Study: Trash-eating bears at risk of death: The habitat of Lake Tahoe bears is not defined by their once-expansive range high in the snowy Sierra Nevada mountains or surrounding pine forests. Here, the black bear's domain can be measured in city blocks.
November 28, 2003

Drive to close historic Yosemite lodge begins: Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa, made progress Tuesday in his effort to dismantle the historic LeConte Memorial Lodge, a much-admired Yosemite National Park building that he has never visited.
October 22, 2003

Eastern Sierra MountainFest: The Eastern Sierra MountainFest is all about being small — no easy trick with a lineup of big-name mountaineers Chris Bonington (shown below), Rick Ridgeway, Conrad Anker and Jimmy Chin.
October 21, 2003

Forest plan protects industry, not homes: The Bush administration is promoting legislation that would make sweeping changes to the way our National Forest system is managed but that lacks serious protections for at-risk communities.
October 20, 2003

Sierra Glaciers in Rapid Retreat: A new survey of glaciers in the Sierra Nevada shows the thick slabs of ice that have frosted many of the state's high peaks for the last thousand years are dramatically shrinking and, in some cases, disappearing altogether.
October 12, 2003

Mammoth's ski amenities approach gargantuan: The commercial momentum of the Eastern Sierra town of Mammoth has gone over the top with a $1 billion resort project to compete with Lake Tahoe resorts.
October 5, 2003

Congressional committees to hold drug hearing in park: Congressional committees will hold a hearing in Sequoia National Park on October 10th to discuss the growing problem of drug production on public lands.
October 1, 2003

His outline for clean air, water: Admitting he'd known little about the issue before running for governor, Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger touted his plans for the environment and the Sierra Nevada Sunday.
September 22, 2003

Groups Plan Suit Over Spotted Owl: Eight environmental groups have filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, alleging that the agency failed to protect the California spotted owl under the federal Endangered Species Act.
September 5, 2003

Missing Hikers Safe: Two hikers are home safe after they'd been missing in the mountains of eastern Fresno County for two days. Their eight day backpacking trip near Florence Lake went off course sometime on Sunday.
September 3, 2003

Deciding what to tear down at Yosemite: Proponents of the Yosemite Valley Plan, adopted in 2000, seek removal of beloved stone bridges; now the plan's opposition has targeted a similarly beloved landmark: the Sierra Club's LeConte Memorial Lodge, founded by John Muir while he was president of the club.
August 25, 2003

Nature holds secret to Yosemite- Seek balance: Proponents of the Yosemite Valley Plan seek the removal of beloved old stone bridges that impact river habitat, but now the opposition has targeted a similarly beloved landmark: the Sierra Club's LeConte Memorial Lodge.
August 23, 2003

Major wildlife survey detects quiet changes in ecosystems: In the first broad survey of Yosemite National Park wildlife in more than 80 years, Bay Area scientists are finding subtle changes among the small creatures that are the backbone of the park's ecosystems.
August 23, 2003

Remote Alarm System a New Tool for Bear Management in Yosemite National Park: Using an innovative technique not yet used elsewhere, the National Park Service, the Wildlife Services/National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC), and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) are working in cooperation to enhance the bear management program in Yosemite National Park.
August 19, 2003

Famous Jeffrey Pine Falls on Sentinel Dome-Yosemite National Park: Carleton Watkins photographed it in 1867. Ansel Adams photographed it. It is among the most photographed trees in the park--the subject of numerous postcards over the years-- and a beloved icon to millions of visitors to Yosemite. Sometime in the last week, it fell to the ground.
August 18, 2003

The Packers Take On the Bears: The Ursak and Bear Canister test. Keeping campers' food from prying paws is not easy. Apparently reliable receptacles must pass an unusual quality-control test. One of the big tests for a new product is an hour with Fisher the bear.
August 15, 2003

'New' bighorn herd is a big find: There are so few bighorn sheep left in the Sierra Nevada that researchers routinely count them all, or so they had thought. Officially, there were five herds totaling about 250 sheep known to exist in the range. Now a new herd has been found.
August 14, 2003

Lake Tahoe restoration gets boost: MONEY FROM FEDERAL LAND SALES TO COMBAT LOSS OF WATER. The White House backs a plan to spend $30 million a year to restore Lake Tahoe by using money from selling federal land around Las Vegas, Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said Monday.
August 12, 2003

Rough ride for park team: Lawmakers want legislation protecting pack-and-saddle operators. The investigators are pursuing complaints at Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks. And park managers, who are caught in the middle, say they're simply trying to balance sometimes competing interests.
August 4, 2003

Valley lawmaker favors campsites over a Sierra Club site: LeConte Memorial Lodge is the latest flashpoint in the fight over how to manage one of America's most popular national parks. And it illustrates how bitter -- and some say petty -- the wrangle over Yosemite's future has become.
August 4, 2003

Fireproofing the forest - Combo of fire, logging seems to work best: There is a valuable lesson to be learned about forestry based on a fire that happened to burn last fall through a small "experimental forest" in the Sierra. Unfortunately, it is unclear whether anyone -- either environmentalists or Bush administration officials -- will learn from it.
August 3, 2003

Excess Heat Intensifies Fire Risk in California: Although storms pummeled the Sierra Nevada with rain and snow in the spring, federal officials say sizzling temperatures in Central California have caused the mountain range to dry out faster than usual, making the next two months a high-risk time for wildfires.
July 29, 2003

Section of John Muir Trail Damaged by Rockfall to Reopen-Yosemite National Park: Yosemite National Park closed the section of the John Muir Trail (JMT) between Vernal and Nevada Falls after a rockfall on July 17 injured three visitors hiking on the trail, left considerable debris, and caused minor damage to the trail.
July 23, 2003

Lawmakers urge more Sierra logging: Citing the recent California wildfires, Republicans and a few Democrats representing the state in Congress warned this week that the Sierra Nevada is dangerously overgrown and urged ``common sense'' revisions to a management plan for the forest.
November 29, 2003

Cost of fighting fire put at $730,000: The cost of fighting the Donner fire, which was caused by an abandoned, illegal campfire near Interstate 80 above Donner Lake, is estimated to be $730,000.
October 22, 2003

Fall weather pushes along color display: The weather is beginning to change from the long, warm days of summer to the longer, cooler nights of fall and winter. It's also time for the leaves on many trees to change colors and eventually fall. This process is already well under way in the High Sierra, and soon will be seen at lower elevations of California.
October 21, 2003

Funding for river habitat is sought: Alleging government neglect, conservationists today will call for decades of funding to revive high-elevation river habitat in the Sierra Nevada where two-thirds of California's water originates.
October 16, 2003

Congress to look at Sierra drug role: A record haul of marijuana plants in Tulare County has set the stage for a congressional investigation that arrives in the Sierra Nevada on Friday.
October 8, 2003

Head to the mountains before it feels like fall: The next six weeks or so, before the snow flies in the Sierra, is prime time for fall-color drives in our region. Remember that autumn comes to the mountains before reaching the lower altitudes, where leaves may not turn until early November.
October 7, 2003

Two dead as air tanker crashes in San Bernardino National Forest: A firefighting air tanker crashed Friday in the San Bernardino National Forest, bursting into flames and killing both people aboard, authorities said.
October 3, 2003

Nonprofit opens Sierra Nature Store in Visalia: The Sequoia Natural History Association that promotes the region's national parks is opening a retail store in downtown Visalia, CA.
October 3, 2003

Opposing view: Forestry company felled by zealous state regulations: After 64 years of growing and harvesting trees in California, a family is closing the doors on their El Dorado County business forever - disagreement over loss of "120 good-paying jobs and the future of forestry in California".
September 23, 2003

Dust-Up Over Off-Roaders Roars Across Backcountry: Spencer has organized a group of residents, including some off-roaders, who are seeking to reroute motorized trails away from their homes.
September 21, 2003

$4.2 Million Donation Made to Yosemite National Park: Yosemite National Park, September 18, 2003 - High atop famous Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park, more than 100 supporters of the nonprofit Yosemite Fund will present the National Park Service with a check for $4.2 million to fund park preservation and protection projects.
September 18, 2003

Thunderstorms, hail strike in Sierra: Thunderstorms, lightning and pea-size hail peppered the Sierra Nevada mountains Wednesday afternoon from the Kings Canyon to Yosemite national parks. The storm covered the Sierra Nevada for about an hour beginning at 1 p.m., according to the National Weather Service in Hanford.
September 4, 2003

Look to the Sierra for air answers: While the environmental debates play out on flat land, the biomass plant in the Sierra on Auberry Road sits mothballed, a ghostly reminder of the area's once-thriving timber industry and a case study in California economics.
September 2, 2003

Project Near Donner Site Draws Fire: Environmentalists and a property owner are clashing over a proposed commercial water facility near a popular Sierra Nevada park that pays homage to the Donner Party.
August 25, 2003

Officials Praise Plan to Increase Logging in Sierra: Saying the 11.5 million acres of national forests in the Sierra Nevada are dangerously overloaded with flammable material, a series of federal, state and local officials on Friday praised a proposal to significantly increase logging in the Sierra's old-growth forests.
August 23, 2003

Yosemite National Park Extends Public Comment Period on the Environmental Assessment for the East Yosemite Valley Utilities Improvement Plan: Yosemite National Park has extended the public review period on the Environmental Assessment for the East Yosemite Valley Utilities Improvement Plan. Comments on this document may now be submitted through September 2, 2003.
August 21, 2003

Giant sequoia crushes vehicle in Sequoia National Park: A 200-tall giant sequoia tree fell along Sequoia National Park's main road, crushing a vehicle into a several-foot high pile of crumpled metal, park officials said Monday.
August 18, 2003

Rush to judgment pins frog's demise on trout in Sierra: In a program that could become the prototype for hundreds of high Sierra lakes, all the trout have been netted out and killed at Humphreys Basin. At the same time, the state Department of Fish and Game stopped aerial stocks of trout.
August 17, 2003

Yosemite National Park Celebrates Founders Day with Free Entry: Yosemite National Park will be celebrating the 87th birthday of the National Park Service by admitting visitors to Yosemite free of charge. Passes issued on Founder’s Day are valid for free entry into the park from Monday, August 25, 2003 through Sunday, August 31, 2003.
August 15, 2003

GETTING LOST WILL GET HARDER: Forget about leaving a trail of bread crumbs. Getting lost in the woods may become a thing of the past, thanks to a new high-tech panic button for outdoors lovers.
August 14, 2003

Mono County/Yosemite National Park Seek Information About Overdue Backpacker: Fred Claassen, 46, of Livermore, CA began a four-day solo-backpacking trip on July 31. He started from Twin Lakes and his probable itinerary could have included Barney Lake, Crown Lake, Mule Pass, Burro Pass, Matterhorn Peak and the Horse Creek areas.
August 7, 2003

Replacement of the South Fork Bridge in Wawona Slated to Start This Fall: Yosemite National Park announces the Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the South Fork Merced River Bridge Replacement Project. The South Fork Merced River Bridge, in Wawona, was determined to be structurally unsafe for vehicle traffic after the 1997 flood.
August 4, 2003

'Fooling no one': Rep. George Radanovich is fooling no one when he claims his Yosemite bill protects public access to the national parks by removing historic structures, and substituting his own will for a plan that took years to negotiate through a public process wide open to all.
August 4, 2003

A steep price for restoring a species: Restoring the Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep population will cost at least $21 million and take years of work, federal officials say. The recovery plan proposed for the strong-limbed but endangered animal is more expensive than for many other species.
August 2, 2003