– Carl Bidleman

I admire Shelton Johnson.  He is a gifted musician and an even more gifted storyteller.  John Muir would have loved Shelton’s stories. He has a passion for National Parks, especially Yosemite, which I have come to love. And he’s a native Detroiter.  A west sider, yes, but a Detroiter none the less.  (We can’t all be blessed to have come up on the sunrise side of Woodward.) Shelton Johnson embodies many of life’s good things.  And thanks to Ken Burns, the whole world now knows about Ranger Johnson.

I thought I’d share a couple of videos that I shot a few years ago on a beautiful November Sunday afternoon.  I never published these clips because I realized Shelton’s history walk would be better covered with two cameras instead of one.  So they languished on the shelf.  But when I took another look this weekend, I realized Shelton’s great storytelling skills trump my lack of shooting skills.  I’ll edit the rest of the 90-minute tour in the coming days but here are two of my favorite moments of Shelton’s history walk.  Enjoy.  And check out more of Shelton’s work on the 9th Cavalry here:  http://shadowsoldier.wilderness.net/

Below: Shelton Johnson (as Sgt. Bowman, Sir) tells how being called “Buffalo Soldier” was better than being called “Nigger Cavalry”.

Below: Shelton Johnson (as Sgt. Bowman, Sir) tells tales of the 9th Cavalry “Buffalo Soldiers’” duty in Yosemite and meeting Mr. John Muir.

Find OpenRoad.TV’s other Yosemite videos and stories on our interactive map.

WATCH OUR FULL EDITED VIDEO STORY ON VIRGINIA LAKES

Photo by Carl Bidleman

– Doug McConnell
Spring is bursting all around northern and central California. It hasn’t been the wettest of winters, but we’ve had more rain near the coast and more snow in Sierra Nevada this year than last, and that’s good. We still have time for more, and I hope we get it.

As the days grow gradually longer and warmer, the snow will begin to melt in the Sierra high country, and gravity will start pulling the water down through the canyons and off the sheer granite cliffs of Yosemite National Park. The fabled waterfalls of Yosemite will surge to life, and the most famous of them all is now more accessible to all of us than ever before.

Check out our tour of the new Yosemite Falls Trail. You’ll be inspired to go and, I hope, support the work of the Yosemite Fund. By the way, once you’ve looked at the story about the trail, take a moment to see some of our other pieces about Yosemite and the people who know it best, for example: Yosemite’s Half Dome Trek, Yosemite’s Ahwahnee Hotel, Yosemite’s Ansel Adams. Then hit the road and soak up a little flying aquatic majesty.

Doug McConnell

We’ve had a dry, cold and clear New Year in northern California. It’s been bright and beautiful. But now storm clouds are headed our way and I’m looking forward to their arrival. Large amounts of rain and snow are predicted. It’s time to streak into the Sierra Nevada and enjoy the white stuff.

One of my favorite winter playgrounds in California is just uphill from the Gold Rush town of Sonora. You can visit the Dodge Ridge Winter Sports Area and its surrounds right here on OpenRoad.TV before going in person. Since we shot our story there a few years back, Dodge Ridge has made quite a few improvements according to its Communications Manager, Andy Wyllie.

Here’s what Andy says: “We spent $6 million on a redevelopment of the base area. The main feature is a 16,000 sq ft building we’re calling the Family Lodge. It houses a modern Ticketing & Guest Services lobby, an expanded Children’s Snowsports Center, a Preschool Snowplay Program for kids aged 3 to 5, and cafe with large stone fireplace called the North Fork Bistro. We’ve also remodeled the Rental Center, and put in brick plazas between the buildings.”

All that and snow, too. Check out Dodge Ridge here and on its website and then head to the hills. Be sure to carry chains.

– Doug McConnell

Those of us who work on OpenRoad.TV are always clear about a couple of things.

First, we always have and always will keep a big and insurmountable barrier between editorial content and advertising. Nobody can pay us to do a story about them or their institution. We follow old-fashioned journalistic standards in our work. We choose what stories we want to do, what tips we want to give and what opinions we want to have. We can’t and won’t let anyone’s money influence our editorial decisions. We believe our value to you is in our independence, integrity and credibility. We want to be a source you can trust and we want you to pass along your best and most credible stories, tips and suggestions, too.

The second thing we’re absolutely certain of is that I’m not the star here. I’m just the lucky guy who gets to meet the real stars of our videos almost every day. Our job has always been to find the bright, fascinating, funny and passionate people who have stories to tell about places they know and love, and who have good information and interesting ideas to share. Our collective talent at OpenRoad is our ability to find these people and then get out of their way. It’s not about me, it’s about them and they fill this website. Andrea Mead Lawrence, the first American woman to win two gold medals in the winter Olympics, and a defender of the Sierra Nevada. Keller Laros, who taught me how to scuba dive years ago and has a passion for seeing and caring for manta rays off the Big Island of Hawaii. Helen Smith, who has spent much of her adult life interpreting and restoring a Scandinavian retreat on the shore of Lake Tahoe, Vikingsholm. And Foggy Gomes, who volunteered for a lifetime to keep the fragile village of Mendocino safe from fire. They are the stars of this show and we urge you to join them.