"Today Bracebridge is, without much doubt, the country's, if not the world's, premier Christmas dinner," or so said Wall Street Journal writer Raymond Sokolov in 2006 (WSJ, J4, 23 Dec 2006). And this year the Rotary Club of Yosemite is sponsoring a raffle where the winner gets a night at the Ahwahnee hotel and dinner for two at the Bracebridge show of your choosing.

Rickey Gates

I just found out a couple of days ago that Rickey Gates, a 29 year-old nomadic runner, shaved another couple of minutes off the Half Dome running record, completing the round trip in 2:28:18 from the water level gauge to the summit and back. Congratulations Rickey!

This is not exactly Yosemite news, but my friend Christian just sent an email out that he and his wife and another person will be leading trips to Italy that will combine hiking, climbing, cooking and eating in one trip. I had to put it here. After many trips to Europe and three years living in Switzerland, whenever people ask me where to go in Europe, I always say "Italy". I love France too, but there is something about Italy. And I've hiked in the Cinque Terre and mountains nearby. This trip will likely be amazing. Here's Christian's blurb:

Erik just posted some topos for climbing on Wawona Dome.

Wawona Dome is high enough to be climbable in mid-summer and south-facing enough to be climbable in winter. And at least for now, is a quiet little local area where you are most likely to be alone. Unless publishing the topos changes that!

Get pysched for winter. I finally got it together to add mileages to the Glacier Point Ski Tour page. We have new skate skis this year (actually, they're my mom's castoffs, but she only buys the best in ski gear, so we're happy). I've only been meaning to do that for two years!

Well, it's been an exciting week in Yosemite. First the fire, then the rock fall, then the earthquake. It's been pretty impressive to look at, but frightening too. As of this moment, Foresta is still evacuated, the Big Oak Flat road into Yosemite Valley is closed (call 209-372-0200 then 1 and 1 for latest road updates.

Starting to see the first flowers come out in the Valley. Of course, El Portal and Hite Cove have been excellent for a while. I haven't seen much in the Valley until yesterday. The dogwoods are starting to bloom. This morning, I took a quick walk up above the Wawona Tunnel and not too far from the tunnel, started seeing Shooting Stars, Mountain Violets and Spreading Phlox (and an Evening Grosbeak chattering away).

Not much yet, but once again it has begun!

Kristy, who used to live and work in Yosemite has moved on and has started Rocky Mountain Kid, selling outdoor clothing for kids. She's trying to make a go of it while raising Cadence. If you want to help out a genuine individual who definitely will value your business, at least think about taking a moment to compare prices between the big onlin retailers and Rocky Mountain Kid.