California's struggling salmon // Botanical refuge in Sonoma County

Good morning. It’s Wednesday, April 16.

Commercial salmon fishing suspended for third year.
Early results show tight race for Oakland mayor.
And a gorgeous botanical refuge in Sonoma County.

Statewide

1.

A fish carcass along the Feather River. (OTABR)

Commercial salmon fishing will be banned in California for an unprecedented third year in a row, officials announced on Tuesday. The Pacific Fishery Management Council, the interstate regulatory agency, said the closure was necessary because the chinook salmon are simply too scarce. The collapse of California’s fish species has followed centuries of river habitat destruction wrought by damming, diversions, and resource extraction. Some experts have begun to worry that the once-abundant salmon may never rebound to fishable levels. CalMatters | S.F. Chronicle

2.

David Bradshaw, a beekeeper on the outskirts of Visalia, has been in the business for 50 years, supplying pollination services to farmers of almonds, avocados, kiwis, and other crops. But this past winter, something went terribly awry. Of his 1,800 hives, only 320 survived the season. “It’s like, what did I do wrong? … It really hurts,” he said. But Bradshaw wasn’t alone. A nationwide survey published this month found that beekeepers lost 1.6 million colonies — an average loss of 62% — in the worst die-off ever recorded. No one knows why. Valley Public Radio

3.

On Tuesday, the progressive duo of Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez brought their “Fighting Oligarchy” tour to Bakersfield, California’s most conservative metropolis. Before a crowd of roughly 4,000 people, Sanders took direct aim at David Valadao, a local Republican congressman who represents a swing district where 67% of residents rely on Medicaid. Sanders accused Valadao of hiding from constituents who want assurances that he’ll protect the program. “Have the guts, show up and answer that question,” he said. San Joaquin Valley Sun | KGET

Later on Tuesday, the Democratic lawmakers rallied another crowd in Folsom, just outside Sacramento. This time, an estimated 26,000 people turned out. Folsom Times

Northern California

4.

Barbara Lee was once considered a shoo-in for Oakland mayor. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Barbara Lee, the progressive icon who was the highest-ranking Black woman in Democratic leadership before retiring from Congress in January, was trailing in a special election for Oakland mayor late Tuesday. According to early results, Loren Taylor, a Democratic former City Council member who has leaned moderate, had 51% of the vote to Lee’s 49%. Oakland’s former mayor, Sheng Thao, was ousted in November after a recall campaign that highlighted frustrations over crime and corruption. Mercury News | S.F. Chronicle

5.

In March, Mark Zuckerberg personally called the head of the Federal Trade Commission to make an offer: Meta would pay $450 million to settle an antitrust lawsuit against the company. As the trial approached, he upped the offer to $1 billion. It wasn’t enough. The FTC, which wanted $30 billion, declined. Lina Khan, a former chair of the agency, said Zuckerberg’s settlement offer was “delusional.” “Mark bought his way out of competing, so I’m not surprised that he thinks he can buy his way out of law enforcement, too,” she told the Wall Street Journal.

6.

Solano County filed six charges against a homeless man, José Carrizales, for “disturbing the peace by offensive language.” Carrizales, who is known for protesting encampment sweeps, has acknowledged that he can sometimes get carried away. But his prosecution appears calculated to silence a police critic, his lawyer said. “I’m appalled, but on the other hand, bring it on,” said Daniel Russo, who is representing Carrizales pro bono. “I’m old, but I like to fight.” Open Vallejo

7.

The columnist Emily Hoeven loves San Francisco’s new statue of a giant nude woman. So she was taken aback by the criticism of detractors, some of whom called the 45-foot-tall artwork “dumb,” “disgusting,” and “disrespectful.” The sculpture may be a little kitschy, Hoeven acknowledged, but it has also “illuminated the impossibility of pleasing this all-too-often petulant city.” S.F. Chronicle

KQED’s Sarah Hotchkiss: “As I gazed up at this monumental steel and mesh sculpture on Thursday, I felt embarrassed for the city of San Francisco.”

8.

Ask a serious gardener about their influences, and many will mention a tiny nursery wedged between the fruit orchards and redwood forests of rural Sonoma County, the New York Times once wrote. Founded in 1959, the 3-acre Western Hills Garden includes five ponds, 34 bridges, and a collection of exquisite plant varieties from Australia, South America, South Africa, and beyond. It is a place of pilgrimage for horticulturists, but regular nature lovers can stroll the grounds as well. Sonoma Magazine included Western Hills in a new bucket list for visitors to Sonoma County.

Southern California

9.

In December, a donkey rescue group was contracted to capture wild burros roaming a canyon landscape just north of Moreno Valley and relocate them to a more suitable habitat. It was all very routine. But the nonprofit, Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue, soon learned that residents in the area really like their donkeys. Petitions were launched, accusations were hurled, and the contract was canceled. “I’d never received a death threat until I started rescuing donkeys,” said Mark Meyers, Peaceful Valley’s director. SFGATE

10.

In a New Yorker interview, the actor and musician Jeff Bridges expounded on consciousness and creativity from his home in Santa Barbara. A few quotes:

“I’ve been exploring this idea of willpower recently. … The idea is: Is willpower an illusion? Are you really making these choices? All that stuff. You think, Oh, I’m doing this — but how much? My current thought is that we’re doing it all together.”
“I consider myself a very lazy person. But then I say, ‘Look at all the stuff that you’ve done, man.’ But I’m just — I’m so . . . I’m so lazy. “
“It’s amazing how accessible love is.”

11.

In 2020, three San Diego friends bought a crumbling 1920s resort in the desert east of the city with dreams of bringing it back to life. The journalist Rosecrans Baldwin recently paid a visit and found that they hadn’t just redone the hotel. They revitalized an entire town. In Jacumba Hot Springs, the lake is now full of water. There’s a vintage-clothing store and a repurposed bathhouse where free concerts are held on weekends. A local told Baldwin he had lived in Jacumba Hot Springs for 45 years. The newcomers, he said, were “the best thing that’s ever happened here.” Travel + Leisure

12.

Hollywood starlets relaxed on a boat at Catalina Island in 1946. (Martha Holmes/LIFE magazine)

The dawn of the movie industry sparked a search for shooting locations that were physically near yet seemed a world away. Catalina Island, just 23 miles off the Southern California coast, provided a ready backdrop for film directors. Over time, the island also became a favored getaway for well-heeled Angelenos and Hollywood royalty. LIFE.com delved into its archives for a gallery of pictures captured during Catalina’s 1940s and 1950s heyday.

See more Catalina images from the LIFE archive. 👉 Forgotten Los Angeles

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The California Sun is written by Mike McPhate, a former California correspondent for the New York Times.

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