MOUNTAIN AREA – Sierra National Forest (SNF) officials issued an order Friday banning campfires outside of developed recreational sites. The campfire restrictions are meant “to protect the health and safety of employees and communities,”  said a statement released this afternoon by the agency.The restrictions are “effective immediately and until further notice,” the release stated. “Outside of developed recreation sites and ...

MADERA — Supervisors made it official Tuesday morning: Former Sheriff Jay Varney is now the County’s top day-to-day administrator.At the start of today’s (June 2) meeting, which was chaired by Supervisor Rob Poythress, the board formally appointed Varney to be the County’s new chief administrative officer. “He will take over as a strong leader,” said Supervisor Frazier. “Jay is exactly who ...

MARIPOSA — Emphasizing that visitor safety remains their top priority, tourism officials of gateway communities in Madera and Mariposa counties are nonetheless voicing concern over planned new restricted access to Yosemite National Park.  “On May 18, Yosemite National Park leadership shared its draft reopening strategy with the region’s gateway communities. The proposal would limit daily access to 3,600 vehicles, 1,700 ...

Walking up historic wagon roads near my house on a cool day after a rain was a party for my senses, full of fresh smells of the forest and flowers. Dogwoods were blooming like crazy and those animal tracks were easy to spot while the gnats and skeeters slept in. Distance: 10.62 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: ...

BASS LAKE – The Madera County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) will be providing mobile drive-through COVID-19 testing in Bass Lake on Tuesday (June 2) from 9 a.m. to noon.To be stationed in the the administrative parking lot of the Pines Resort, MCDPH’s mobile testing unit will be offering the FREE tests to all adults — both symptomatic and asymptomatic.The ...

By Ron Allen, UC Master Gardener, Mariposa County MARIPOSA — With warm, dry months ahead, many folks around Mariposa County with oak trees by their house or on their landscape might be asking how best to ensure the health of those trees. The short and happy answer is that you do not need to do too much. But you should ...

OAKHURST — Body’s By Boyd is pleased to announce we are officially open at our new location at 49643 Hartwell Rd. in Oakhurst. Our new facility is 16,100 square feet, more than triple the size of our previous building. We have installed all new state-of-the-art equipment including a GFS Ultra spray booth, Kaeser air center compressor system, GFS prep stations, ...

Adventuring close to home, I walked the same dirt roads, followed different spur roads, giving me a looped walk along a historic stage route that carried Yosemite tourists to Wawona starting in the 1880s. Distance: About 11 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: Easy to ModerateElevation Range: 3,418′ to 4,994′Date: May 13, 2020Maps: Ben Hur and Daulton Topographic ...

COARSEGOLD — The Chukchansi Economic Development Authority (CEDA) and the management team at Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino announced Friday the property will implement its first phase of reopening on June 1.CEDA temporarily closed the property on March 20 due to public and tribal health precautions surrounding COVID-19. Since then, according to tribal officials, CEDA has continued to monitor the ...

NORTH FORK — The North Fork School’s Class of 2020 unknowingly had their last day of school in March. Although each graduating class from year to year has a different personality, they seem to all go through the same process in the spring of their 8th grade year. They begin to see one another in a different light, realizing that ...