Looking back at 2022 – The year in review – Part 2

By DOUGLAS W. MOTLEY
Senior Writer

As we usher in 2023, the staff of The Alpine Mountaineer has carefully considered and then selected a handful of articles from the past year that we feel have had a significant impact on the lives and lifestyles of our readers. Here then are those articles, beginning with July 7, 2022.
July 7 – This year’s Jamboree Days, July 2 and 3, in Crestline attracted several thousand spectators and revived many of the traditions of years past. The Legendary Lake Gregory theme was embraced by the community and the lake was enjoyed by visitors all weekend long. The parade, featuring 66 units, was the longest parade in recent memory. Trophies were awarded in six categories. The Charles S. Mann trophy for best commercial entry went to Thousand Pines Camp for their scripted Star Wars movie scene with actors and directors used for a recent filming location at the lake. The Arthur Gregory trophy for best nonprofit organization went to the Crestline Soaring Society and the Judge’s trophy went to Goodwin & Son’s Market. Other trophies included Best Performance group, the Compton Cowboys, and the Americana trophy was awarded by Mountain Fifes & Drums, while the Theme trophy went to the Lake Gregory Company for their lake patrol boat chasing a scallywag breaking all the rules at Lake Gregory. Passing out this year’s trophies was parade Grand Marshal Arthur Gregory. [Photo: Recap Part 2-1 – (Photo by Jenna Rose Photography)]
July 14 – The July 9 Corks & Hops wine and beer walk in Crestline, which got underway at 3 p.m. and wrapped up at 8 p.m., attracted an estimated 400 participants, 300 of whom had purchased their tickets in advance at a discounted price This month about 100 more participants showed up than last month on Saturday, June 3.
July 21 – Following a series of Coffee with a Cop events in Crestline and Lake Arrowhead and a “Carving with a Cop” event at Snow Valley this spring, the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station played host to Pizza with a Cop at the Lake Arrowhead Village Pizza and Deli. Station Commander Capt. Don Lupear said he was looking for something different and this event was just the ticket.
July 28 – It was on Friday, April 22 that Caltrans maintenance crews noticed that a section of State Route 18 (SR 18) near the historic Red Rock Wall was beginning to erode on the lower slope under the northbound traffic lane. As a result, the route was closed in both directions for the safety of the motoring public between Lake Gregory Drive and Pine Avenue in Rimforest. A detour was available on SR 189 through Twin Peaks. However, oversized vehicles were advised to use SR 330 as a detour.
August 4 – A mudslide on Sunday, July 31, apparently triggered by heavy rain along Highway 38 near Big Bear, left some 30 motorists stranded and stuck in their vehicles. The National Weather Service issued an urgent flash flood warning around noon on Sunday, advising motorists and residents that many parts of San Bernardino County should prepare for a downpour that could result in as much as two to seven inches of rain per hour. [Photo: Recap Part 2-2 – (Photo: Malia Dietz)]
August 11 – The Dennis Labadie Memorial Backpack Giveaway went off without a hitch on Saturday, August 6 at the office of Crestline Real Estate. The goal was to give local students the opportunity to begin the new school year with new school supplies and backpacks.
August 18 – Caltrans Government and Legislative Affairs Liaison Andrea Harlin updated the community on several Caltrans projects at the August 4 meeting of the Lake Arrowhead Municipal Advisory Council. Planned projects include a culvert repair project from 48th Street in San Bernardino to the Highway 18 cutoff at Highway 138. The contractor will repair 21 culverts and update guardrails. The contract has been awarded but the start date is unknown at this time.
August 25 – On April 22, 2022, Caltrans closed the section of Highway 18 between Lake Gregory Drive and Pine Avenue due to erosion near Red Rock Wall. Exactly four months later, on August 22, 2022, Caltrans Public Information Officer Emily Leinen went live on Facebook to announce the repair work had been completed and the road was reopening. Reaction was swift, with residents expressing their joy at not having to detour around the area any longer.
September 1 – The centennial celebration for Lake Arrowhead Village was held on Saturday, August 27 with County Supervisor Dawn Rowe in attendance. She presented a beautifully inscribed and signed county resolution recognizing the 100th anniversary. The ceremony was held on Center Stage where the president of the Lake Arrowhead Merchants Association, Sharon McCormick, described the history of the last 100 years and the many hurdles the Village has overcome to reach this milestone.
September 8 – Deputy Tracy Klinkhart retired on August 21 following a distinguished 25-year career with the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department, first as a patrol deputy for 15 years out of the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station and another 10 years at the Office of Security and Safety as a security officer for the board of supervisors. Klinkhart is one of the most distinguished deputies in all of California, having received four lifesaving medals of valor.
September 15 – With 21 Southland craft breweries and three food vendors participating in the 12th annual Brewfest, how could you not pull off an enormously successful event that pleased the palate of over 200 craft and home brew aficionados who flocked to what has become a Lake Arrowhead tradition? [Photo: Recap Part 2-3 (File photo)]
September 22 – A torrential downpour flooded highways with mud, rocks and debris throughout the San Bernardino Mountains late in the day on Monday, September 12. One such mudflow triggered by a burst drainpipe resulted in as much as four feet of mud and debris at the site where Highway 18 caved in last Christmas Eve in lower Bonnie Canyon.
September 29 – Chief Business Official Jenny Habelin told Rim of the World Unified School District trustees at their September 15 board meeting that enrollment in the district was 2,773 students. The current enrollment, Haberlin said, is 2,887. “We have grown by 114 students since June.” While Haberlin wasn’t willing to call it a trend yet, an analysis of each of the campuses by grade shows most having gained students from June to the first month of the 2022-2023 school year.
October 6 – Oktoberfest, a Lake Arrowhead tradition since 1982, found a new home this year in the waterfront park – formerly Lollypop Park – at the end of the peninsula in Lake Arrowhead Village. This year’s Oktoberfest kicked off on Saturday, September 17 and continued, from noon to 7 p.m. each and every Saturday and Sunday, through Saturday, October 29. Admission was free.
October 13 – At its regularly scheduled board meeting on September, 27, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, at the behest of 2nd District Supervisor Janice Rutherford, gave unanimous approval to the Camp Switzerland lift station (a sewage collection station), which is necessary before the planned construction of a family campground on 12 acres of county-owned property below Lake Gregory Dam.
October 20 – Members of the Crest Forest Municipal Advisory Council got a chance to thank Janice Rutherford for her 12 years of dedicated service as the 2nd District County Supervisor The dining room of the San Moritz Lodge was filled with over 100 of her constituents on Tuesday night, October 11. Many were especially grateful for her efforts in convincing the board of supervisors to fund the refurbishing of Lake Gregory Dam, which was necessary in order to prevent Lake Gregory, the lifeblood of Crestline’s economy, from being drained, which the state’s Department of Safety of Dams was about to order.
October 27 – The annual Arrowhead Arts Association gala and dinner held on Saturday, October 22 attracted 123 persons and raised an estimated $10,000 for music education in the Rim of the World Unified School District. The gala, held at the Lake Arrowhead Resort, began at 6 p.m. with music provided by the Ho Dads band and liquid refreshments as attendees chatted and got to know one another, while others danced and perused gift baskets to be auctioned following dinner. [Photo: Recap Part 2-4 (File photo)]
November 3 – Last month’s Oct. 15 Rumble on the Rim chess tournament at Rim of the World High School found some 50 student chess wizards playing against one another. This, the ninth such tournament held in the school’s cafeteria in recent years, unfortunately, yielded no big prizes for the 10 Rim High School competitors who often reign supreme. According to tournament organizer, retired teacher Keith Martin, this, the second tournament held this year at Rim High, had a record number of players show up to compete in four different categories, ranging from 1st to 12th grade. The first group consisted of 1st through 3rd graders, aged 6 to 8; 4th and 5th graders, aged 9 to 10; 6th to 9th graders, aged 11 to 13 and 10th to 12th graders generally ranging in age from 14 to 17.
November 10 – When the Rim of the World Marching Scots went to Anaheim to participate in the parade hosted by Loara High School on October 29, they were hoping to score at least a little better than in their last parade. As it turns out, they did just that. “It was a great delight and surprise to us all that they announced the Rim of the World Marching Scots as having been awarded first place,” said Kari Stebbing, the music director at Rim of the World High School. [Photo: Recap Part 2-5 (File photo)]
November 17 – Master of Ceremonies Gloria Loring opened this year’s Veterans Day program at Arrowhead Ridge with a prayer by Bill Wright, chaplain and past commander of VFW Post 9624. Following period music from the Mountain Fifes and Drums Corps, Ginger Gabriel awarded Quilts of Valor to Ron Butler, Eddie Romero, Bill Miller and Fred Lochard.
November 24 – At their November meeting, the Crestline Chamber of Commerce voted again to sponsor the league champion Crestline Highlanders vintage baseball team. The team won the Southern California Vintage Baseball League championship last month against the Arrowhead Loggers.
December 1 – After owning and operating Bill’s Villager in Blue Jay for 21 years, Bill and Linda Miller decided it was time to retire from the restaurant business. The Millers survived the 2008 recession and the recent pandemic. “We did OK for a bit,” Linda said. “But this year, with the gas prices and food prices, it didn’t do us any good. It wasn’t favorable for us unfortunately. It was hard to keep up. We had a good run, we had a good time. We met a lot of really nice people. We would have fun talking about our families.”
December 8 – Santa came to the mountains last weekend and will be visiting many locations these next two weeks. On Sunday, after the Blue Jay Christmas parade, Santa arrived at 5:30 p.m. on a fire truck at the south shore parking lot at Lake Gregory, where the County Fire Department from Station 26 built a huge bonfire for warmth for the annual Crestline Family Christmas, sponsored by Goodwin’s market. There were free hot dogs, hot chocolate, cookies and coffee to keep everyone happy while awaiting their opportunity to see and talk to Santa. Each child 10 and under received a small toy from Santa.
December 15 – This holiday season at the Twin Peaks Community Center, the Heisler Theater Company production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol was presented from December 20 through the 24th at 7:30 p.m. This is the seventh year the Heisler Company has produced the play, at several different venues over the years. At the new theater location, patrons were able to purchase dinner before the play, if they wish. Wine and beer were also available for purchase.
December 22 – At a festive gathering last week celebrating the holidays and the newspaper’s contributors, Aaron Creighton, owner and publisher of The Alpine Mountaineer, premiered a new digital website for the readers of this newspaper. The new format will bring this valuable information source not only into the 21st century, but into the second quarter of the century. The digital website will contain, when completely rolled out, not only all the news stories in the newspaper, but will also have interactive games, weather and traffic. Reporters will be able to update and instantly put out stories for the readers in real time.
December 29 – The dining room at the Elks Lodge in Rimforest was once again buzzing with conversation and the sounds of Christmas carols. The occasion was the annual Christmas Day dinner, hosted by Operation Provider, thanks to the generosity of lodge members. The dinner hadn’t been held the past two years because of the pandemic. Holland Lowe, executive director and founder, was concerned that her cadre of volunteers had moved on, so she put out the call for new volunteers, and they responded big time. Firefighters from County Fire station 91 showed up with huge boxes of toys, while volunteers prepped the turkeys, ham and side dishes for the dinner. [Photo: Recap Part 2-6 (File photo)]