YOSEMITE – The El Portal fire has now scorched 3,060 acres in Yosemite National Park and the Stanislaus National Forest, and is 19 percent contained. Officials report that it is now posing a threat to the Merced Grove of Giant Sequoias. Old El Portal residents were allowed to return home as of 9 a.m. this morning.

AHWAHNEE – A group of like-minded individuals gathered at Ahwahnee Hills Regional Park on Monday, July 29, to break ground on the newest phase of renovation for the Oak Acorn Center, an interpretive community facility. Plans call for an existing building to be torn down, with portions of the old wood re-purposed and built into a new structure designed to ...

SIERRA NATIONAL FOREST – More than 2,000 acres along the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway have now been charred as the French Fire continues its march through the Bass Lake Ranger District. It is currently at zero percent containment. The fire, which was reported just before 6 a.m. on Monday, July 28, moved a bit to the south overnight, prompting a ...

EL PORTAL – Residents in the area of the El Portal fire are encouraged to attend a community briefing at 6 p.m. tonight – Monday, July 28 – at El Portal Elementary School. The current fire conditions will be presented. As of this morning, the fire is over 2,600 acres with 5% containment. Evacuations are still in effect. Over 700 ...

YOSEMITE – The El Portal Fire has now grown to 2,632 acres as it continues to char forests in Yosemite National Park (YNP) and the Stanislaus National Forest. As of 9 p.m. on Sunday, July 27, there is still 0% containment, and 585 personnel from around the region continue to battle the blaze, along with air tankers and helicopters.

YOSEMITE – A wildfire burning near El Portal is threatening homes in the Foresta area, and has promted evacuations and road closures along Highway 140. The fire was reported at 3:19 p.m. on Saturday, July 26. It started just above Old El Portal near Foresta and burned very rapidly up Merced Canyon, consuming approximately 2,100 acres as of 9 p.m., ...

MADERA COUNTY – As the temperatures climb into triple digits in the valley, mountain area communities have established cooling centers for residents during times of extreme summer heat. Centers are generally closed on holidays unless otherwise indicated.

We have a very special grove of Giant Sequoias close to Oakhurst called Nelder Grove, and a new and much improved website is now up and running. You can access the website at http://www.neldergrove.org. You can also download the interpretive guide with an easy click of the mouse, along with maps, trails, and other interesting wildlife, plant and historical information ...

YOSEMITE – Visitors to Yosemite National Park have contributed to the economies of gateway communities to the tune of more than $373 million, says a newly released report The new National Park Service (NPS) report shows that 3,691,192 visitors to Yosemite National Park in 2013 spent $373,269,800 in communities near the park, supporting some 5,033 jobs in the local area.

WAWONA – We surprised ourselves this morning by getting up and out of the house by 8:10 a.m., only ten minutes later than we’d expected, which isn’t bad considering today’s mix was two parents, two teens, and a 90 lb. chocolate lab. Setting off from Coarsegold we took a leisurely drive north on Highway 41 up to Yosemite National Park, ...