffiti along the trails.
Lukenbill has turned his gaze east where donations from wealthy philanthropists keep the Central Park Conservancy in New York viable.
"The American River Parkway is as dear to this community as Central Park is to New York," he said.
From a national standpoint the parkway is significant for its size, urban setting and history, Lukenbill said.
"Americans are generous people. They give to what is dear to them."
Like many Sacramento natives, he recalls a treasured youth growing up by the river.
"The American River was our swimming pool. We all went down there."
Lukenbill rarely gets down to the river these days, even though he lives only a few blocks away. An amputee who walks with a cane, he says there is only one access point for "people like him" with disabilities.
Besides better access, he believes the parkway needs to become a safer place. With less funding the parkway has begun to deteriorate in recent years with illegal homeless camps and crime creeping in on the lowest most urban six miles of the parkway.
"That area is a little tricky," Lukenbill said.
In May, the American River Parkway Foundation will host a half marathon, a cycling event in June and a down river day in August. In April and September, the foundation will organize cleanups of the parkway. To learn more about the foundation visit http://www.arpf.org/
