[From J. M. Hutchings’ In the Heart of the Sierras, 1886]

AS PART OF THE USUAL PROGRAMME, we experimented as to the time taken by different objects in reaching the bottom of the cliff. An ordinary stone tossed over remained in sight an incredibly long time, but finally vanished somewhere about the middle distance. A handkerchief with a stone tied in the corner, was visible perhaps a thousand feet deeper; but even an empty box, watched by a field-glass, could not be traced to its concussion with the Valley floor.

Finally, the landlord appeared on the scene, carrying an antique hen under his arm. This, in spite of the terrified ejaculations and entreaties of the ladies, he deliberately threw over the cliff’s edge.

A rooster might have gone thus to his doom in stoic silence, but the sex of this unfortunate bird asserted itself the moment it started on its awful journey into space. With an ear-piercing cackle, that gradually grew fainter as it fell, the poor creature shot downward; now beating the air with ineffectual wings, and now frantically clawing at the very wind, that slanted her first this way and then that; thus the hapless fowl shot down, down, until it became a mere fluff of feathers no larger than a quail. Then it dwindled to a wren’s size, disappeared, then again dotted the sight a moment as a pin’s point, and then—it was gone!

After drawing a long breath all round, the women folks pitched into the hen’s owner with redoubled zest. But the genial McCauley shook his head knowingly, and replied:— “Don’t be alarmed about that chicken, ladies. She’s used to it. She goes over that cliff every day during the season.” And, sure enough, on our road back we met the old hen about half up the trail, calmly picking her way home!!(?)

For a fascinating video exploration of other, more hazardous objects falling from great heights to the floor of Yosemite Valley, check out Steven Bumgardner's latest Yosemite Nature Notes episode: Rock Fall.

Camping at Stoneman Meadow, Spring 1927. COURTESY NPS, YNIN THE SPRING OF 2010, with the waterfalls in full gush and snow still on the trees, the Mariposa and Tuolumne County Boards of Supervisors announced a decision to honor John Muir — adventurer, writer, conservationist, Sierra Club founder — by designating a section of CA Highway 132 (from CA 49 in Coulterville to CA 120) the "John Muir Highway."

A formal dedication ceremony had been arranged, to feature John Muir’s great grandson, Bill Hanna, and famed John Muir impressionist, Lee Stetson.

"Personally," wrote Loyd Schutte, of the Yosemite Blog, "I think naming a road 'in honor' of a man who fought so hard against the destruction and urbanization of wild places is in poor taste and a shameless media ploy."

Click to read more ...

We'd picked up a hitchhiker on the way out of Mammoth. He was wearing a dark suit, a pressed white shirt and tie, and a porkpie hat. He held up a document folder on which he'd written: INDEPENDENCE (THE TOWN).

Read the whole story at The Traveler's Notebook...

Christian Pondella photoAS PART OF A TYPICALLY GRANDIOSE AND SPLASHY roundup in Skiing Magazine entitled "The Future of Skiing: The 28 people, products, and inventions revolutionizing our sport," writer Rob Story summarily dismissed "that mohawked dude in the Mammoth parking lot who’ll fire up power tools and cut you a pair of skis during lunch if you slide him $300."

Here's why we think Mr. Story missed the point.

And hey, if you missed it in the print mag, here's my feature from the winter issue of Eastside on the time I went down to Olancha to meet Michael and try the whole thing out for myself.

Flickr photo by AltemarkARE GUIDEBOOKS STILL WORTH THE PAPER THEY'RE PRINTED ON?

Maybe. Fact is, they're still considerably cheaper to start a fire with than an iPhone.

Here's the thing: my publisher, Countryman Press, wants to do a 2nd Edition of Yosemite, the Southern Sierra Nevada and Death Valley. Which is good news, of course. But the question arises: in the age of GPS, Wi-Fi, googlemaps and lithium-ion batteries, what makes a travel book worth the cost of the paper it's printed on?

Read more about what the next incarnation might look like at The Traveler's Notebook. Your honest input sincerely appreciated.