CALIFORNIA — If you operate a motorized vessel on California waterways, take note: beginning Jan. 1, 2018, boaters 20 years of age and younger are the first group that must carry a California Boater Card when on state waterways. The requirement that California boat operators obtain a Boater Card will be phased in over the next seven years. Lifetime cards ...

SACRAMENTO – Governor Jerry Brown’s $180 billion May revision to the 2017-2018 budget proposes cutting millions of dollars from funding to fight fires and support local tree mortality projects in California’s forestlands. The Governor’s updated budget, released on Thursday, May 11, cuts funding for the Office of Emergency Services from $52.7 million to $8.5 million, with only $2 million allocated ...

YOSEMITE — Yosemite National Park anticipates an extremely busy Memorial Day weekend, with high visitation from Friday, May 26, until Monday, May 29. Visitors are encouraged to arrive at Yosemite before 9 a.m. or after 4 p.m. Once in the park, visitors are urged to park their vehicles at the Yosemite Village, Yosemite Falls or Half Dome Village parking areas ...

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 ...

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 ...

YOSEMITE — Yosemite National Park will open the Glacier Point Road to all vehicular traffic at 9 a.m. on Thursday, May 11. There will be limited visitor services available at Glacier Point. The Glacier Point Store will be open at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 12. There is no projected opening date for the Bridalveil Creek Campground. Due to a ...

YOSEMITE — Yosemite National Park officials are asking for the public’s help in locating Alexander Joseph Sevier, who has been missing for nearly a week. Sevier was last seen in Housekeeping Camp on or around Monday, May 1. He was possibly wearing Aeropostale, Abercrombie, or Hollister brand clothing, and officials believe he may have taken day hikes out of Yosemite ...

SIERRA NEVADA – The manual snow survey conducted on May 1 by the Department of Water Resources (DWR) at Phillips Station in the Sierra Nevada found a Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) of 27.8 inches, 190 percent of the May 1 long-term average there of 14.6 inches. Electronic measurements indicate the water content of the statewide snowpack as of May 1 ...

YOSEMITE — Beginning Friday, May 5, the Glacier Point Road will be open to bicyclists wishing to ride on the road. The road has been swept, but persons riding bicycles need to be aware that tree debris and small rocks may still fall onto the road. Crews will evaluate the road next week for possible opening to vehicles, pending weather ...

MARIPOSA — After a destructive fire season in 2016, conditions in California are already drying out, prompting Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., to declare May 7 – 13, 2017 as “Wildfire Awareness Week.” During Wildfire Awareness Week, Cal Fire is stressing the critical role all residents play in preparing for fire season now. Approximately 90 percent of all wildfires in ...