Monday, April 24, 2006

Bradford Island Mariner Hunkers Down on Delta Island

Note: I wrote the following article after paying a visit to a squatter on a hard-to-reach island out in the Sacramento Delta. No previous reporter had visited him before, and I wanted to be able to share his side of the story, too, despite rumors of his being dangerous. So I made the trip and, because of it, generated a front-page story.

By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
Sept. 4, 2001

Claus Von Wendel is the bearded ruler of his own ramshackle kingdom on a forgotten, windswept island in the western Delta.

He lives on a rusted fleet of hulking barges, which includes a 20-ton crane that juts, perhaps arrogantly, into the sky above Fisherman's Cut.

Outside his bedroom window, he plucks fresh black bass from the milky-green waters. Sparrows are allowed to set up nests inside his house.

The 60-year-old East Prussia native enjoys the natural serenity of Bradford Island and its "potential for self-sufficiency."

But local and state officials see things differently. They view the 2,100-acre island north of Oakley as a floating eyesore, a secluded enclave littered with abandoned vessels and loaded with hazards.

And they see Von Wendel as a free-spirited mariner whose illegal practices and unsightly barge have helped contribute to the island's reputation as the "junkyard of the Delta."

Von Wendel, who moved to Bradford Island in 1991, thinks he has been unfairly singled out as the prime target of a new multiagency task force. He vows to stand his ground.

"I've lived on the waters for 30 years," he said, gazing out at the sun-splashed surface of the Delta. "But it's unlike what it used to be.

"This area was initially settled by mariners, ship builders, barge operators, levee builders All of a sudden, in 2001, life on the water is no longer acceptable."

The rift underscores the immense challenge authorities face in trying to revive and clean an island that has been neglected for years.

But authorities have become determined. The Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office, with pressure from legislators, tagged and hauled away 136 junked cars last year. Dilapidated mobile homes and derelict vessels followed.

And in February, the Bradford Island Task Force, composed of about 20 members and 10 government agencies, was created. It zeroed in on the crumbling lineup of debris that clutter Fisherman's Cut, a narrow channel of water on the eastern part of the island.

"There are a lot of problems in that channel," said state Department of Fish and Game patrol Lt. Dennis DeAnda. "The people responsible for some of the trouble there do not appear to have the financial means to remedy, correct or remove the problems. It's a common theme in the Delta."

Especially on Bradford Island, reached only by ferry. For years, the remote island was a lush, agricultural area on which farmers raised cattle and planted crops under a blazing sun.

But then came a crushing blow: Fierce, storm-fueled waves ripped a gaping hole in the levee on Dec. 3, 1983. The raging flood killed cattle, wiped out homes and caused millions of dollars in damage.

In the aftermath, distraught residents sorted through the rubble and decided to leave the island; squatters, strong-willed independents and other folks in search of privacy and tranquillity began setting up camp along the shorelines.

The junk followed. Soon, the island was strewn with abandoned vehicles, derelict vessels, rusted appliances and other nuisances that forced property values to plunge.

Earlier this year, Von Wendel made news when he drove five pilings into a chunk of the Fisherman's Cut without permission.

A bitter dispute with a property owner, he said, forced him to move about a quarter-mile south along Fisherman's Cut. A friend allowed him to set up camp along the shoreline.

To secure his new dwelling, he used his massive crane to drill the 35-foot-long pilings into the levee.

Two broke off during a February storm, and Von Wendel didn't have the proper permit to do the work.

Concerned authorities scurried to the island to investigate.

Permits are required, he was told, because government agencies want to make sure the pilings do not damage the levee and disrupt endangered fish and wildlife.

Von Wendel, a burly man with a thorny, silver-streaked beard, said he didn't know at the time that a permit was required, but state officials reject that excuse.

Now, Von Wendel finds himself in the middle of a fierce tug of war against local and state authorities.

The owner of the property where he lives, Kenneth Headley, recently filed a permit application on behalf of Von Wendel asking that he be allowed to drive 12 new pilings to further secure his home with winter approaching.

Meanwhile, in an Aug. 22 letter sent to the island's property owners, Bradford Island Reclamation District 2059 solicited comments about Von Wendel's application. The district opposes the work.

The Bradford Island Task Force is preparing to file a complaint against Von Wendel with the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office.

"Our main concern is that he's messing with the levee," said Bill Heyenbruch, an associate engineer with the state Department of Water Resources. "Being a vagabond of the sea is fine. But you can't just tie yourself up and do whatever you want."

On a recent day, Von Wendel sat at a wood table inside his 30-by-140-foot barge, which included plants, a wood-burning stove and an assortment of metal sculptures that he had made.

He cracked open a beer and peered out the window at Fisherman's Cut. The water could be heard slapping the shoreline.

"I'll never move off the water," he said. "Ever. That's my life. I like the serenity and, for that matter, the challenges of it."

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