COARSEGOLD — A fire burning at the edge of Yosemite Lakes Park near the dam at Black Hawk Lake has been contained. Just before 4 p.m., as mop-up was being completed at the Garnet Fire on Road 400, firefighters were dispatched to the end of Patrick Avenue for another vegetation fire. A resident who was out for a run along ...

COARSEGOLD — “Just because it’s a burn day doesn’t mean it’s safe to burn.” It’s a warning given often by fire officials, but not necessarily heeded by residents. Firefighters responded today to yet another escaped burn pile, this one just outside Yosemite Lakes Park on Road 400 near Garnet Creek Lane. At about 2:20 p.m., crews were dispatched to the ...

YOSEMITE — Park officials have announce the closure, for one night only, of Big Oak Flat Road (Highway 120) into Yosemite National Park. The closure will be in effect from 9 p.m. on Monday, May 15, to 5 a.m. on Tuesday, May 16. Officials say this closure is necessary for paving on the roadway, which was severely damaged in late ...

SIERRA NATIONAL FOREST – Adventurers looking for the spectacular scenery of Yosemite National Park without the crowds — there is a road less traveled right in your back yard. The Sierra Vista Scenic Byway, recently featured as a California “Hidden Gem” by Visit California, is a 100-mile stretch of road from North Fork — the exact center of California — ...

MADERA COUNTY — YARTS buses will start rolling up Highway 41 to Yosemite National Park starting Monday, May 15, thanks to funding from the Fresno Council of Governments (COG) and the Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System (YARTS). Now that YARTS has resumed service on the busy corridor, residents and visitors alike will be able to access round-trip public transportation to and ...

O’NEALS — Firefighters responded shortly after noon today to a vehicle fire on Highway 41, a quarter-mile north of Road 200. At 12:44 p.m. reports came in of a vehicle on fire, parked on the shoulder of the northbound lane. Cal Fire Engine 4295 and Madera County Fire Engine 8 responded and reported the vehicle fully engulfed when they arrived at ...

YOSEMITE — Yosemite National Park will increase the permit fees for ascending Half Dome to a $10 application fee and a $10 permit fee. These fee increases will take effect when weather and snow conditions allow the Half Dome cables to be installed, at the end of May or early June 2017. The fee increases are necessary to meet increased ...

CLOVIS – As warmer weather arrives in the region, rivers fed by melting snows over the High Sierra will cause rivers to rise. The Upper Kings, San Joaquin, and Merced rivers will swell with swift and cold water that will also fill into Bass, Shaver, Huntington and many other lakes that can be found and enjoyed on the Sierra National ...

BASS LAKE — After eight days of testimony and two days of deliberation, the jury in the murder and attempted murder trial of George Taylor-Windsor has reached a verdict. Taylor-Windsor, 26, was found guilty of first degree murder in the stabbing death of Jessica Nelson, 23, of Foresthill, Calif., as well as guilty of the special allegation of using a deadly weapon in ...

BASS LAKE — Another escaped burn pile had firefighters responding just after noon today, this time in the Bass Lake area. Cal Fire Engine 4254 was at the scene within minutes of dispatch, at a home near Teaford Meadow, and found residents working on five burn piles. One of those piles had crept into a nearby woodpile. “These folks were ...