
Construction contractors have dug down 50 feet and are working around the clock to repair and reopen the Big Oak Flat road/NPS
A wet winter has brought back to life a spring that is being blamed for saturating soils and causing the Big Oak Flat Road in Yosemite National Park to slide downhill, creating a more-than-200-foot problem engineers are working to fix.
As a result of the slide, the Big Oak Flat road from Crane Flat to Foresta Junction has been unsafe for vehicular travel and closed for repairs since late February. There is no estimated date for the road to reopen, park staff said Wednesday.
Work crews are working around the clock, as weather permits, to install drainage and erosion controls and to repair the road. As of Wednesday, crews had dug down 50 feet to the spring and were installing French drains for drainage control. More drains are to be installed later this week.
Visitors are welcome to visit Yosemite National Park via the Big Oak Flat entrance. The park has waived the entrance fee for all vehicles entering via the Big Oak Flat Entrance Station. Visitors entering the park via Highway 120 can enjoy a wide variety of activities, including camping at Hodgdon Meadow Campground, snowshoeing and Nordic Skiing from Crane Flat, and hiking in the Merced and Tuolumne Groves of Giant Sequoias. Park entrance fees still apply to all visitors entering the park via the Arch Rock and South Entrance Stations.
Highway 140 (El Portal Road) and Highway 41 (Wawona Road) are open and clear for all vehicular traffic to access Yosemite Valley, the Yosemite Ski and Snowboard Area, and Wawona. Visitors traveling to and from Yosemite National Park are urged to drive with caution and be aware of rocks and debris on the roadway.
For updated 24-hour road and weather conditions for Yosemite National Park, please call 209-372-0200, press 1 and press 1 again.
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