Everything’s Beachy : Visitors Flocking to County Campgrounds and Seaside Spots for the 3-Day Holiday Weekend

They booked almost all of the 255 rooms at the Westlake Hyatt, and reserved hundreds of campsites in the Upper Ojai.

They filled all the stalls at Emma Wood State Beach and crowded the Pacific Coast Highway with recreational vehicles. They have taken over the Lake Casitas Recreation Area.

The tourists have arrived for the three-day Memorial Day weekend.

“We’re 99.9% full for tonight and tomorrow,” said David Horowitz, the general manager at the Westlake Hyatt. “This is traditionally a good weekend for folks to visit their family and friends in Thousand Oaks.”

Light breezes, mild temperatures and the allure of beaches and campgrounds are expected to draw thousands of visitors to Ventura County the next three days, clogging the northbound freeways, filling restaurants and lighting up cash registers from Simi Valley to Oxnard.

National Weather Service meteorologist Vladimir Ryshko said coastal temperatures will flirt with 70 and that the inland valleys would hit 85 degrees.

“It sounds like a pretty typical Memorial Day, with warm afternoon sunshine and no significant winds,” Ryshko said. “It’s shaping up like a good weekend for people to enjoy outdoor activities.”

At the U.S. Forest Service ranger station in Ojai, park officials geared up Friday for thousands of campers.

“It’s the first outing of the summer, so we’re expecting it to be very busy,” Ranger Joe Signorino said. “We have two campgrounds that take reservations, and they’ve been booked for weeks.”

In anticipation of busy freeways and extra traffic, the California Highway Patrol launched a special weekend patrol at 6 p.m. Friday that will run through midnight Monday.

At least 80% of CHP officers assigned to Ventura County will be on duty throughout the weekend, Officer Todd Wonders said.

“We’re not looking for anything different than normal, but we do keep a strong eye out for drunk drivers,” he said. “People should pay a lot of attention because there will be a lot more drivers than normal.”

Thomas and Janie Steward were among those who got an early start on their holiday camping.

By noon Friday, they were tucked comfortably into a campsite at Emma Wood State Beach, relaxing in the shadow of their 30-foot motor home. Their three boys played in the surf nearby.

“We come out here five or six times a year,” said Thomas Steward, a retired maintenance worker from the small San Bernardino County community of Bloomington.

Steward said he always spends a few minutes over Memorial Day weekend reflecting on those who gave their lives in fights for freedom.

“My main thing is to remember the veterans who died to give me the chance to come out here and enjoy all of this,” said Steward, an Army veteran who helped rebuild Korean airstrips in the late 1950s.

For those who want to commemorate the holiday in a more traditional way, there are a number of events planned.

More than 700 American flags will be planted this morning at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park in Ventura.

“They’re each donated by the families of military personnel who were killed in service,” said Ivy Lawn’s president, Linda Loftis. “We’ll have them on display until June 1.”

A ceremony is scheduled at 11 a.m. at the cemetery Monday, with Ventura County Supervisor Susan K. Lacey delivering the keynote address.

Other ceremonies Monday include:

*10 a.m., Simi Valley Public Cemetery, with a performance by the Air National Guard Band of Southern California.

* 11 a.m., Conejo Mountain Memorial Park & Funeral Home in Camarillo, with a performance by the Harbor Joy choir from Harbor Missionary Church in Ventura and a flyover by the Confederate Air Force, Southern California Wing.

* 9:30 a.m., Piru Cemetery.

* 11 a.m., Bardsdale Cemetery in Fillmore.

* 10:30 a.m., Santa Paula Cemetery.

Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Monday at both Santa Clara Cemetery in Oxnard and Assumption Cemetery in Simi Valley, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum will offer free admission to veterans.