Rangers roll past Redskins in quarterfinals (Visalia Times-Delta / Tulare Advance-Register)
If Hanford is going to face a serious challenger for its West Yosemite League crown this season, odds are it’s going to be the Redwood Rangers and the Rangers may just have a Polly Wilhelmsen Invitational title by the end of the week to prove it.

Pop Music: Rita Hosking: Down from the mountains (The Sacramento Bee)
Rita Hosking with her band, Cousin Jack. Band mates are, from left, husband Sean Feder, Bill Dakin and Andy Lentz. “People say home is where the heart is, and (the mountains of eastern Shasta County area are) where my home was, definitely. It was such a wild and rich upbringing,” says Hosking. The roots of Davis folk singer-songwriter Rita Hosking’s music go deep into a California gold …

Bay Area people of note who died in 2008 (San Francisco Chronicle)
A restaurateur. A lion keeper. A breast cancer activist. A heroine in the AIDS epidemic. A nightclub singer, Bayview-Hunters Point community activist, World War II hero and key figure in the Free Speech Movement. They were among the thousands of people who…

Pitman perfect in tournament (Modesto Bee)
CERES — Pitman High’s Edgar Lopez scored 22 points, hitting five 3-pointers, as the Pride topped Central Valley 69-54 Wednesday to win the Ceres Holiday Tournament.

Valley set to kick off 2009 decked in gray (The Fresno Bee)
Dense fog on this first day of the new year followed by a chance of rain on the weekend will make sunshine a rarity for the next several days in the central San Joaquin Valley.

Meetings on Friday, January 2, 2009 (Merced Sun-Star)
Clubs

Huskies in Polly semifinals (The Hanford Sentinel)
VISALIA — Local basketball fans hoping for a sneak peek at next Wednesday’s West Yosemite League boys basketball opener between Hanford West and Lemoore will just have to wait for the real thing. Hanford West held up its end of the deal on the second day of the 58th annual Polly Wilhelmsen Invitational by defeating Granite Hills (Porterville) 77-56 Tuesday night, but Lemoore fell short of …

Tom Price: What I would change about prep football (Merced Sun-Star)
What I would change about high school football is something that many would argue is the essence of the prep game.

Toxin suspect s lawyer explains household items (Northwest Herald)
ROCKFORD Needles and syringes found in the home of a Lake in the Hills man accused of illegally having a lethal toxin were being used for his wife s fourth round of in vitro fertilization, his lawyer says.

Hanford boys play waiting game (The Hanford Sentinel)
Brad Felder hopes the success that Hanford High is having on the football field won’t hurt the chemistry of his team in the gym. The Bullpups boys basketball coach is having to get ready for a season missing six players, including West Yosemite League player of the year Cougar Williams, who averaged 15.5 points per game. None of the six step onto the court until the Bullpups football finishes …

Fog Delays Flights at FYI (KFSN-TV Fresno)
The dense fog caused major problems for passengers at Fresno-Yosemite International Airport Monday morning.

Fog to lift some today, forecasters say (The Fresno Bee)
Widespread fog that has blanketed the Valley for several days is expected to dissipate slightly beginning today, forecasters say.

Yosemite overlook can provoke emotional reactions (The Fresno Bee)
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK — There is an age-old mystery afoot here at the scene of the most iconic view of Yosemite Valley.

Meetings on Tuesday, December 2, 2008 (Merced Sun-Star)
Special Events

HOT TOPICS (The Hanford Sentinel)
VISALIA - Now let the talk begin - for real. Hanford High School, behind three touchdowns by Cougar Williams, defeated Mt. Whitney 38-13 Friday night to improve to 8-0 on the year and 4-0 in West Yosemite League play.

Extreme Resolution Photos and Lasers Create Virtual Yosemite (Wired News)
Geologists use a 40-foot long, 96-GB photo mosaic of Yosemite with airborne laser mapping to learn what causes rock falls. Eventually they hope to predict where slides may occur.

Winter storm closes Tioga Pass in Yosemite (Merced Sun-Star)
With the arrival of the first winter storm of the season, Tioga Pass on Highway 120 in Yosemite National Park closed Thursday.

U.S. honors Yosemite search and rescue ranger (San Francisco Chronicle)
Danger is a constant in Yosemite National Park, where the towering cliffs, thundering waterfalls and rugged wilderness combine with an unusual knack among humans to stumble into horrifying predicaments. Nobody knows that better than John Dill, who has been…

Miners run over Redwood (Visalia Times-Delta / Tulare Advance-Register)
The El Diamante football team’s dominance of the West Yosemite League goes back to the beginning of the 2007 season.

SF officials approve upgrade to water system (San Francisco Chronicle)
San Francisco officials have approved a $4.4 billion plan to upgrade the Bay Area’s largest drinking water system, which draws water from Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park. The city’s planning and public utilities commissions approved the…

Minor Injuries Reported From Yosemite Junction Accident (MyMotherLode.com)
Jamestown, Ca — Only minor injuries were reported as a result of a two vehicle accident Wednesday on Hwy 108/120 at the Yosemite Junction. A tourist from England, 35-year-old Graham Carter was traveling westbound when he attempted to turn at the Yosemite Junction.

Congress honors Yosemite’s rock climbing pioneers (Merced Sun-Star)
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers who blanched at a $700 billion financial rescue package have found time to honor the brave men who climbed Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan peak a half-century ago.

Evergreen Lodge at Yosemite Announces New Autumn Adventures (Marketwire via Yahoo! Finance)
Evergreen Lodge announces it is adding three new guided fall tours of Yosemite to its already expansive recreation program. In addition, guests heading to the historic lodge to experience Yosemite through the Evergreen’s guided outdoor recreation programs — the most expansive in the area — or to enjoy it from an armchair by the fire now have expanded spa services available to them to …

HOT TOPICS (The Hanford Sentinel)
VISALIA — It was a little too close for comfort, but the Hanford High girls volleyball team managed to stay unbeaten in West Yosemite League play on Tuesday. The Bullpups eked out a 4-game thriller at El Diamante 25-23, 16-25, 25-12, 26-24.

Donations help Yosemite Fund get greener (Modesto Bee)
Yosemite National Park and the University of California at Merced will use a donation of $600,000 and five hybrid vehicles from Toyota to improve environmental education programs.

Toyota Donation to Support Environmental Leadership and Wilderness Education Programs at Yosemite National Park and … (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
Toyota is providing more than $600,000 and five hybrid vehicles to Yosemite National Park to support a number of environmental education programs at Yosemite and the University of California, Merced, it was announced today.

Search for Aviator Resumes After ID Is Found Near Yosemite (Washington Post)
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 1 — The search for adventure pilot Steve Fossett was resumed Wednesday after a hiker came across what appeared to be Fossett’s pilot license and other identification while traversing rugged terrain near Yosemite National Park more than a year after he disappeared.

Toyota gives funds to Yosemite program (Daily Breeze)
Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. said Monday it is donating more than $600,000 to support environmental education programs at Yosemite National Park.

Toyota contributes hybrid cars, money for climate research at UC Merced, Yosemite (Merced Sun-Star)
Hai! Toyota donated $603,000 and five Prius hybrids to Yosemite National Park on Monday to support a number of education programs at Yosemite and UC Merced.