yosemitenews.info - Yosemite National Park News and Discussion - General Discussion

Re: Admin: users deleted

eeek — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:10:28 -0700

Quote
losthillsguy
Stopping Spam Bots.
I run several phpbb forums with registered users in the 1000s. I have found the most effective way to stop the bot is with a question during registration that requires an answer. The character recognition question can be read by many bots. If this forum software has that addon or someone has writtten one it may be worth looking into. I bet there is a simple one out there.

The spam bots aren't getting in now. The only problem now is the thousands of users they created before I updated the software.

Re: Admin: users deleted

losthillsguy — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:05:13 -0700

Stopping Spam Bots.
I run several phpbb forums with registered users in the 1000s. I have found the most effective way to stop the bot is with a question during registration that requires an answer. The character recognition question can be read by many bots. If this forum software has that addon or someone has writtten one it may be worth looking into. I bet there is a simple one out there.

Sample question for this board.
What is the name of your favorite national park? (Yosemite) You can give them the answer like that.

Anyway, thanks for keeping the board up. It's fun to check in on.

LHG

Re: Getting Around in Yosemite

LVRAY — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:00:53 -0700

We spent 3 nights in the Comfort Inn in Oakhurst last week (June 30, July1 & July 2) for an average of $89 per night with the AAA discount. They were were not full and getting a room for an extra night (we only booked two) was not a problem. The place was quite reasonable and included a free breakfast. I would recommend it. The drive to the Valley, with the extra wait for construction & fire fighting delays was 75 to 90 minutes.

Tuolumne Meadows the soul of Yosemite

eeek — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:56:36 -0700

Everyone knows all about the Valley, but the park's true pulse resides in more remote areas.

http://www.fresnobee.com/columnists/warszawski/story/1525200.html

Re: Getting Around in Yosemite

eeek — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:35:17 -0700

Quote
y_p_w
Oakhurst is a bit larger and there's a supermarket.

Actually there are two in Oakhurst.

Worse than Poaching

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:10:24 -0700

Intermountain Region
Colorado Man Convicted On ARPA Charges

On June 17th, Charles Lindsey of Colorado Springs pled guilty to one misdemeanor count of violating the Archaeological Resource Protection Act (16 USC 470 ee (b)) following his arrest for numerous ARPA violation in NPS, BLM and other areas. An investigation into Lindsey’s activities was begun in 2005 when his ex wife reported his looting to NPS and BLM special agents. She was concerned that he was passing down his illegal activities to their son, who was 12 at the time. She reported that her son came home from a vacation trip to Glen Canyon with Lindsey and his grandmother and reported that his father had hunted for and taken numerous pot sherds, stone points, pieces of petrified wood, dinosaur bones, and mineral resources such as “Moki marbles” (iron oxide concretions) from the Defiance House and Rincon areas of Lake Powell. Investigators subsequently determined that Lindsey had also taken a pot and a large metate from Mesa Verde, vertebrate fossils from BLM lands, and dinosaur remains from Badlands. These items and others that were seized during the execution of two search warrants in the Colorado Springs and Woodland Park areas will be forfeited to the government as part of the plea agreement, including three large sifting screens that Lindsey used to find artifacts. Lindsey, who had been a Park County Sheriff's Office deputy and an investigator for the Colorado Division of Gaming, will receive six months unsupervised probation as part of the plea agreement. The investigation was a joint effort by BLM, NPS, DOI OIG and Forest Service special agents. [Submitted by Beth Shott, Special Agent]

John Bachar dies at 52; rock climber specialized in free-solo ventures

forrestranger — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:14:05 -0700

http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-john-bachar8-2009jul08,0,7890954.story

Re: Getting Around in Yosemite

RobE — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:51:17 -0700

It's possible to find rental properties in the Groveland area for $99.

One example:
http://www.yosemitegoldvacations.com/site/Overview/PropertyID__5371/942/DesktopDefault.aspx

Groveland is an hour's drive from Yosemite Valley. Some of these places require a full week's stay. I am not familiar with this particular property, it's just the first one I found.

Given the economy, you might be able to negotiate the price and/or the length of the stay.

You can find a list of area realtors on this web page:
http://www.pinemountainlake.com/?pg=revr

There is a new hostel in Groveland, also. Just noticed it last week.

Re: sunrise HSC to tenaya lake

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:43:31 -0700

Regarding the bus option from Yosemite to Tuolumne: you understand the YARTs goes in the afternoon and the DNC hiker-tour bus goes in the mornings, these are arranged for differently?

Re: sunrise HSC to tenaya lake

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:37:09 -0700

Quote
soupman77
the actual plan is to park at Yo Valley and take the bus up to Tuolumne and hike the JMT back down to the valley with a probably 2 day stop at sunrise and all points in between. from sunrise this is where the tenaya lake part comes in, it is kind of back tracking I guess. I figured that we would have a rest day then make the trip to tenaya, this is why I was wondering about the hike there.

Personally, I think the best day hike would be to go to the Sunrise lakes (I think there are three) or backtrack to Cathedral Lakes. Fish the Sunrise Lakes! There are depressing switchbacks between Sunrise Lakes and Tenaya and not much to see on the switchbacks except donkey doo. You can get to the valley via many routes, but could also visit Sunrise Lakes if you choose to go to Clouds Rest (they are on the way). You "could" get to the valley from Tenaya Lake via the trail from May Lake trailhead (?Snow Creek?? Trail) if you are determined to do the switchbacks. At least that way, you would not need to retrace your steps.

Re: Bear Paw Sequoia 2009

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:26:30 -0700

Made it to Bearpaw and Hamilton Lake in early July, here are a few fotos:

Eagle Point looking back toward Moro Rock

Bears could be in this stuff:

Lunch at Mehrten Creek:

On the bridge over the gorge to Hamilton Lake

Treacherous water crossing, (that is a waterfall in the middle of the pic). Go a little upstream and use the logs to cross.

Guy with really short legs catching rainbows in Hamilton Lake

Re: sunrise HSC to tenaya lake

szalkowski — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:47:55 -0700

Quote
soupman77
... this is why I was wondering about the hike there.

Do it.

Re: Chick-on at Benson Lake

szalkowski — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:39:41 -0700

Quote
bill-e-g
Crickets

CricketsPlus:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYVt-3j642k&feature=related

Re: Admin: users deleted

cthenn — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:33:03 -0700

I'm a real boy!

Re: Chick-on at Benson Lake

bill-e-g — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:30:36 -0700

Crickets

Re: Lembert Dome 360

bill-e-g — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:26:38 -0700

O boy... I wasn't talking Lembert.

Re: Lembert Dome 360

szalkowski — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:21:47 -0700

This thread is REALLY getting ridiculous.

Why would you even think about using trekking poles on Lembert? It's a friction scramble, hands and feet (Class 3 or 4, depending on your preferred definitions). Would you use trekking poles up the HD cable route face?

Vince is actually right for once (all together now: GASP!!!) about the "sticky" rubber shoes, although I would be greatly surprised if he has any that might be considered proper. (By the way, the fact that he asked the trekking pole question suggests that he has never even seen Lembert.) Do a websearch for "approach shoes" - Evolv makes some good ones.

Re: Getting Around in Yosemite

y_p_w — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:56:34 -0700

Quote
Family Man
First off they will be looking for a place to stay – hotel room. They will be doing car excursions into the park (unless access is limited to transit buses such as on Grand Canyon’s south rim…..you see I am very familiar with Glacier, Yellowstone, and Rocky Mountain National Parks, but I know very little about Yosemite). Which towns/locations would you recommend they look into?

Looking at the map the size of the gateway towns is unclear – will there be issues finding a room at a reasonable rate (say less than $100)?

Mariposa and Oakhurst are small unincorporated communities, although Mariposa is the county seat of Mariposa County (which has no incorporated cities). Mariposa is not a very large place. Oakhurst is a bit larger and there's a supermarket. If you're talking under $100 - maybe in the offseason. I stayed one night a couple of years ago and got under $100 at the Best Western in June with AAA discount. You might also have problems getting a room now - especially in Mariposa. There are also some really nearby places (Cedar Lodge and Yosemite View Lodge) but they're rather pricey now and may be fully booked most days during summer.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariposa,_California
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakhurst,_California

Worst case scenario cold be shuttling in from Modesto or Fresno. You would have no problems finding a place to stay there.

The more affordable places to stay would be the tent cabins in the park. It's not a lot of luxury and you have to be careful about food. In fact - don't ever, ever store food in your car after dark. Yosemite bears have developed a skill at sniffing for food and prying open car doors. I know you can store food in you car nearly everywhere else with black bears, but not Yosemite. They've got a car door displayed at Curry Village from a car broken into by a bear.

There are vacation homes available at Yosemite West. It's a community just outside the park boundaries. They also may be out of your price range.

Re: Lembert Dome 360

Bee — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:22:18 -0700

On this last trip, I saw more ridiculously huge "walking sticks" with some sort of glyphics etched on them, than I ever have.

Who uses sticks? Cutting edge, seriously devoted mountaineers who no longer rely on trails, and a few informed hikers who are willing to push beyond the limits of the beaten path.

Re: sunrise HSC to tenaya lake

soupman77 — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:19:47 -0700

the actual plan is to park at Yo Valley and take the bus up to Tuolumne and hike the JMT back down to the valley with a probably 2 day stop at sunrise and all points in between. from sunrise this is where the tenaya lake part comes in, it is kind of back tracking I guess. I figured that we would have a rest day then make the trip to tenaya, this is why I was wondering about the hike there.

Re: Getting Around in Yosemite

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:28:16 -0700

Be sure to check http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/where.htm , I noticed some Curry Village vacancies that might be good if the parents can tolerate a rustic arrangement.

Also, calling various motels directly may yield some options even if there websites suggest no vacancy. For national brands, I get better rates and options if I call the motels directly rather than going through the national 800 numbers.

Re: Lembert Dome 360

mrcondron — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:14:53 -0700

In the backcountry you see poles or a hand made walking stick more often than not.

Re: Lembert Dome 360

bill-e-g — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:14:41 -0700

Ok. This is gonna be my LAST post on sticks.

For many years I have SKIED and backpacked without sticks.
If you stick to the Bunny Slopes you don't need sticks for either.

Head to black diamonds and you'll want sticks for both.

I wanna be backpacking without pain for another 40 years.
I take my sticks, thank you very much.

Re: Reading while backpacking

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:08:01 -0700

Isn't it dangerous to read while backpacking?

Re: Lembert Dome 360

Frank Furter — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:00:53 -0700

Quote
Bee
Trekking poles are a somewhat new acessory here in the states, so I suppose that anything is do-able without them, but after using them and then having to lend them out in the middle of a hike, I would now ask myself why would I want to be without trekking poles?

:bee:

Did you see many hikers with poles? I continue to contend that they are relatively rarely used on regular trails, although often people have them stashed in packs. My recent survey supports that they are more often used by those with old knees. Even my handler does not take them, then needs to borrow them from me!

Re: Rattlesnake On Mist Trail

szalkowski — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 02:05:21 -0700

Quote
trosel238
I just made my first trip to Yosemite, and while hiking the Mist Trail from Vernal Falls we saw a 3 to 4 foot long rattlesnake.
The snake was in the rocks adjacent to the trail. This was on the portion of the trail between the Vernal falls bridge and the
trailhead.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ooaGhYFHIzg&feature=related

Re: Campground Help

eeek — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 01:42:01 -0700

Quote
Vikesrock
What are our chances of being able to get two FC-FS sites on Saturday morning?

There's always somebody leaving. So if you get there early, you'll find something.

Re: Campground Help

Vikesrock — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 01:20:46 -0700

I had a similar question. I'm interning with a group of people down here in the Mountain View area and we are looking into going to Yosemite 7/24-7/26. We have a group of 8-10 people. We won't be able to get there until 7:00 on Friday night at the earliest, so we were figuring we would probably try and get a reservation in one of the commercial campgrounds outside the park for that night.

What are our chances of being able to get two FC-FS sites on Saturday morning? They don't have to be in the same area as we will have two separate vehicles. If the odds are decent, which campgrounds give us the best chance? Would it be easier to just stay both nights at one of the commercials if we can find spots there?

Also, any recommendations for places to stay that Friday night? Right now we are looking at Yosemite Pines, Indian Flat, and High Sierra.

We plan on coming to the park from the west or from the south depending on how our camping plans shake out.

Re: Greenpeace defaces Mt Rushmore Nat'l Memorial

LVRAY — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:28:12 -0700

Don't think hanging a temporary banner is really defacing the Memorial. Blowing off Lincoln's nose might be tho.

Students work, learn on public lands

eeek — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:28:38 -0700

Eight students from the Eastern Sierras are gaining experience in resource management while improving public lands through work with the Youth Conservation Corps. YCC crew members from the Owens Valley are working on community projects, including projects on public lands for six weeks this summer, said Becky Hutto, contact representative for the Bureau of Land Management’s Bishop Field Office.

http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/info/newsbytes/2009/390_extra-youth-bishop.html