CATHEYS VALLEY — Local ranchers are invited to attend a workshop hosted by Fadzayi Mashiri, University of California Cooperative Extension’s Livestock & Natural Resources Advisor for Mariposa and Merced Counties, at McCay Hall in Catheys Valley on Thursday, Feb. 16, from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The presentations will focus on profitability and will cover topics including financial tools for ...

PRATHER — A Reforestation Workshop for forest land owners and foresters will be held on Saturday, Feb. 11, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Intermountain Nursery in Prather. The workshop is being hosted by Cal Fire, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and University of California Extension. Topics in the workshop will include: Forest ecology following heavy tree ...

CENTRAL SIERRA — The National Weather Service in Hanford has issued a Flash Flood Watch for the Sierra Nevada foothills including Mariposa, Madera, Tulare and Fresno County foothills, and Tulare County mountains, due to recent heavy rains combined with additional rainfall and possible snow melt expected. The Flash Flood Watch will be in effect from 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, ...

MADERA COUNTY — Perhaps the most often-asked question to Sierra News Online concerns accidents on Highway 41 — how many occur each year, and how many are DUI related? The California Highway Patrol in Sacramento provided us with accident statistics from Jan. 1, 2011 through Dec. 31, 2015, for the Highway 41 corridor from Highway 145 to Fish Camp. We ...

SIERRA NATIONAL FOREST — Recent storms have brought much needed rain and snow to the Sierra Nevada in the last few weeks, but the result has been damage to some Forest roads. These storms have also created a significant amount of runoff, swelling rivers and creeks beyond their capacity in many locations. With the ground already saturated, road travel requires ...

CENTRAL SIERRA – Anyone taking to the mountain highways over the weekend should avoid any unwanted delays by making sure there are traction devices in their vehicle. Chain control is now in place on Highway 41 from three miles north of Coarsegold (the bottom of Deadwood) to Yosemite National Park (R2 – see below). The location could change as conditions warrant. ...

AHWAHNEE —  Robin and the crew at Coolwater Ranch are kicking off their 2017 concert series with guitarist extraordinaire Mike Dowling, on Saturday, Jan. 21. When the late, great Vassar Clements heard Mike Dowling play guitar back in 1975 he did the sensible thing. He hired him. Mike was the guitarist in Vassar’s first touring band and can be heard ...

MADERA COUNTY — The Board of Supervisors will be considering a resolution to establish a new salary structure for Paid Call Firefighters (PCFs) at their regular meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 24. Currently, PCFs, or Volunteer Firefighters, are only paid the minimum wage of $10.50/hour and are only compensated when responding to fires and motor vehicle accidents. They are not paid ...

CENTRAL SIERRA — The National Weather Service office in Hanford has issued a Winter Storm Warning for the southern Sierra Nevada from Yosemite National Park to the Tulare-Kern County Line. Over one foot of new snow accumulations can be expected above 7,000 feet. Snow levels will start high around 8,000 feet at the storm’s onset early Wednesday afternoon, but will ...

OAKHURST — District 5 Supervisor Tom Wheeler will host his first Town Hall meeting of the new year at the Oakhurst Community Center on Thursday, Jan. 19, from 6 to 8 p.m. On March 7, the County will hold a special election allowing voters to have their say on Measure L, the proposed Public Safety Tax aimed at funding the ...