Spring cleaning

We've been getting ready for spring and the tourist season around A Bed of Roses Bed and Breakfast. We pull weeds, mow the lawn, clean out the animal pens, freshen the garden beds as well as the rooms and the common areas. The decks and stairs will be getting a fresh coat of paint as soon as the last rains dry out. We cleaned out all of the kitchen drawers and cabinets. After getting inspiration from HGTV we decided to paint the lower cabinets black to give it a more sophisticated look. We like it, what do you think?

More Fee Free Days at Yosemite

WASHINGTON – To mark the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day and to celebrate the launch of the Obama Administration’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced a schedule of free admission days to many of the lands managed by Interior.

All national parks, national wildlife refuges, and many areas managed by the Bureau of Land Management will offer free admission on June 5-6, August 14-15, September 25 (Public Lands Day), and November 11 (Veterans Day).
These dates are in addition to the previously announced free admission at all 392 national parks April 17-25 as part of the celebration of National Park Week.

“President Obama has made connecting Americans to the outdoors and our history a fundamental goal of the conservation initiative announced at Friday’s White House Conference on America’s Great Outdoors,” said Salazar.
“The Interior Department was proud to host that conference and will be even prouder to host Americans who want to get outdoors to visit their public lands.”

Snow?

Wohoo, we were getting ready for spring and winter is trying to sneak back for a couple of days. If you'd like to see some snow, you can stay at A Bed of Roses Bed and Breakfast or Sugar Pine Cabin at Yosemite.

Tonight: Rain and snow likely. Snow level 5700 feet lowering to 5100 feet. Cloudy, with a low around 29. South southwest wind between 5 and 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Total nighttime snow accumulation of around an inch possible.

Wednesday: Snow showers. High near 38. Southeast wind 8 to 16 mph becoming southwest. Winds could gust as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Wednesday Night: Snow showers likely, mainly before 8pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 26. West northwest wind between 3 and 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

Thursday: A 30 percent chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 42. West northwest wind around 9 mph. New snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.

Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 27. North wind between 7 and 9 mph.

Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 53.

Friday Night: A slight chance of rain and snow. Snow level 5600 feet. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 32. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Saturday: A slight chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 55.

Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 32.

Sunday: A slight chance of rain and snow. Snow level 5400 feet. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 49.

Sunday Night: A chance of rain and snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 30.

Monday: A slight chance of rain and snow. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 50.

Monday Night: A slight chance of rain and snow. Snow level 5300 feet. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 32.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 61.

Yosemite Half Dome cable permits for May and June available March 1st

Click on the link below for an article about the permits.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/02/yosemite-half-dome-cable-permits.html

Lincoln Exhibit coming to Oakhurst

Traveling exhibit details the President's life

Mark your calendar for the "Abraham Lincoln: Self Made in America Learning Station Exhibition" provided by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, in collaboration with the American LIbrary Association and with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The exhibit will be on display at the King Vintage Museum in Oakhurst March 5 through April 1.

"The Abraham Lincoln: Self Made in America Learning Station exhibit" will follow the journey taken by Abraham Lincoln from frontier obscurity to our nation's presidency and will be documented through a combination of images, objects and the written word. There are seven Learning Stations in the exhibit and each one show artifacts of his life as a Self Made man - Father, Husband, Lawyer, Politician, Commander-in-Chief and much more. In addition to the Learning Stations, there is an eighth learning station created by the Museum to tell the story of the Yosemite Grant and why Abraham Lincoln is important to our area.

In addition there are special teaching trunks available during the exhibition for use by schools or civic organizations. Two teaching trunks will remain forever at the Museum as a valuable asset for use by teachers and their students. All who visit the exhibition will enjoy the rich history of our 16th President and the teaching trunks will give generations an opportunity to explore his life for years to come.

The museum hours for the exhibition will be Monday-Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. with the weekday mornings devoted to school tours. The cost for admission to the museum is $3.00. School tour reservations are a must and space is still available.. Contact the museum at kingvintagemuseum@sti.net or call 559-658-6999 or 559-676-3370 for more information or to make reservations for school tours.

Why was the Oakhurst museum chosen? In the early 1860's influential Californians started visiting Yosemite National Park. They decided that they wanted this land of beauty to belong to the state of California. During the Civil War, this group petitioned President Lincoln to grant the Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove to the state of California. In the middle of the Civil War, Lincoln took time on June 30, 1864 to sign the legislation, known as the "Yosemite Grant". Ultimately this land went back to the Federal Government, but the Yosemite Grant Act was seen as the beginning of the State of California Park System enjoyed today.

The entire community of Oakhurst will be celebrating this Exhibit with some "historic" events and everyone is invited to attend.

The list of events follows:
January 31 "Gone with the Wind" at the Met Cinema hosted by Ladies Tea and Jousting Society. "Gone with the Wind" inspired costume contest with awards.

February 12 Abraham Lincoln Gala Birthday Celebration. Kickoff celebration hosted by the Museum and the Oakhurst Chamber.

February 14 Valentine Chocolate Extraordinaire Dinner at ECCO celebrating "The Lincoln Marriage" hosted by the Wild Wonderful Women.

March 5 Opening Night Preview of the "Abraham Lincoln: Self Made in America Learning Station Exhibition" at the Museum by ticket only.

March 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, 28. 7 p.m. "Abraham Lincoln Assassination" Drama at the Golden Chain Theatre. 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. on Sunday.

March 12 Ragtime Festival at Fresno Flats Historic Village and Park 2 p.m. to 5 p.m..

March 13 Ragtime Festival at Golden Chain Theatre 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

March 19, 20, 21 "Civil War Living History" at Oakhurst Community Park. Produced by the National Civil War Association in conjunction with the Museum and the Chamber of Commerce.

Friday, March 19 "Education Day" for Students.

March 21 3 p.m. Oakhurst Community Band Spring Concert: presents "Remembering Lincoln" at 2 p.m.

The museum is a women's, men's and children's vintage clothing and accessories collection dating back to 1790 including military uniforms and war memorabilia. During the Abraham Lincoln Exhibition the feature exhibit in the museum will be "Journey through Life in the Nineteenth Century". The collection will feature artifacts from the late 1700's through the 1900"s plus some of the military and children's collection.

For more information about the events contact the museum kingvintagemuseum@sti.net or call 559-658-6999 or goto www.LincolnOakhurst.com. or www.kingvintagemuseum.org.

Half Dome Permit Information

The following information is from the NPS website. For more information you can find FAQ's at http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/hdfaq.htm

Permits to hike to the top of Half Dome are now required on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays when the cables are up. This is an interim measure to increase safety along the cables while the park develops a long-term plan to manage use on the Half Dome Trail.

Beginning in 2010, all people using the Half Dome Trail above the subdome must have a permit in possession on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays when the cables are up. A maximum of 400 permits will be issued each of these days. (Before the permit system, fewer than 400 people used this trail on weekdays, while about 800 people used this trail on weekends and holidays, on average.)

In 2010, permits are available up to about four months in advance to one week in advance only through the National Recreation Reservation Service (NRRS). Permits are not available in the park or on a first-come, first-served basis. Demand for permits will be very high; availability may last only a matter of minutes on the first day permits become available. Each permit has a service fee of $1.50 (which covers the cost of NRRS processing the permit; Yosemite does not receive any money).

Note: Backpackers with an appropriate wilderness permit can receive a Half Dome permit when they pick up their wilderness permit with no additional reservation required. Rock climbers who reach the top of Half Dome without entering the subdome area can descend on the Half Dome Trail without a permit.

The Half Dome Cables are usually in place and available for use the third Friday in May, conditions permitting. The last day to use them usually is Columbus Day Monday. We can not guarantee the cables will be available on any given date. If you choose to get a permit for dates in May or October, there is an increased chance the cables will not be in place.

If you are unable to hike Half Dome for any reason (including weather, cables not available, illness, etc.) on the day you have a permit, you will not be able to get a permit for a different date.

Web Cam

Here is a link to our local web cam. It is positioned just south of the Highway 41/49 junction. It is located about 5 miles south of A Bed of Roses Bed and Breakfast at a place called Deadwood. This is one of the highest points in the town of Oakhurst so if there is snow anywhere it will be here. The bed and breakfast is at a slightly higher elevation so we may have snow even if there is no snow on Deadwood.

Check it out:

http://www.sti.net/webcam/index.html