YOSEMITE – Yosemite National Park road crews have begun clearing debris caused by a rockfall at 5:45 a.m. Thursday morning, Jan., 7, that closed the El Portal Road (Highway 140) in Yosemite National Park. The work to clear the road could take several days. There is no anticipated day or time for the road to reopen. The rockfall triggered several ...

OAKHURST – On Saturday, Jan. 9, Dianna and Jeff Conaway will open the gates, unlock the doors, turn on the lights and get started on their first official day of business as proprietors of Western Sierra Nursery, a plan that has been in the works since September, 2015. Escrow closed this week on the property, a private sale between parties, ...

YOSEMITE – Highway 140 is closed from the Park boundary to the junction of El Portal Road/Big Oak Flat Road with no estimated time for reopening. At approximately 5:45 this morning, Thursday, Jan. 7, a rockfall occurred above the El Portal Road (Highway 140). Due to the rockfall, Highway 140 is closed from the park boundary in El Portal to ...

OAKHURST – Two Yosemite High School students are each set to receive valuable scholarships for two of the country’s most desirable universities: twin brothers Travis Wood and Trevor Wood are sailing into the final months of their primary school academic careers already knowing where they’re going for college, and how they’re going to get there. The scholarships were awarded through ...

MARIPOSA COUNTY — Under a new ordinance, Mariposa County joins other California jurisdictions in prohibiting electronic smoking devices, along with tobacco, in select parks, sports fields, a farmers market, YARTS bus stops and certain recreational areas. The goal is to reduce the public’s exposure to chemicals and keep kids away from ever-new ways to ingest harmful tobacco products in a ...

MADERA COUNTY – Following are details from the Madera County Sheriff’s Office of reports taken locally from Dec. 27, 2015 through Jan. 3, 2016. Oakhurst runaway juvenile On Sunday, Dec. 27 at 00:19 a.m., a deputy flagged down by a citizen in the 45000 block of CA-41 regarding a runaway juvenile. Investigation concluded the juvenile had possibly left the Oakhurst ...

Submitted by Nikki Van Velson and Michele Shockley OAKHURST – Soroptimist International of The Sierras is hosting a career support conference for high school girls in grades 9 through 12, on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016. Registration is from 8 to 8:45 a.m. and the program begins at 9 a.m. Breakfast and lunch will be served. This event is free to ...

MOUNTAIN AREA — The first in a series of storms coming through Central California this week will bring rain and snow to the area, and a winter storm warning has been issued for the southern Sierra Nevada from Yosemite National Park to the Tulare/Kern county line, from 10 p.m. Monday, Jan. 4 through 10 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 5. According to ...

MOUNTAIN AREA – Rain is on its way to the foothills and snow to the higher country including Yosemite, as this week’s weather looks a little wetter. In Oakhurst on Monday, Jan. 4, the National Weather Service (NWS) in Hanford is suggesting a 50 percent chance of rain, without much to measure: somewhere between a tenth and a quarter inch ...

AHWAHNEE – The Oakhurst chapter of nonprofit organization Helping One Woman (HOW) will meet to honor local new mom and Coarsegold resident Jennifer (Jenna) See at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 20, at the Hitching Post in Ahwahnee. “2015 was a tough year for Jenna,” say HOW organizers, including sponsor Kristen Bateman. “Early in her pregnancy Jenna lost her job. ...