It's Wednesday. A photographic look back at California's busy year. Plus, Los Angeles can't stop talking about Shohei Ohtani.
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Fog in the Angeles National Forest near Pasadena in December. Tanveer Badal for The New York Times |
This has been an especially busy year for news in California. As we approach the end of 2023, we're presenting the Golden State's year visually, through photographs. There were moments of heartbreak, transformation and wonder, many of which will resonate through the state for years to come.
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Heavy snow near Pine Mountain Club in February. Jenna Schoenefeld for The New York Times |
The year began with a series of atmospheric-river storms that dropped tremendous amounts of precipitation on California. The record-breaking storms caused terrible flooding, wreaked all sorts of havoc across the state and killed at least 21 people.
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People prayed during a memorial service in January for the victims of the mass shooting in Monterey Park. Mark Abramson for The New York Times |
Eleven people were killed and nine more were injured when a gunman opened fire at a dance studio in Monterey Park in January, one of America's deadliest mass shootings of 2023. My colleague Corina Knoll wrote a beautiful article about the community of older Asian dancers who were devastated by the tragedy and sought a way to carry on.
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Flowers at an impromptu memorial in Half Moon Bay in January. Jim Wilson/The New York Times |
Less than 48 hours later, seven people were shot to death at two sites in Half Moon Bay, about 30 miles south of San Francisco. The back-to-back massacres were an upsetting illustration of what to many people feels like a near-constant drumbeat of mass shootings in America.
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Purple owl's clover on open land in Kern County in April. Daniel Dorsa for The New York Times |
All that winter rain made for "as close to a miracle year as you can get," replenishing reservoirs and easing drought conditions, a California state water official said. California's snowpack built up to the greatest depth recorded in at least 40 years, a huge lake of runoff spread over farmland in the Central Valley, and a rainbow of wildflowers emerged across the state in the spring.
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Striking actors and writers picketed in September outside Paramount Pictures in Los Angeles. Mark Abramson for The New York Times |
Some people called it the "hot labor summer": A season of strikes began when Los Angeles school support staff members staged a three-day walkout in March. Then Hollywood writers and actors went on strike, as did dockworkers, hotel workers, Amazon drivers and more.
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Muddy runoff floods a ditch near Salton City during Hurricane Hilary in August. Mark Abramson for The New York Times |
A rare tropical storm arrived in August and brought more than two inches of rain to Southern California. The tropical storm warning for Hurricane Hilary was the first ever issued for Southern California. The rain even formed a new lake in famously parched Death Valley.
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The statue of Dianne Feinstein outside the mayor's office in San Francisco City Hall. Jim Wilson/The New York Times |
In September, Dianne Feinstein, the grande dame of California Democrats and an influential voice in the U.S. Senate for more than 30 years, died at 90. Our San Francisco bureau chief, Heather Knight, wrote about how central Feinstein, a former mayor, was to some of the city's greatest triumphs as a financial and cultural capital of the West Coast.
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A conservative activist wore a flag at a school board meeting in San Juan Capistrano in October. Ariana Drehsler for The New York Times |
The culture wars were felt in California as Republicans, who have almost no power in the state government or in the state's largest cities, took aim at school boards as a forum for pushing right-wing policies like requiring parental notification when students seek to change their gender identity. A San Diego library's small Pride display led to unexpected fighting and made news around the nation.
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Shohei Ohtani circling the bases after hitting a two-run homer in July. Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press |
The rest of the news
Southern California
Central California
- Federal prosecutors reached a settlement with the City of Fresno over compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act after violations were found at the Fresno Amtrak station, The Business Journal reports.
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Northern California
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Valley Oak trees along a trail at Henry W. Coe State Park. Lea Suzuki/The San Francisco Chronicle, via Getty Images |
Where we're traveling
Today's tip comes from Jorge Moreno, spokesman for California State Parks. Moreno recommends Henry W. Coe State Park in Morgan Hill:
"With 87,000 acres of scenic hills and mountain ridges in the Diablo Mountain Range, this largely undeveloped park welcomes backpackers, equestrians, mountain bikers, day-hikers, and anyone seeking solitude in a nearly untouched setting. Fall is a particularly good time to visit, with temperate days, cool nights, and a chance to enjoy the color of the turning leaves."
Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Email your suggestions to CAtoday@nytimes.com. We'll be sharing more in upcoming editions of the newsletter.
Continue reading the main storyTell us
What will be your New Year's resolutions? Tell me what you're hoping for in 2024.
Email us at CAtoday@nytimes.com. Please include your full name and the city in which you live.
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A table inside of Kiln in San Francisco. Jim Sullivan Photography |
And before you go, some good news
The Michelin Guide on Tuesday added seven new restaurants to its California guide, including a vegetarian restaurant and wine bar in Koreatown in Los Angeles and an eastern Mediterranean restaurant in the Presidio in San Francisco.
Thanks for reading. I'll be back tomorrow. — Soumya
P.S. Here's today's Mini Crossword.
Maia Coleman and Geordon Wollner contributed to California Today. You can reach the team at CAtoday@nytimes.com.
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