By Bob Labozetta (UC Master Gardener, Mariposa) It’s cold outside now, but there are still options for the ambitious vegetable gardener. Consider planting these six winter vegetables. Winter lettuce selections include hardy varieties that grow easily throughout the cold months here. Direct sow lettuce seeds from mid-August to mid-September. Beyond those dates, you can sow seeds indoors in seedling trays ...

I can’t resist the way that snow looks contrasted with Giant Sequoias, so I headed up to Merced Grove for a half day. Yosemite National Park has 3 Giant Sequoia Groves and some say that Merced Grove is the least visited. It was a very nice hike down the historic Old Coulterville Road to check out the 20 or so ...

Yosemite National Park proudly announces the recipients of the 2020 Volunteer of the Year Awards. These awards are bestowed annually to outstanding volunteers in several different categories, recognizing exemplary service to Yosemite National Park. In 2020, volunteers faced innumerable challenges. These resilient, service-minded individuals worked right alongside National Park Service coworkers despite these challenges, striving to keep park visitors safe, ...

A storm was on the way that would close Tioga Road but would it close for a short period or for the season? I wasn’t about to miss the opportunity to visit some of the higher country in the Tioga Pass area while I could get there so I headed up to the glacial fed Conness Lakes as they were ...

I had a three bear day while I snuck in some exercise checking out fall color on the Yosemite Valley Loop. Yellow Black Oaks and Maples, along with Red Dogwoods reflected along the Merced River! Where: Yosemite National ParkDistance: 12.12 milesDifficulty: EasyElevation Range: 3,869′ – 4,105′Date: November 4, 2020Maps: El Capitan and Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Topographic QuadDog Hike? NoHorseback Trail? ...

Sally the Weimaraner, Fannie the Corgi and I finally got the go-ahead to hike in Tioga Pass’s Hoover Wilderness after it had been reopened after the fire danger closures. I could feel winter knocking on the door as we walked by iced over small lakes. I brought my fishing pole along just in case . . . Where: Inyo National ...

By Ron Allen, UC Master Gardener, Mariposa Fall is the time to plant California natives. The weather is cooler, the first soaking rains are imminent, and yet there is still plenty of good sunlight. These factors make for good initial foliage growth and root development. The motivation for adding native plants comes down to one thing: water. Mariposa County enjoys ...

Do you ever hike a familiar trail and wonder what is hiding just over the next ridge? I sure do and had some time to explore the terrain above Helen Lake along the Kuna Crest.Where: Yosemite National ParkDistance: 11.16 MilesDifficulty: Moderate to StrenuousElevation Range: 9,596′ – 11,348′Date: October 19, 2020Maps: Falls Ridge, June Lake Topographic QuadsDog Hike? NoI had been ...

By Sal Maccarone Artists have been rendering their surroundings ever since they began to walk the earth. For instance, primitive cave paintings and pre-historic petroglyphs bear witness to the way things were. Landscape paintings are the only record that we have about where, and how these ancient groups lived. Bodies of water, forests, mountains, valleys, animals and people are just ...

Road trip to the east side! It is an annual thing for me to try and take at least one trip to the east side of the Sierra to check out the fall colors. Those colors start up earlier over there than they do here and there is something about the way those yellow and orange leaves contrast with those ...