By now, local downhill skiers and snowboarders know full well that Sierra Summit is in the process of being sold to a small investment group led by longtime Kirkwood Mountain Resort executive Tim Cohee, who plans to change the resort's name back to China Peak.

What no one knows is what the ownership change will mean, and how soon any changes will be implemented. We also don't know how current employees will be affected.

(Cohee's background is in marketing, so you can assume there will be a major push to raise the resort's visibility throughout the Fresno-Clovis area and Central California. His toughest challenge -- by far -- will be attracting new customers.)

The resort's day-to-day management, once it's no longer owned by Snow Summit Ski Corp., is also in flux. Cohee has told me in more than one of our conversations that he intends to be a hands-on owner and relocate to the Fresno area. "You can't do it any other way," he said. However, Cohee was also recently quoted in the Lake Tahoe Daily News as saying, "People should not jump to the conclusion I will leave Kirkwood and run [Sierra Summit] on a daily basis."

Obviously, those two statements are pretty contradictory.

Just returned from a week-long trip to Death Valley, my annual spring pilgrimage to the desert. Much of that time was spent in a remote section of the park named Saline Valley, whose gin-clear hot springs attract campers, wanderers and desert rats of all stripes.

There really isn't much to do in the desert, so there's lots of time to ponder life's important questions: Should I soak two hours today or three? Should I keep mountain biking over the next ridge or turn back now? Should I drink beer or wine before dinner? Yep, critical stuff.

Unless you're a German tourist, the kind who likes having his picture taken next to giant thermometers reading 120 degrees, I don't see much point in visiting Death Valley in summer. But spring is so pleasant, especially when temperatures hover in the upper 70s. Even sitting in the full sun is tolerable. Wildflowers are just starting to pop up. Early in my trip, we even got some lighting and a trace of rain.

Here are some pictures taken from in and around Saline Valley, some of which were published last year with a story I wrote about the place and its colorful history. (More pics after the jump.)

One of the area's most accessible hiking trails, the Lakeview Trail at Eastman Lake, will be closed for at least the next six months to protect a pair of nesting bald eagles.

Park rangers have posted trail closure signs at the Codorniz Recreation Area and Raymond Bridge trailheads, according to a Corps of Engineers press release. The closure will be in effect at least through August.

Since 1993, these resident bald eagles have produced 41 young, 36 of which have successfully survived to take flight, according to the press release. Bald eagles are protected under a number of federal laws including the Endangered and Threatened Species Act.

Bald eagles are sensitive to human activity. Rangers fear hikers and mountain bikers may disturb the birds, which could result in nest abandonment or hinder the development of the young offspring.

In addition to the trail closure, there is a quarantine restriction on Eastman Lake at the Chowchilla River inlet channel. This restricted area is marked with "Keep Out" buoys.

For more information regarding the closures at Eastman Lake, call (559) 689-3255, Monday through Friday from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

At last.

Nearly three years since first series of public meetings concerning a designated system of Off-Highway Vehicle routes in the Sierra National Forest, we're finally nearing a resolution.

The Record of Decision, along with the Final Environmental Impact Statement, will both be released in late February, according to a Friday email from Sierra National Forest supervisor Ed Cole.

More public meetings (and a 45-day appeal period) will follow the documents' release. After that, the forest will publish a free Motor Vehicle Use Map that shows where OHV enthusiasts will be allowed to travel -- and where they won't be.

Need more background? Go here.

It was an emotional scene this afternoon at Northside Christian Church in northeast Fresno, where close to 1,000 people (I'm terrible at estimating crowds) turned out for a memorial service for Department of Fish and Game biologists Kevin O'Connor, Clu Cotter and Tom Stolberg, who were killed in last week's terrible helicopter crash near Redinger Lake.

The DFG, both uniformed personnel and managers in suits, turned out in force to support their fallen co-workers. The parking lot was filled with dark green trucks with the distinctive shield emblem on their sides. In fact, I'd never seen so many DFG personnel in one place at one time.

Dignitaries in attendance included newly appointed DFG director John McCamman; California's outgoing Secretary for Natural Resources, Mike Chrisman; his replacement (as of Feb. 1), Lester Snow; DFG's chief of enforcement, Nancy Foley; wildlife branch chief Eric Loft; and California Fish and Game Commission president Jim Kellogg.

There were many touching tributes, but one that stood out to me came from Region 4 biologist Greg Gerstenberg speaking on behalf of O'Connor, his supervisor and friend.

Gerstenberg told a story about the time O'Connor traveled to Tuolumne County to investigate a problem bear. O'Connor located the bear and shot it with a tranquilizer dart, only to discover the animal wasn't breathing because it landed face down in a puddle.

What's a wildlife biologist to do? Well, we know what O'Connor did. He gave the bear CPR -- yes, that means mouth-to-snout resuscitation -- until it could breathe again. Afterward, O'Connor was thrilled (not disgusted) about the experience.

If that's not dedication to wildlife, I don't know what is.

One of California's best-known extreme sports events, the Maverick's Surf Contest, tentatively set for Wednesday, has been called off following a majority vote Monday of the 24 invited surfers.

The lack of 30-foot-waves near Half Moon Bay isn't the issue. Rather, there were concerns about a forecast of rain and southerly winds that usually produce unfavorable conditions for the day-long contest.

The contest window runs from November through the end of March, so it's possible the mild El Nino in the North Pacific will provide better conditions in the coming months. The event has been scrapped in two the last three winters due to a lack of big swells during the contest window.

Go here for details.

Tuesday was one of those days I'll always remember -- and not in a good way.

The sinking feeling began the moment we heard over the police radio that a helicopter carrying three Department of Fish and Game biologists on a deer survey crashed near Redinger Lake.

Then came the lump in my throat, followed by the faint hope that Clu Cotter wasn't on that chopper.

Turns out, he was. Cotter, 48, along with DFG supervising biologist Kevin O'Connor, 40, longtime seasonal aide Tom Stolberg, 31, and pilot Dennis Donovan, 70, were all killed in the crash, whose cause is still under investigation.

Must've been a great day to be on the slopes ...

Yesterday's storm left 7 inches of fresh snow at Sierra Summit, and a little more was sprinkling down this morning. The Huntington Lake winter resort had five chairlifts operating Tuesday and plans to have China Bowl open for the post-Christmas holiday weekend.

Badger Pass also got a couple of inches. The venerable Yosemite ski area opened for the season Friday.

After today, mountain roads should be clear into the weekend. Forecasters are predicting a chance of more snow Sunday with the next storm due in the middle of next week.

As always, call 1-800-427-ROAD for the latest highway conditions from Caltrans.

A couple weeks ago I lamented about the lack of winter camping opportunities at Huntington Lake.

Well, someone must've heard our plea. Because in the latest recreation report issued Monday by the Sierra National Forest, Rancheria Campground is now listed as being open for snow camping. Since there are no services at the campground this time of year (except vault toilets), no fees will be collected.

Located on the east end of the lake near the turnoff to Kaiser Pass Road, Rancheria is the largest (145 sites) of the seven public campgrounds on the lake. Most years, groomers plow the road inside the campground for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

Working on a story for tomorrow's paper about Sierra Summit, which is scheduled to begin daily operations Friday.

Not a moment too soon for some local skiers and snowboarders, who pleaded on the winter resort's blog to open sooner.

"We would love to open earlier, but we're still making snow on the top of the mountain so Friday it is," Sierra Summit spokeswoman Lisa Bressel said.

Monday's storm brought one foot of dry powder to the mountains around Huntington Lake. More storms are forecast this weekend and early next week, so don't leave the chains and ice scraper at home.