BASS LAKE – It is not unusual for the Sheriff’s Office to get a call that someone needs rescuing from the Angel Falls area above Bass Lake. It’s a popular destination for hikers and those looking for a beautiful spot to swim in the creek, but it can also be very dangerous. Today at about 12:30 p.m., a call came ...

MADERA COUNTY — Do you enjoy being in the back country? Do you want to help your fellow citizens? If so, you are invited to learn more about becoming a volunteer member of the Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Team (MADSAR). The Sheriff’s Office is actively recruiting new members, and applications are being accepted until Dec. 13. To save a ...

MADERA COUNTY — The Madera County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team bid a fond but reluctant farewell to three long-time members this past week. At a luncheon on Wednesday, Aug. 2, Sheriff Jay Varney honored three retiring Madera Search and Rescue (SAR) volunteers — Mike and Brenda Perreira, and Ron Vargas — for their years of service. “These three demonstrated ...

YOSEMITE — From the literal cliffhanger to the real raging waters, the stories in Big Walls, Swift Waters will leave you hanging on the edge of your seat. Most of Yosemite National Park’s nearly five million annual visitors leave the park without a scratch. For a few, however, a vacation in this renowned land of cliffs and waterfalls takes a ...

MARIPOSA COUNTY — The search for a Mariposa man who went missing on Friday, June 23, has ended tragically with the discovery of his body. Ronnie Cole, 19, was located by searchers approximately three miles upriver from the Bagby Campground area. Cole had gone to the Briceburg area of the Merced River known as “Cable Beach,” to swim with two ...

BASS LAKE — A graduation outing to Angel Falls ended in a Search & Rescue mission yesterday in the Bass Lake area. On Sunday, June 18, around 10 a.m., a group of young men from the Bay Area were hiking near Angel Falls on Willow Creek above Bass Lake as a part of a graduation trip. One of the young ...