OUTDOOR NOTES / RICH ROBERTS : Bighorn Census Volunteers Will Take a Lot of Heat

For those who want to prove they are conservationists, the Society for the Conservation of Bighorn Sheep has a project planned for the July 4 weekend: counting bighorns in the desert.

“We’re looking for people who have four-wheel drive and are desert-savvy,” Dick Conti of the SCBS says.

The Chuckwalla, Sheephole, Turtle and Chocolate Mountains are less than lovely at that time of year, but there is purpose to this midsummer madness: the hotter the better.

“This census is being conducted in what we hope will be the hottest time of the year, since sheep will usually come to water at least once every three days, even with you sitting there,” Conti says. “By covering all the waterholes in a range for 2 1/2 days, we have an opportunity to collect some valuable population data.

“You must realize that it is likely to be very hot out there, and the heat is relentless. Sometimes the only relief will occur around 5 a.m., when the temperature bottoms out at 90 degrees.”

It isn’t Palm Springs. If you go, take your own water and your own shade. The SCBS has frequent census outings, but this one is more ambitious than most, so more volunteers are needed.

“Many of us will be able to car-camp within a mile of our waterhole, but some will backpack in and stay there, without the luxury of ice,” Conti says.

And then they’ll sit, preferably under a canvas tarp--plastic is too noisy when the wind blows--watching the silent desert and waiting for the bighorns to come for a drink.

The group will meet at 10 a.m. Thursday, July 2, at a cafe in Desert Center on Interstate 10, then after a brief orientation seminar, will disperse to assigned areas. The society is targeting springs and man-made guzzlers in the four areas.

Desert, or Nelson, bighorns have been making a successful comeback in historic ranges in California since Dick Weaver, now retired from the California Department of Fish and Game, initiated survey and relocation programs in the late 1960s, assisted by the SCBS and volunteers. The bighorns are believed to be more than halfway to the goal of “10,000 (population) by (the year) 2000.”

Costs have been offset by direct revenues from auction and lottery hunts limited to a few hunters each of the last five years.

Volunteers for the census may contact Conti at (213) 256-0463.

Concerned about proposed water wells that could deplete the Big Springs headwaters of the Owens River, activist Floyd Hill of Whittier is urging those with fishing or other interests there to file demands for a full Environmental Impact Report with the U.S. Forest Service Office in Bishop before the June 22 deadline for public comment.

The four wells on Dry Creek would ease Mammoth Lakes’ critical water problem--perhaps, Hill says, at the expense of one of the Eastern Sierra’s prime fisheries.

The Forest Service did an Environment Assessment Report, which concluded that the wells would have “no significant impact,” while noting that ground water from Dry Creek “may . . . resurface in the Big Springs area.”

“The study is full of holes,” said Hill, who may be contacted at (310) 947-5817.

Briefly

HONORS--Tom Furrer, 37, a wildlife teacher at Casa Grande High in Petaluma, received the Outdoor Californian of the Year Award from the Outdoor Writers Assn. of California in meetings at Mammoth Lakes last weekend. Furrer’s class spent four years and raised $500,000 to build a hatchery and restore Adobe Creek, a historic steelhead fishery.

RAFTING--A nearby and inexpensive experience is offered at Kernville’s fifth annual Whitewater Rafting Jamboree today. Rides are $15. Details: (619) 376-2629.

CAMPING--A computer software product called MicroCamp allows users to locate tent or RV sites in the western United States. Details: (800) 524-7171.

LEGISLATION--Gordon King of the Isle of Redondo fishing barge is circulating petitions among anglers urging the National Marine Fisheries Service “and all other appropriate government agencies (to) take action to solve the California sea lion problem.” The sea lions not only attack catches as anglers reel them in, but drive schools away from his barge and other fishing sites. The action King and others want is approval to kill the sea lions, which are protected by federal law, before they kill the fishing business. . . . The California Fish and Game Commission, operating at a bare quorum of three, will have its monthly meetings in Bishop Thursday and Friday. High on the agenda are proposed changes in the salmon sportfishing regulations. The commission has been two members short since Everett McCracken resigned and Albert Taucher became ill.

SHOOTING--A St. Jude Celebrity Sporting Clays Fun Shoot to benefit the Children’s Research Hospital is scheduled at 9 a.m. June 27 at Moore-N-Moore Sporting Clays in Little Tujunga Canyon near San Fernando. A similar event raised $10,000 last year. Actor John Di Santi will be the host. Entries include Robert Stack, Rip Torn, Erik Estrada, Gil Gerard and Stephany Blake. Details: (805) 526-8722.

MEXICO FISHING--Cabo San Lucas: Skies are clear and calm and big wahoo are running--many weighing more than 50 pounds, reports Darrell Primrose of the Finisterra Tortuga Fleet. Gordon McNeil and Paul Colucci of Long Beach teamed up for a 66-pound catch. Victor’s Fleet at San Jose del Cabo says the action has shifted slightly toward the Northern Banks at Destiladeras and San Luis, where Andy Rasmussen, Inglewood, took a 75-pounder. Blue marlin up to 395 pounds still being taken on lures. Tony Holcomb, Valencia, had one at 418, and Shawn Smith, Irving, Tex., one at 395. East Cape: Tuna bite has resumed and boats are averaging up to five, reports the Hotel Palmas de Cortez. Top catches of the week were a 450-pound blue marlin, a 101-pound wahoo and a 52-pound roosterfish. Mazatlan: Sailfish to 110 pounds and tuna have predominated. San Diego long range: Four days on the American Angler to Benitos Isle got 29 anglers 400 yellowtail (200 released) and two black sea bass by Larry Estes, Phoenix--both released, as required by law.