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East Fork San Gabriel River

California river stubsRivers of Los Angeles County, California
East Fort San Gabriel River
East Fort San Gabriel River

The East Fork is the largest headwater of the San Gabriel River in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It originates at the crest of the San Gabriel Mountains in the Angeles National Forest, at the confluence of the Prairie Fork and Vincent Gulch near Mount Baden-Powell. It then flows south and west for 17 miles (27 km) to San Gabriel Reservoir, where it joins with the West Fork San Gabriel River. Although the East Fork is colloquially considered a separate river (to distinguish it from the West Fork), the U.S. Geological Survey officially lists the East Fork as the upper part of the main stem San Gabriel River, a fact is shown by topographical maps of the area. The major tributaries of the East Fork, from upstream to downstream, are the Prairie Fork, the Fish Fork (which rises near Mount San Antonio/Mount Baldy, the highest summit in the range), the Iron Fork and Cattle Canyon. The "Narrows" of the San Gabriel River is the deepest river gorge in the San Gabriel Mountains, flowing as much as 6,000 feet (1,800 m) below the nearby peak of Iron Mountain. Much of the upper half of the river is within the Sheep Mountain Wilderness. A major point of interest on the East Fork is the Bridge to Nowhere, a 120-foot (37 m) high concrete arch bridge that was once part of the East Fork Road before the rest of the road was destroyed by flooding in 1938. The East Fork Road was originally intended to connect the Los Angeles Basin to the Angeles Crest Highway, but was never completed due to the high cost of cutting and tunneling through the rugged East Fork Canyon. A later attempt to build a road through the East Fork via Shoemaker Canyon, in the 1950s, was also aborted due to lack of funds. Today the East Fork Road provides access to the Heaton Flats trailhead, a popular jumping-off points for visitors to the San Gabriel Mountains. The stretch of the river along and above East Fork Road is one of the most heavily used parts of the Angeles National Forest, and is visited by hikers, campers and recreational gold miners alike – as many as 15,000 per day in the summer, which has had considerable environmental impacts on the East Fork.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article East Fork San Gabriel River (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

East Fork San Gabriel River
San Gabriel Canyon Road,

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N 34.239722222222 ° E -117.85666666667 °
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San Gabriel Canyon Road

San Gabriel Canyon Road

California, United States
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East Fort San Gabriel River
East Fort San Gabriel River
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East Fork Road

East Fork Road, located in the San Gabriel Mountains above the city of Azusa, California, is a road that gives access from State Route 39 into East Fork and other small townships, including Camp Williams, and Julius Klein Conservation Fire Camp 19, a minor offender prisoner housing complex where "LACO fire personnel provide training, which prepares inmates to safely conduct wild land firefighting operations."The road begins at Route 39, passing over the San Gabriel River, and follows the east fork of the river, crossing a number of small streams. The terminus is Heaton Flats, which has a campsite, a toilet facility, and trails that lead upstream and to the summit of Iron Mountain, 8,007 feet (2,441 m) above. Along East Fork Road there are extensive fire-fighting facilities which are staged to combat the many fires that break out among the foothills above Azusa, Glendora, and San Dimas every year. The road is located within the Angeles National Forest and is managed by the United States Forest Service. The United States Forest Service states that all mining operations, including gold panning, are illegal along the East Fork; however, as mining and prospecting are a historic relic of California's heritage, enforcement of the mining laws is infrequent and gold panning continues along this stretch of the road (which offers easy access to the river). Some of the sites of the area's mining heritage can be accessed from the road by visiting the site of "Eldoradoville", a mining town with three stores and six saloons that was established in 1859 and washed away in the flood of January 18, 1862.East Fork Road was initially planned as an outlet from the Los Angeles Area to State Route 2 and includes a "Bridge to Nowhere" that was abandoned after a flood; a later plan included two never-used tunnels on the aborted Shoemaker Canyon Road.In January 2005 a flood washed out two bridges, which stranded 200 campers and residents for days.

Colby Fire
Colby Fire

The Colby Fire was a wildfire in the Angeles National Forest. It was ignited along the Colby Truck Trail in the San Gabriel Mountains in northern Los Angeles County, United States. The fire started on January 16, 2014, and eventually burned 1,992 acres. On January 25, the Colby Fire had burned 1,962 acres, and was 98% contained. The fire, which was fanned by strong Santa Ana winds, destroyed five homes, injured one person, and forced the evacuation of 3,600 people at its peak.Three men in their early 20s were arrested for recklessly starting a fire, and have allegedly admitted starting an illegal campfire that blew out of control. They will face federal charges of unlawfully causing timber to burn. Bail has been set at $500,000 for each of them "due to the seriousness of the crime, as well as the high cost of damaged property and resources to fight the fire." One of the men, a transient, has been placed in a residential drug treatment facility. Two of the homeless men were convicted of lighting and failing to control an illegal campfire; the third person is scheduled to go to trial later in 2014.January fires are unusual in Southern California, but there was little rainfall in the area leading up to the fire, which led to a "red flag" fire danger situation. Warm temperatures, low humidity, and an excess of dry brush in the foothills around Glendora (which had not burned significantly since the 1960s) encouraged the growth of the fire.