Archive for the 'Sierra Nevada' Category
Yosemite: Curry Village ice rink opens today
November 20, 2009 2:57pm
Whether you’re on the ice to pirouette, or to practice skating in a straight line without causing any harm, you can’t have less than an awe-inspiring time at an outdoor rink in Yosemite. The national park’s ice-skating venue, which sits below Glacier Point’s cliffs, is naturally blessed with good views of popular landmarks like Tenaya Canyon, Half Dome and Cloud’s Rest.
And now you can see it for yourself. Located in the western section of Curry Village, the rink opens today for the 2009-2010 winter season.
Though the attraction got its start in 1928, after a Yosemite club flooded a parking lot, the rink is equipped to meet visitors’ 21st-century needs: Rental skates are available, as is a warming hut, and an ice-resurfacing machine comes through regularly to freshen up the rink. Non-skaters can watch the fun next to a fire pit close by.
Skating sessions are scheduled daily, from 3:30 to 6 p.m., and 7 to 9:30 p.m. Additional sessions are available on Saturdays and Sundays from 8:30 to 11 a.m., and noon to 2:30 p.m. Read the rest of this entry »
Yosemite: Bracebridge Dinner begins Dec. 13 [Updated]
November 13, 2009 11:47am
Squire Bracebridge and his household request your attendance at a most unusual feast this holiday season, but you’d better book a seat soon. The famous and long-running dinner at Yosemite’s Ahwahnee hotel, though pricey, is always popular. Last year, most of the eight evenings sold out. [Corrected at 11:53 a.m. Nov. 17: Previous versions of this post, along with the headline, said the dinner was in its 80th or 84th season. It began in 1927 but missed some war years.]
In recounting her experience at a 2008 Bracebridge Dinner, L.A. Times staff writer Sharon Bernstein called the tradition, which has been going since 1927 (it took a two-year hiatus during World War II), “part corny, part historical, wonderfully musical, very California and perfectly Christmas.”
[A scene from last year's Bracebridge Dinner is shown above. Click here for a related photo gallery.]
For the event, the Ahwanee’s Dining Room transforms into the Great Hall at Squire Bracebridge’s manor, where guests are treated to a four-hour, seven-course Christmas feast and pageant featuring more than 100 performers. Read the rest of this entry »
Enjoy a free day at national parks, forests on Veterans Day, Nov. 11
November 4, 2009 8:52am
Next week, national parks and forests will waive entrance fees for one day, Wednesday, Nov. 11, to honor servicemen and women. Unlike past years, when only U.S. veterans, active members of the U.S. armed forces and their families got a free pass, this year’s Veterans Day observance will allow everyone in for free, according to a news release Tuesday, Nov. 3, from the U.S. Department of the Interior.
If the deal otherwise works like it did in past years, you’ll still owe fees for camping, permits and other activities. But you can save a lot anyway because some popular parks, including California’s Yosemite National Park, normally charge entrance fees of $20 or so per car.
The Interior Department earlier this year expanded the number of free days on federal lands, offering three fee-free weekends over the summer. At that time, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar noted that parks provide affordable family vacations “during these tough economic times.”
Last-minute: Squaw Valley, Kirkwood ski passes on sale for winter 2009-10
October 13, 2009 6:04pm
Last week we reported that Southern California ski resorts were gearing up for an early snow season. Well, the same goes for the ski resorts in Lake Tahoe. They got their second snowfall this week with more rain and snow expected tonight and possibly into Wednesday. A reminder crossed my desk today that skiers and boarders still have time to cash in on discounts for this winter’s ski passes. Squaw Valley’s 50/60 Squaw season pass deal is on sale through Thursday, Oct. 15, and has significant discounts to honor the 60th anniversary of their opening and the 50th anniversary of Squaw hosting the Winter Olympic Games.
Deal: There are four different season passes available at Squaw Valley starting with the “Bronze” pass that is $649 for adults, $499 for young adults and seniors ages 13-22 or 65-75, and $179 for children 12 and under. It is good for skiing seven days a week beginning Nov. 20 through the end of the season with the exception of select Saturdays and some listed blackout dates. After Thursday prices rise significantly. As an example, the adult Bronze pass will cost $999 per person. The $749 Silver pass jumps to $1,199, and the $1,299 Gold pass jumps to $1,799 after Oct. 15.
Note: If you enjoy skiing and boarding in South Lake Tahoe, you have a little bit more time to consider Kirkwood’s season pass, with prices starting at $559 for adults and on sale until Nov. 3. Heavenly’s season pass is priced at $369 and also great for skiers and boarders looking for a deal.
– Jen Leo, Los Angeles Times Travel & Deal blogger
[Photo: Squaw Valley USA; Photo credit: Thomas Kranzel/Venture Media]
California and Colorado ski resorts in a snow daze
October 8, 2009 4:11pm
Southern California skiers are gearing up for an early season, with snow-making going on a full month before usual at Mountain High, thanks to an unusual October cold spell. Big Bear and Mammoth are biding their time, waiting for the real stuff as cold weather lingers and new storms approach. Meanwhile, at least one Northern California resort, Boreal, is planning to open this weekend.
Mountain High in Wrightwood, where wildfires threatened just a week ago, was making snow all week, the earliest that has ever happened at the popular SoCal ski destination.
“We are making snow and will open as soon as possible,” says John McColly, the resort’s director of marketing. “Could be a day. Could be a week.”
Bear Mountain is being more cautious, saying it prefers to wait until winter conditions arrive for sure. “I can’t imagine a scenario without a substantial natural snowfall that we would begin snow-making in October,” reports marketing director Chris Riddle. “While this has been an unprecedented cold spell for early October, we don’t want to waste our time, energy and water resources knowing we’re not going to be able to sustain operations through the winter.”
The Big Bear season usually opens in mid-November.
In Northern California, meanwhile, at least one resort is preparing to open this weekend.
Yosemite National Park travel: $99 fall cabin deal at Evergreen Lodge
October 8, 2009 5:54am
Does the PBS Ken Burns series “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea” have you itching for a hike in Yosemite? Do you want to see the valley at sunset or sit by the fireplace at the Ahwahnee before it closes for a big remodel? If you answered yes, or were already researching a trip to Yosemite, check out this fall deal from Evergreen Lodge brought to you by Hotwire’s Travel-Ticker.
The lodge has a history dating back to 1921, but the property was renovated and expanded in 2005. This summer they added 24 more cedar cabins spread out among towering old growth trees. Valued for its serene location about a mile outside the park’s northwestern side, near the Hetch Hetchy entrance, it offers numerous outdoor activities. Or you can just relax with the family during a night of s’mores at the Plaza fireplace.
‘National Parks’: Screenings, events and travel deals related to the Ken Burns documentary
September 25, 2009 2:26pm
On Sunday, the new Ken Burns documentary “National Parks: America’s Best Idea” will begin its 12-hour trek (in two-hour segments) through the wilds of American living rooms, coloring TV screens everywhere with the sights and ’scapes of our public lands.
The documentary may have — even before you’ve set eyes upon it — gotten you itching to visit a national park. And that’s likely just fine with Burns. As Times writer Mary McNamara put it in her review of the “gorgeous and exhaustive” film: “The main goal of Burns and his co-creator Dayton Duncan appears to be launching people off their backsides and into the wilderness.”
At the more popular parks, you may want to prepare for lots of company on the trail. But thankfully, since the U.S. is home to 391 national parks, there should be enough love to go around. Below are details to plan a viewing — or better yet, an inspired trip, so you can see for yourself what all the fuss is about.
Where & when to see it
The documentary will start airing on PBS on Sunday at 8 p.m.
And there are plenty of opportunities to see portions of it out and about. Read the rest of this entry »
Help clean up Yosemite National Park during ‘Yosemite Facelift,’ Sept. 23-27
September 21, 2009 1:39pm
Among the wild creatures roaming the trails and roadways of Yosemite National Park are a whole bunch of litterbugs, unfortunately. And in 2008, volunteers with the annual “Yosemite Facelift” cleanup event proved it, by helping in the picking up of 41,631 pounds of trash.
Following the crowds of summer, you can bet there is refuse aplenty to fetch from nature this year too. To assist in their intensive park-cleanup efforts, the Yosemite Climbing Assn. invites you, to lend a hand in the “Yosemite Facelift” on Sept. 23-27.
The areas of planned coverage include the park’s roadways, river corridor, trails, parking areas, campgrounds, climbing areas and lodging areas.
For your time and energy, you’ll get not only the satisfaction of helping to keep this national treasure clean, but you’ll also receive free park admission and possibly a free campsite (details below). Read the rest of this entry »
Yosemite: Ahwahnee Hotel deals this fall and winter starting at $210 per night
September 8, 2009 9:11am
The Ahwahnee Hotel, a treasure within the Yosemite Valley, and recently in the news for both a short closure due to a rockfall into its parking lot and an upcoming top-to-bottom renovation that is expected to take years, has a website that shows specific dates when lower rates are available through the end of the year. If you are considering a trip up to Yosemite National Park this fall or winter, have a look at the calendar. Many guests rave about the unbeatable location and views, but online reviews show many also feel that the rooms are outdated and overpriced at $450 per night and above. During the slower fall and winter season, discounted rates start as low as $209 per night in December.
Cheaper nights: The cheapest nights listed on the calendar were Dec. 6 and Dec. 8-10 midweek for $209 per night when I tested the deal with the reservation calendar. I did find standard rooms within the historic hotel and “cottage standard rooms” located outside the hotel starting at $210 just for the room. There were classic rooms starting at $250 and bed-and-breakfast packages in classic rooms or cottage rooms starting at $305 per night.
Ansel Adams exhibit to open in San Jose
September 1, 2009 5:58am
An exhibition of work by legendary photographer Ansel Adams, who captured America’s wild beauty on black-and-white film, will open Saturday, Sept. 5, at the San Jose Museum of Art. The museum is the only West Coast stop for this nationally touring exhibition of 50 vintage photographs by Adams.
The show, “Ansel Adams Early Works,” will run through Feb. 28. Photographs are dated from the 1920s to the ‘50s; most are drawn from private collections.
Adams (1902-1984) is known for his iconic images of the American West. He began his frequent pilgrimages from his San Francisco home to California’s Yosemite National Park in 1916; he eventually spent a decade living and working there.
Though many museum visitors are familiar with the large, glossy photographs that Adams printed to order in the 1970s and ’80s, some may not be aware of the warm, richly toned photographs from his earlier years.
Included in the show is a recently discovered 1938 print of “Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite Valley, California,” the earliest known print of Adams’ most celebrated Yosemite view. Also included are “El Capitan” (ca. 1923)” “Monolith: the Face of Half Dome” (1927), and “Yosemite from Inspiration Point, Summer” (ca. 1936).
The San Jose Museum of Art, 110 S. Market St., is open Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., (408) 294-2787.
—Rosemary McClure, Special to The Times
Photo: Ansel Adams, Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite Valley, California, 1938, Credit: Courtesy of art2art Circulating Exhibitions. ©2009 The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust
