Santa’s Mail Box is now at the Idyllwild Post Office ready to receive letters from local children. Santa’s postal elves Kelsi Lehman, Christina Edwards, Postmaster Kelly Gates and Sherry Kaufman, present the box all ready for the first letters to Santa. Children may mail their letters to Santa up until noon Monday, Dec. 17, in order to reach the North Pole in time for Christmas. And every year, Santa gives the Town Crier permission to print some of the letters he receives from Idyllwild boys and girls in the newspaper.

Residents of Riverside County’s unincorporated areas, including Idyllwild, are being asked to approve a special assessment in order to maintain the county’s pest control program, e.g., mosquitoes and rodents. Ballots must be returned and received on or before July 7. If you would like to know more about this issue and its consequences, visit https://idyllwildtowncrier.com/2015/06/01/mosquito-vector-ballot-questions/.

Some say things tend to slow down during the winter in Idyllwild. That is true… unless you are part of ICC sports! With high-action games on the volleyball courts at Buckhorn Camp, to buzzer-beaters on the basketball courts of Idyllwild School, to rapid-fire ping pong tournaments at Town Hall, and now with the latest sport…

The outlook for the 2023 summer fire season continues to be cautious but better than 2022. Winter’s rain and snow have greatly improved fuel moisture content. Last week’s cool weather and modest precipitation also delayed the drying of fuels, especially at the higher elevations of the San Jacinto Mountains. Idyllwild and most of the Hill…