Friday Travel Ticker: California colors explode

Fall colors are bursting in the Eastern Sierra. They went from zero to hero in a week, according to California Fall Color, a website produced by John Poimiroo. Check out the latest here . . . . Apple season is also in full swing near Yucaipa (80 miles east of L.A.), growers say. For info, click here, or call (909) 797-6833 . . . . A tour boat captain has spotted the first humpback whale of the winter season in Hawaii — several weeks earlier than expected. The sighting came on the Big Island’s Kona Coast on Monday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says. Last year’s first sighting was on Oct. 20 off Maui’s west coast . . . . Saturday is the deadline for entering the 2011 Halloween Book Festival, Oct. 21-22 at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood. The event is part of the Aliens to Zombies Convention . . . . A Halloween- themed Mutt Mixer in Half Moon Bay will raise money for anti-cruelty programs Oct. 25, on the heated deck at the Moss Beach Distillery. The $20 admission includes drinks and appetizers; (408) 206-1074 . . . . Yosemite fire managers are planning a controlled burn for Friday, weather permitting. It is planned for the southern portion of the park near Bishop Creek along the Wawona Road . . . . A home where John Wilkes Booth tried to hide out after assassinating President Lincoln will be auctioned on Oct. 7 in Virginia . . . . A readers’ choice poll has named the Spa at Encore in Las Vegas one of the best casino hotel spas in the world . . . . AAA is suing the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey over toll increases that recently went into effect at New York City bridges . . . . Travel quote of the day: “I am easily satisfied with the very best.”
(Winston Churchill)