Local:

  • Muir Woods National Park temporarily reopened Thursday for ten days, thanks to donations from some of the park’s operational partners. The $15 entry fee will be waived, and park rangers will be on-hand offering programs through November 1 during the ongoing government shutdown. [KQED]
  • Bay Area residents are advised to avoid swimming at local beaches along the coast over the weekend. The National Weather Service is forecasting potential rip tides and 15- to 25-foot sneaker waves. [KRON4]
  • Google deleted years’ worth of content and programming geared toward women in tech from its website. It’s just one of many steps tech companies, and corporations in general, have taken toward unraveling DEI initiatives. [CNN]
  • Pharmacy customers at the last remaining Walgreens in San Francisco's Mission District are forced to wait an average of 45 minutes, many of them seniors and people living with chronic pain. [Mission Local]
  • District 9 Supervisor Jackie Fielder called for an investigation at a San Francisco Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday into the egregiously pricey contract the mayor’s office signed with tech firm OpenGov last week. [KALW]

National:

  • The USS Gerald R. Ford, the US’s largest warship, set off to the Caribbean from the Mediterranean Sea Friday. The ship joins eight other warships, along with a nuclear submarine and an F-35 aircraft, taking part in the military’s supposed crackdown on drug trafficking in the region. [BBC]
  • Despite claims that Amtrak is failing, the agency broke ridership records in 2024. Proponents emphasize that Amtrak is a government agency successfully fulfilling its mandate to serve the public, not a business meant to turn a profit, as it’s often incorrectly categorized by critics. [Streetsblog]

  • It appears that Suzanne Somers’s widower has successfully created an AI clone of the late star — upon her request, with the help of Boston-based inventor Ray Kurzweil (who’s also Google’s top AI researcher). [People]
  • Chelsea Clinton and Donald Trump Jr. had a bit of a spat on X after Clinton said Trump Sr. was “taking a wrecking ball to our heritage.” [Huffington Post]

Video of the Day:

Families: Get those oversized tote bags ready — tomorrow is Yerba Buena Gardens’ First Annual Pumpkin Giveaway. Starting at 10 am, the first 100 kids under 12 get a free pumpkin. Plus, free carousel rides until 11 am!

Image: Leanne Maxwell/SFist