California state parks stay open!

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today unveiled a plan that would allow for all state parks to remain open without increasing the Department of Parks and Recreation budget appropriation. Following the passage of the budget reduction in July, the Governor tasked the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Department of Finance to work together on a plan to achieve $14.2 million in budget savings in the current fiscal year while mitigating the number of park closures.

“Working closely with my Departments of Finance and Parks and Recreation, we have successfully found a way to avoid closing parks this year,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “This is fantastic news for all Californians.”

You got that right, Guv!

National park memories: Yellowstone

We'll get a good look at our National Parks this fall with the new Ken Burns series for PBS. The National Parks: America’s Best Idea —a six-part, 12-hour film— is scheduled for 8 p.m. slot Sept. 27 through Oct. 2 (check local listings). As a huge fan of our national parks, I'm eager to see the series. I'm sure they'll spend a good deal of time at one of my faves: Yellowstone National Park. The thought has had me combing my memories for some of my best times in Yellowstone.

And while the park gets most of its visitors in summer, I love Yellowstone best in winter. The park's first official winter inspection didn't occur until 1887--15 years after it had been designated a national park. Those first inspectors tramped around for a while on heavy wooden skis, half frozen to death, before turning back and declaring the park unfit for winter visitation.

Indeed, Yellowstone in winter is no picnic: snow swirls, winds can howl, and crowds largely melt away. Except for one northern route, roads are snowed in and you can only enter the heart of the part via snowcat or snowmobile (or, of course, by skis). That's when Yellowstone regains its true wild self.

My first winter visit was probably 30 years ago. Here's how I remember it: From West Yellowstone, I climb into a marginally heated red Bombardier snow coach, equipped with tracks like a tank (and about as comfortable) and we rumble our way into the park. Out frosted windows, I see hissing fumaroles spray clouds into the bitterly cold air.

Along the road's edge, we pass small herds of bison lumbering down into warmer, wind- sheltered valleys for food and warmth. The journey takes a couple of hours, including stops alongside the pewter, ice-flecked Yellowstone River to watch trumpeter swans and the occasional elk, looking majestic with a spreading rack of antlers, pawing through the snow to munch on grass below. When we turn the engine off, I stand before a forest glittering with ice, and wrapped in a thick blanket of snow. The silence is so deep, and the sense of alone-ness so complete, it's almost frightening.

Arriving at Old Faithful, I find the geyser still does its thing, just as in summer, but it explodes above a smaller crowd, one swathed in helmets and snowmobile suits, fresh off their ski-dos. The main access to the rest of the hissing stars of Lower Geyser Basin is by snowshoe or cross-country skis. And there, with a bit of effort, I can watch the geyser show in relative solitude. I love lesser-known Castle Geyser, wreathed in mounds of snow and steam, with its white cone continually reformed by hot blobs of mud that erupt like burps. I stand for a while and listen: the geyser almost seems to breathe, as each exhalation adds another crust of ice to the silvery branches of overhanging trees.

I step gingerly toward a steaming, algae-and mineral-tinted pool, edged in hot pink and mustard yellow, with an aqua blue center (kind of like an alien eyeball). Then I remember stories of foolish tourists fallen into the pool and a horrible, boiling death. One wrong step off the snow-packed trail could lead to trouble, so I step carefully back to the snowy path and stick to it.

As I ski along the loop trail, I pass more small geysers and odd steaming formations before swinging around back to the trailhead. The Old Faithful Inn looms into view, shuttered for the season, yet still grand, it's dark wooden roofs and lacy balconies mantled in snow. I'm snapping out of my skis, ready to walk the rest of the way back to the Snow Lodge, when I catch a shadow out of the corner of my eye. Then, it moves.

Here, less that 50 yards from the side door to my lodge and 'civilization', is a furry, dark brown bison. I freeze. He seems almost as big as the snowcoach I rode in on, and certainly as terrifyingly powerful. His liquid brown eye, fringed in long lashes, locks with my eyes, as if in a game of who-blinks-first.

Then he snorts, and slowly crosses the trail in front of me and shuffles down into the basin, as I slowly exhale. Wild, man.

Details: It's a perfect time to plan a winter trip to Yellowstone National Park, a great family destination. The park service offers a handy trip-planner, click here. To book your lodging with the park concessionaire, Xanterra, click here. Or just watch the live geyser-cam showing you Old Faithful.

Dining news from Yountville, Napa Valley

I love Yountville, California. It's close enough to San Francisco for a long weekend or even just a single exquisite daytrip. I've written about taking the Wine Train, about new lodging and the Mustard Festival, and about newest restaurant, Bottega. And now, my pal Kolleen emails me that the dining scene in Yountville is about to bubble over. In the next year, she notes, "Yountville expands its dining options from a simmer to a boil!" Here's what to look for:

-- Hotel Luca – The folks behind L’Auberge Carmel are set to open a 20-room luxury, Italian-style inn and restaurant sometime this fall. Like rustic, informal Italian dining? The inn's Luca Spa and Cantinetta Piero sounds like it will marry the best foods/styles of Italy and Napa Valley.
-- Vita –Laura Cunningham's new eatery is a Sicilian/southern Italian restaurant in the heart of Yountville that's named after her grandmother Vita Morrell. Remember, Ms. C. was the gal behind the service and key operations at Thomas Keller's French Laundry and Per Se in New York, so Vita should be something special. Scheduled to open next year, it's got a great pedigree: the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group is driving operations.
--Gordon’s Wine Bar & Café – This is set to be the new, improved version of a much loved local fave. Opening date is flexible: 2009/2010 (but hey, they're renovating a 19th century building, which can be tricky, so cut 'em some slack). Sally Gordon is still part of the project, which will debut with 50 seats and a similar cuisine.
Details: Yountville is 55 miles north of San Francisco, via Highway 101; contact the Yountville Chamber of Commerce at 707/944-0904.

Celebrate California's coast with Sunset Magazine

Today, Sunset Magazine, the guide to life in the West, is partnering with the California Coastal Commission to present the first-ever Coastal Heroes Awards. Honoring nine individuals whose 'dedication and hard work are protecting the California coast for future generations to love', the awards will be doled out at a ceremony held—fittingly— at the Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco.

You can read all about these heroes in Sunset's September Coastal Issue (on newsstands now). In a way, it's business as usual for this enviro-aware publication. "Sunset magazine has a long history of passionate concern for the California environment and the California coast," says Katie Tamony, Sunset's editor-in-chief. "Today, Sunset's environmental interests range from Western rivers to wise use of water and energy in home and garden, so we are always looking for ways to honor the people and organizations that are committed to championing these important causes."

And the Coastal Commission, established in 1972, was created expressly for the 'protection and enhancement' of the California coast.

The timing couldn't be better: this marks the 25th anniversary of the Coastal Commission's wildly popular Coastal Cleanup Day, slated for this weekend.

Details: To find out how to subscribe to Sunset, click here. To join the Coastal Cleanup, held on Saturday, September 19, click here.

Happy birthday to Big Basin State Park

One of our favorite parks, Big Basin Redwoods State Park, has a birthday coming up. On September 26, from 10 – 8, you can celebrate Big Basin Founders’ Day and Redwood Jubilee at Big Basin Redwoods State Park (nine miles outside of Boulder Creek on Highway 236). The visionaries, valued workers, and visitors that have shaped the character of Big Basin State Park over the past 107 years will be honored during this special event. So revel in the beauty of the majestic old growth redwoods and enjoy historic hikes, music, games for kids and a melodrama.

It's a good time to remember how much we value our state parks. State parks are under attack, with funding cuts threatening to close some 100 parks. For Californians who treasure the outdoors, the prospect of sacrificing parks to the state's budget woes is unthinkable. (The parks department has begun modest fee increases to help keep parks open, but the major funding still comes from the state budget.) According to the California State Parks Foundation, the list of parks threatened with closure is set to be released next week.

Meanwhile, there's no better time than now to celebrate the parks we love: go out this weekend and visit a state park near you, pay the modest day use/parking fee, and thank the ranger (or volunteer) who staffs the visitor center, and support the nonprofit California State Parks Foundation.

Details: Going to Big Basin: call 831/ 338-8883 or click here. Want to help stave off park closures? Click here for more info on how to take action.
PHOTO CREDIT: Courtesy of California State Parks, 2009