10 Most-Read Stories of 2011

Happy new year!

As the old year drifts back in the rear-view mirror, it's a last chance to look at some happenings through the prism of the most-read stories of 2011 for Walnut Creek Patch.

The tallies of these stories come from Patch metrics for page views. Keep in mind that some had totals inflated because they were picked up and run by other Patches and our national-international cousin, the Huffington Post. Others received a lot of traffic from people doing Google searches on various topics.

Twice in the top 10 appeared the saga of Pinky's Pizza — a longtime hangout of the south side of downtown moving to the north side of downtown. Pinky's brought with it a loyal following, as evidenced by with a generous helping of Facebook enthusiasm. They waited more than three years and they wanted their Pinky's fix again.

Here's the 10 most-read stories:

1. tsunami-warning-for-bay-area-coastal-areas March 11  An earthquake ripped Japan, producing a tsunami warning across the Pacific for Northern California coast areas.
2. search-for-boys-who-disappeared-while-rafting Feb. 20
   A rainy Saturday afternoon rafting trip down urban streams coursing through flood control channels turned deadly for two juniors from Las Lomas High, Matthew Miller and Gavin Powell.
3. police-think-missing-teen-might-be-a-runaway  July 21
   Bogdan Presdescu took off with his mother's car on July 10 and disappeared for weeks. The story proceeded along two paths with his mother fearful of foul play and the police thinking the 17-year-old had run away. The police were right: Predescu returned July 31 in OK shape, if a little weak and tired.
4. pinkys-pizza-to-open-a-new-social-network-on-north-broadway Aug. 11 The news emerged that a treasured pizza joint had found a new location after a three-year hiatus.
5. mt-diablo-spared-in-latest-state-park-closure-list May 13 The Devil Mountain's park was left off a state list of facilities being chained and shuttered to save money.
6. paper-hearts-and-other-fun-valentine-crafts Feb. 11  Katie M. Zeigler's piece helped parents design ways to bring out their children's pink and red creativity.
7. parent-imperfect-bin-ladens-death-and-my-kids-16  May 8  Catherine Rauch's article provoked a discussion of how much you share with young children and allow them to watch images of terrorism and revenge
8. two-stabbed-at-car-wash June 28 Two men were arrested for assault with a deadly weapon weapon in a stabbing at a car wash. It was a chapter in a long-term feud, police said.
9. walnut-creek-man-named-in-reported-embezzlement-scheme Aug. 23 A Walnut Creek man who managed a $700 million real estate investment fund filed for bankruptcy protection as a string of former investors lined up demanding to know where their money went.
10. pinky-s-pizza-opens-friday-11-11-11-at-11 Nov. 9  After months of anticipation, Pinky's Pizza had the necessary permits and insurance for its new location and scheduled a grand reopening for 11-11-11.