By Scott Lange — As winter was rolling in just before Thanksgiving, a few of us got the urge to get into the High Sierra one last time this year. It would prove to be a tough task to even find an accessible trailhead as most of the roads had already been closed to snowfall, but we found an entry ...

Imagine visiting Yosemite in the 1870s, before Yosemite had been designated a Park. You just might have come into Yosemite Valley on a horse and wagon from Big Oak Flat down into the valley via the Old Big Oak Flat Road. Parts of this old road have been wiped out by rockslides but much of the road is still accessible by foot. ...

In a long forgotten and remote corner of Mariposa County, at the intersection of West Westfall and Preston Roads, one can still see the crumbling stone ruins of an old copper smelter. Nearby, and in what is now Madera County, are the remains of the three main copper mines of the Foot Hill Copper Belt; the Buchanan, the Daulton, and ...

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK – Great news skiers! Yosemite National Park’s Badger Pass Ski Area will open on Saturday, Dec. 12 for the 2015-16 season. Badger Pass Ski Area’s snowtubing hill will open at a later date, say park rangers, as more snow is needed. Badger Pass Ski Area, operated by park concessioner Delaware North at Yosemite, is California’s original ski ...

Submitted by Samantha Grant O’NEALS — My twin sister Hallie and I are throwing the first-ever carnival at Minarets High School, a  Christmas Carnival for our Senior Legacy Project. We wanted to plan an event that would incorporate what we love and decided to raise money for the Eastern Madera County SPCA (EMC SPCA). We have two dogs, Ryder and ...

We had a beautiful drive up to Curry Village in Yosemite National Park for the Annual Holiday Craft Bazaar.  Fresh snow trimmed the peaks above the valley and we could see wonderful reflections in the Merced River as we drove up.  We parked in the Curry Village parking lot, which was an ice sheet in much of the area so ...

FleaMarketGardening.org There’s no reason to stop decorating when you reach the back door. Continue right out into the garden! Many holiday decorations can transition easily into ‘gifts’ for the birds, as in decorated trees, or can act as focal points that add some color to a snowy or barren garden scene. It really makes decorating fun when it’s this simple! ...

Submitted by Susan Joy NORTH FORK — Early in the summer of 2015, Marij Bouwmans, a prominent artist residing in North Fork, had a vision. Inspired to manifest an ambitious project, involving 20+ artisians, she put out a calling for knitters and crocheters. With much foresight, Marij began the journey to hand-craft a magnificent dress of grand proportions. Time was ...

By Virginia Eaton — An explosion in exercise classes has pushed participants to the edge of their fitness level — think CrossFit and boot camp-types of classes. While there’s much to be gained by sweating and grunting for an hour, the goal of sustainable, well rounded fitness requires skills that you often don’t get in these high energy classes. Boot ...

Sally and Raven headed to Fish Camp to check out the recent snow. We drove them. When we told the dogs it was ok to unload, they were off. They sure love the snow and so do I. We saw some great snow, beautiful reflections in the creek and got a good workout in our snowshoes. Where: Fish Camp, Sierra National Forest ...