Late rains along the coast and low moisture in other parts of California portend a busy wildfire season in the months ahead.

It’s impossible to predict how much the state will need to pay for fire suppression costs in any give year, but CalFire spokesman Daniel Berlant says we can be confident that, even in the most difficult budgetary years, the money is there.

The lion’s share of that funding goes to staffing the state fire agency, which Berlant explains is a combination of year-round positions augmented by seasonal hiring for the summer and early fall.

Once there were four types of Gray whales in the world’s oceans. Today, only the California Gray Whale survives in sustainable numbers, and its future is looking grim.

Gray whales are not just some of the largest creatures on the planet, says Sue Arnold, CEO of the Gray Whale Coalition, as a species they are also among the oldest.

Protecting the whales is not just an ecological and environmental issue, Arnold says, but there is an economic concern for California, too.

The whale hunting quota of 140 killed in each of the next ten years is now proposed in a “draft compromise” before the International Whaling Commission. But Arnold says the only current gray whale killing is happening in a remote area of Siberia.

Changing conditions in the arctic waters of the Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia/

Climbing up a sheer rock wall just your feet, fingers, and a pouch of chalk may not be your idea of a good time, but that’s what Kevin Jorgeson (above) lives to do.

Bouldering doesn’t require much in the way of equipment. The two essentials, Kevin Jorgeson explains, are the “crash pads” that are laid out at the base of the boulder, and some specialized shoes.

This sort of extreme rock climbing isn’t just about steep, near vertical ascents. Sometimes, as in the picture at the top of this page, the routes become almost horizontal. Kevin explains how that’s done.

In addition to his own exploits, Jorgeson is committed to sharing his interest in the sport, and to that end he has formed a new nonprofit and is working toward creating a climbing center based in Sonoma.

You can find photographs and videos of some of Kevin's more dramatic climbs on his website. You can also see him in the new documentary film, Core, which will have special preview screenings, with Kevin in attendance, Monday evening April 26 at the Sebastiani Theater in Sonoma, and Tuesday night, April 27 at the Rialto in Santa Rosa. See the trailer for Core below.

The oldest and perhaps only wireless telegraph station on the west coast is still beaming Morse code out to the world from its original outpost overlooking Tomales Bay.

The historic facility will be open to the public  on Saturday, April 24 from 10-5 pm.  Details about the Open House, hosted by the Maritime Radio Historical Society, are available here. By continuing to use the restored antique electronics at the Marconi station, Richard Dillman (the operator in this photo) says they are practicing a form of living history.

The Maritime Radio Historical Society applied for and received a new commercial telegraph operators license for the Marshall station, which they now use to keep the signal actively operating on the weekends.

The Marconi Conference Center will host an open house displaying historical pieces of radio once used for both military and merchant ships coming into the bay. Located in Tomales Bay, the center will display the relics and provide stories of what it was like on the coast during the radio era.