From Tense to Tents

While many Southern Californians remained stuck at their jobs Thursday, minds wandering to the upcoming Labor Day weekend, Pastor Thomas Stricklin was hard at work.

Stricklin, pastor of the First Baptist Church in Glendora, was getting an early start on the weekend that thousands of others will envy today and Saturday, when they compete for space at crowded campsites and other holiday spots.

The pastor hammered in posts and pitched tents at three campsites at Buckhorn campground in Angeles National Forest, trying to beat the wave of campers expected to arrive tonight.

Seven families in his church group were to join him today for a weekend of games and worship.

“It would be much harder to find three spaces together” if he waited until today, he said. “This way our kids won’t be running in between other people.”

John Shepherd and Betsi Gijanto of Long Beach left home at 8:30 a.m. to get to Buckhorn early, but by 4 p.m., less than a dozen spaces at Buckhorn were taken.

Shepherd started calling campgrounds on Monday and was told that all those in his area of first choice, Big Bear Lake and the San Bernardino Mountains, would be full by Thursday. So he decided to go to Buckhorn, his next choice.

“We purposely left not only early in the week, but also early in the morning,” Gijanto said.

“I would imagine it is going to be a zoo by tomorrow. It will probably be filled up,” Shepherd added. “I was surprised it wasn’t filled up more already.”

Stricklin, Shepherd and Gijanto are among the lucky ones. Campsite reservation services say they’re nearly booked for the weekend. The more than 50 campgrounds in Angeles National Forest which operate without reservations are expected to be packed solid by tonight.

Compounding the crowding, campgrounds burned by the Narrows fire near Wrightwood earlier this month will be closed, said Marilyn Reynolds, an information assistant with Angeles National Forest.

Those pitching tents in the mountain ranges near the Nevada and Arizona borders in Southern California should beware of possible thunderstorms, warned Bill Hoffer of the National Weather Service in Oxnard. There’s a slight chance the storms will hit Angeles National Forest, but it is unlikely, he said.

Elsewhere, the weather should be warm and clear throughout the Labor Day weekend in the San Fernando Valley and on the coast, Hoffer said. Highs in the Valley are expected to be around 90 degrees on Sunday and a few degrees warmer Monday.

Coastal highs will be in the mid-70s, and except for some night and morning clouds, the weather is expected to be clear, Hoffer said.

Nice weather, along with 2- to 4-foot waves and water temperatures in the mid-70s in some parts, will mean large crowds at county beaches, and most likely more water rescues, said County Lifeguards Capt. Bob Buchanan.

About 2 million people are expected to visit Los Angeles County beaches during the three-day holiday weekend. Buchanan said he also expects lifeguards to break the record for number of rescues in the month of August. The record, set in 1994, is 3,031, but the total so far this month already stands at 2,955, he said.

Buchanan advised beach-goers to arrive early because of the crowds and shortage of parking, and to be cautious of riptides.

“We strongly encourage parental supervision--make it a family day,” Buchanan said. “If you’re going to a new beach, make sure the kids know the landmarks and follow the lifeguards’ instructions. We’re there to help.”

Those heading out of state to celebrate the summer’s last holiday had better be prepared for heavy traffic.

“The best times to drive on a holiday weekend are the day before everybody else goes away,” said Vincent Moreno, a Caltrans spokesman. “If you weren’t leaving [Thursday], you missed the time.”

He encouraged travelers to depart before 9 a.m. today to avoid the congestion of commuters leaving work early this afternoon and the mass exodus from Los Angeles, which is expected to make for heavy traffic from 1 to 10 p.m.

Those traveling out of state should use state highways as much as possible because interstates are the most congested roads on holiday weekends, Moreno said.

No road closures are planned, but tunnel construction on U.S. 101 near San Luis Obispo is expected to back up traffic from as far south as Santa Barbara, causing delays of about an hour, Moreno said.

California Highway Patrol officers will be out in full force for the holiday weekend, starting tonight at 6. The CHP is encouraging drivers to rest every two hours of long-distance driving. Officers will be on special lookout for drunk drivers, Officer Richard Perez said.

Tom Winfrey, spokesman for Los Angeles International Airport, said August is the busiest time of the year for air travel. He advised travelers to be prepared for long lines at ticket counters and to arrive two hours early for flights.

Claire Vitucci is a Times correspondent and Jill Connelly is a Times staff photographer.