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Articles written by Tony Ault


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  • Dorland Mountain Arts offering events for writers, artists and musicians

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated May 12, 2021

    The Dorland Mountain Arts community in the hills above Temecula announced a series of spring events for accomplished and hopeful artists, writers and musicians in the valley. Dorland Mountain Arts, 36701 Highway 79 outside Temecula Wine Country, is a place where accomplished artists find inspiration and relaxation from stays at the mountain retreat that offers programs for creative persons. There are five fully self-contained cottages for rent, monthly programs, hiking trails and views of the valley. With some COVID-19...

  • Wildflowers

    Find hiking adventures in Southwest Riverside County

    Tony Ault, Writer

    Southwest Riverside County area and its nearby San Bernardino National Forest San Jacinto Wilderness offer dozens of hiking trails for the whole family to enjoy at any time of the year. There are scenic trails, mountain trails, informative nature trails and so many others for everyone from the toddler (with help), senior citizens and even the handicapped to relax and enjoy. There are trails for the hardiest hiker to the first-timer. They are listed as "Easy," "Moderate," or...

  • Federal and state tax deadlines extended, Estimated Tax payments still due April 15

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Apr 7, 2021

    The U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service announced that the federal income tax filing due date for individuals for the 2020 tax year will be automatically extended from April 15 to May 17. According to their news release, individual taxpayers can also postpone federal income tax payments for the 2020 tax year due April 15 to May 17, without penalties and interest, regardless of the amount owed. This postponement applies to individual taxpayers, including individuals who pay self-employment tax. This relief do...

  • partial skull

    New research extends range of Pacific mastodon into eastern Montana

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Nov 24, 2020

    Ice age mastodons, who once roamed the Hemet San Jacinto Valley where the Diamond Valley Reservoir is located, may also have lived as far away as eastern Montana, according to new findings released by Western Science Center and Museum of the Rockies paleontologists. A new paper from the museums reveals that the Pacific mastodon, Mammut pacificus, described in 2019 from the Pleistocene of California and Idaho, was also found in eastern Montana between 639,000 and 160,000 years...

  • Hemet City Council elections: Meyer, Lilienthal, Males lead in respective districts

    Tony Ault|Updated Nov 6, 2020

    Hemet voters turned out Nov. 3 to cast their votes for three open district seats on the Hemet City Council. Returns Thursday evening were unchanged from early Wednesday. Returns posted from the Riverside County Registrar of Voters’ office showed the vote leader in the city’s District 1 race Wednesday morning is the incumbent Karlee Meyer with a total of 712 votes. Candidate Kenneth Prado, a local businessman, gained 503 votes, Deni Antionett Mazingo earned 417 votes and Nor...

  • San Jacinto elections: Ayala, Ruiz, Hawkins ahead, Measure V passing by nearly 2K votes

    Tony Ault|Updated Nov 6, 2020

    Measure V appears likely to pass in San Jacinto, and three candidates for the San Jacinto City Council retained their leads Thursday night. Measure V, which will implement a one-cent sales tax increase, had 5,170 'yes' votes and 2,305 'no' votes, unchanged from Wednesday morning. San Jacinto elects its city council members at large, so the seats will go to the top three vote-getters out of that field. Crystal Ruiz and Russ Utz are incumbents; the third seat is open with Mayor...

  • Officials join virtual ribbon cutting opening Menifee's I-215 and Scott Road interchange

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Sep 24, 2020

    Facebook and Twitter viewers were invited to see the official ribbon cutting for the completion of the new Scott Road and Interstate 215 interchange Thursday, Sept. 15, in Menifee. The 10-minute virtual presentation included a description of the work put in by the F. Atkinson Construction Co. from Colorado to build the $58 million freeway interchange since it was first contracted in 2018. City, state and county officials who each had a part in seeing the project completed included Bill Zimmerman, Menifee mayor; Matt Liesemeye...

  • Area food pantries need nonperishable foods for distribution to families impacted by COVID-19

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Apr 24, 2020

    The coronavirus has changed the way Fallbrook and southwest Riverside county food pantries distribute food to their families. The demand for food at the food pantries continues to rise as stay at home orders from the San Diego and Riverside County public health agencies reach into a second month. While some community pantry shelves are still stocked, the number of volunteers to help pack boxes of food and hand them out to the lines of people in cars has been decreasing. Other...

  • Major improvements coming to the Hemet Ramona Bowl Amphitheater this year

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Jan 25, 2020

    The Ramona Bowl may undergo some needed improvements in the next year thanks to the James and Marilyn Latham trust fund, more than 100 guests learned at the annual Ramona President's Dinner, Friday, Jan. 17. Lori VanArsdale, past president of the Ramona Bowl Amphitheater, made the announcement during the special event at the Maze Stone Restaurant at the Soboba Country Club in San Jacinto. According to VanArsdale, the trust will provide funds for the modification of the Ramona...

  • A staff member's personal look at the newest attractions

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Jan 1, 2020

    Disneyland California opened July 17, 1955, and was built on 85 acres for $17 million in downtown Anaheim. Now, with Disney's California Adventure and the new Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, the popular theme park has grown to 500 acres hosting millions of visitors a year. I haven't been to visit Disneyland and its relatively new California Adventure since 2007 until this past week when my wife and I, who are now well into our senior years, had the opportunity to visit the park...

  • Wildomar Marna O'Brien Park readied for the Rooted in Nature Craft Brew Fest May 18: Thousands expected

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated May 14, 2019

    Hundreds of volunteers from the Valley will be anxiously awaiting the arriving guests coming to the first Rooted In Nature Craft Brew Festival Saturday, May 18, at Wildomar’s Marna O’Brien Park, 20505 Palomar, Wildomar. Never before have the residents of Wildomar, and the surrounding cities had an opportunity to enjoy a day of fun and live entertainment topped off by sampling some of the finest homemade craft beers in Southern California. Not only is it to be a day of fun for the whole family but an opportunity to help out...

  • Western Science Center labs fossil preparation for study takes years of tedious work

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Sep 17, 2018

    Leya Collins, weighing just over 100 pounds, is just as capable with a jackhammer, and maybe even more so, as a 250-pound well-built, suntanned construction worker. With one hand, Collins can carefully chip open a hard casing that a construction worker wouldn't dare to tackle. She is glad to show her skill to dozens of children and students as they pass through her "construction" area. Where would this be? It is the fossil preparation lab in the Western Science Center Museum i...

  • Mountain Center lost horses found in wake of Cranston Fire

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Jul 31, 2018

    There was some good news, and some not so good news coming from out of the Cranston Fire for the two Idyllwild evacuees who sought their lost horses in the Mountain Center area devastated by the blaze July 25. The good news is the owner of “Hewie,” a Mustang owned by Idyllwild resident Gary Gray, one of the three lost horses turned loose from their corral by firefighters Wednesday, July 25, as the Cranston Fire raced through Mountain Center, burning homes and other structures....

  • Rainbow Oaks Restaurant offers great food with a touch of history

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Feb 26, 2018

    I had a real treat when I accepted an invitation to meet with the ranch hands and managers of the nonprofit Manzanita Ranch at the historic Rainbow Oaks Restaurant just off the Interstate 15 in Rainbow. It was nothing more than a meet up with the Manzanita Ranch folks on their first "Manzanita Mondays" benefit, but to me it was a nostalgic visit to the restaurant on the way to San Diego on old Highway 395 since the 1947 postwar era, before people even dreamed of interstate...

  • Manzanita Ranch Mondays benefit begins Feb. 5

    Tony Ault, Staff Writer|Updated Feb 1, 2018

    “You all come on down,” the Manzanita Ranch staff said, inviting residents and veterans to the first Manzanita Mondays event at the Rainbow Oaks Cafe in Fallbrook 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 5. Johnny Roberts, the Manzanita Ranch manager who operates a horse ranch in Anza “where the horses are the therapy,” announced the nonprofit ranch’s newest fundraiser this week called Manzanita Mondays. The new benefit will bring the Manzanita ranch hands and staff together at the restaurant, 4815 5th St., in Fallbrook to meet with...