The road up 8,500 foot Relay Ridge in eastern Utah was recommended for 4-wheel drive or rental vehicles only. So, hoping for an outcome more high-minded than high-centered, I dropped the rugged VW Passat, painted seriously technical Candy White, into low gear — and put the pedal to the plastic. It had been 26 years since I had had observed ...

It is hard to believe that it is the middle of August and the snow up at the higher elevations is really hanging in there. Sally and I wandered our way through that snow in the Twenty Lakes Basin by beautiful lakes in the Hoover Wilderness. Where: Hoover Wilderness Distance: 10 Miles Difficulty: Moderate Elevation Range: 10,108′ – 10,342′ Date: ...

OAKHURST – About 600-pounds of meat has been delivered for the much-anticipated Cedar Valley Fire Department Deep-Pit BBQ this weekend, and since so many people are looking for opportunities to support our firefighting community — this is the way to go. The event is on Saturday, Sept. 2 from 4:30 – 7:30 p.m. and everyone is invited. The Cedar Valley Fire ...

Greetings Earthlings. This is to notify you that at noontime on August 21 along a 70 mile wide path extending from Oregon to South Carolina, sunlight will be unavailable for about two-and-a-half minutes. Do not panic, this is a scheduled outage. In fact, it has been scheduled for millions of years. If you are not in the path you will ...

One of the reasons that I love hiking in this country is because of the rich mining history that occurred in these parts and when I am up here, I cannot stop thinking of the characters that braved this tough country to pursue their dreams of finding gold and silver. “The Great Silver Belt,” which runs from Tioga Hill to ...

This is one of the more remote California State Campgrounds, as it’s off the beaten path but fairly close — located near Morgan Hill off the 101 Freeway. To get there, take Highway 41 towards Fresno, turn right on Highway 145 and then north on Highway 99. Then, take Highway 152 all the way to Gilroy, passing the San Luis ...

MARIPOSA COUNTY — Anyone wishing to help victims of the Detwiler Fire can still do so in several ways. The Mariposa Community Foundation will be distributing cash donations to those who lost their homes. They have set up a PayPal donate button on their website at mariposacommunity.foundation/MCF. You can also mail a check to MCF and note “Detwiler Fire” on ...

NORTH FORK — The Sierra Mono Museum is one of the cultural treasures of the Central Sierra, and is self-sustaining — with no funding from the county, state or federal governments. The Western Mono people once shared and called home a wide swath of territory running from the modern landmarks of Yosemite in the north to the Tulare watershed in ...

How much snow and ice would we find at the 11,000′ elevation above the Mono Pass Trail in August? It was the right time to get up there and check it out. It took us 5 hours and 44 minutes to do this hike but you can follow along on the hike with me on the Doarama link under Maps ...

Last April Sue and I (and Maggie, of course) camped at Red Rock Canyon State Park located just off Highway 14 just north of Jawbone Canyon. While it’s too hot there in the summer, it’s great in the cooler temperatures of the fall, winter and spring. From the website: Red Rock Canyon State Park features scenic desert cliffs, buttes and ...