AP - When Erica Nelson and Abby Flantz lost their way during an overnight hike into Denali National Park, they decided to keep hiking.

AP - Ernesto Evangelista prefers to pump premium gas into his seven-month-old Nissan Titan, thinking it makes the truck run better. But at a BP station just a few blocks from the sand of Miami Beach, the 33-year-old painter grabbed the handle for the regular, 87-octane gas to fill his tank on a recent Friday.

AP - As floodwaters take aim at the tiny towns lining the Mississippi River, the heartland ethic of neighbors helping neighbors is proving to be a potent force against the rising water.

AP - The tradition of farming the land in northern New Mexico's Espanola Valley had been passed down from Don Bustos' Spanish ancestors who tilled the same soil centuries before.

AP - Prison officials halted Tuesday night's scheduled execution of a former topless-club bouncer condemned for a double slaying almost 20 years ago as the clock ticked down on their deadline.

AP - More than 115,000 former felons who completed their sentences have had their civil rights restored since a new state rule went into effect 14 months ago, Gov. Charlie Crist said.

AP - Wearing everything from T-shirts to tuxedos and lavish gowns, hundreds of same-sex couples rushed to county clerks' offices throughout California to obtain marriage licenses and exchange vows as last-minute legal challenges to gay marriage failed.

AP - The crowd at Tim Russert's funeral Wednesday would have made a great panel on his Sunday morning news show.

AP - With gasoline topping $4 a gallon, President Bush urged Congress on Wednesday to lift its long-standing ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, saying the United States needs to increase its energy production. Democrats quickly rejected the idea.

AP - Floodwaters breached two levees in western Illinois on Wednesday, and the federal government warned that 20 to 30 more levees may overflow along the Mississippi River.