fresnobee.com

FLOATING ON THE SAN JOAQUIN RIVER -- My plastic kayak suddenly ran aground in a place where the San Joaquin River has flowed only a few times since the 1950s. But I was only briefly caught on a shallow gravel bar about 40 miles west of Friant Dam.

The apartments along Lowe Avenue in southeast Fresno sound like a good deal. For about $600 a month you can get two bedrooms, and bad credit won't keep you out.

How has the Valley changed over the decades? Bee photographer John Walker matches historical photos with images of his own, taken from the same point of view. Walker spices the pictures with stories of early Fresno and its inhabitants.

With Millerton Lake as a backdrop, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an $11.1 billion water bond Monday that proponents acknowledged will be a tough sell with voters.

A form of lending that usually benefits poor people in Third World countries is thriving in the Valley as small businesses struggle to find credit.

A looming balloon payment is the driving force behind secretive stadium lease renegotiations that promise to dramatically change the troubled relationship between the Fresno Grizzlies and City Hall.

The Crime Map charts the time and location of reported felonies in the city of Fresno. You also can search a neighborhood for crime reports, and track the frequency of crime types over a chosen period of time.

The Data Center makes available to the public many of the links and databases – including some developed by The Bee – that reporters and editors use for research. You can search records ranging from property assessments to public employee salaries.