Trip Report, April 8

Ryan Reynolds of West Mineral King took a trip as far as Silver City (as far as he could make it!) and encountered quite a bit of snow. 

He sent a photo and brief video of his friend enjoying a romp in the snowfall.

Road Trip, April 3, 2020

(This was before this week's anticipated snow storm!  A video of highlights of this trip is up on our Facebook page, here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MineralKing)

"Friday, the snow level was a lot higher than the previous weekend. I believe the snow line started about the ranger housing near Atwell Mill. It was patchy up to Silver City. Most of the way up to Sunset Point, there was snow. And very patchy from Sunset Point to the cattle guard at Faculty Flats. Snow depth from the cattle guard to about the Timber Gap parking varied from about 2ft to 4+ feet. From the Timber Gap parking area to the bridge, again, very patchy with snow drifts as deep as 3 feet. The snow is melting very quickly, but still offers a very beautiful scenery as well as some snowshoeing. Hopefully this week brings some more much needed snow! Enjoy"

Photo by Bruno Stephen

Mineral King Road Gate Information

The latest, as of today, March 30, 2020:

At present we are working through our plans to discuss potential revisions to opening dates. In this dynamic situation, it is not possible to forecast at present. We will let you know as we get closer and revise our schedule.

Thanks,

Dave Fox
Sequoia District Ranger
559-565-3710 office
559-565-3195 24 hour emergency

Sequoia Kings Canyon Press Release

National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks News Release For Immediate Release                                Contact: Sintia Kawasaki-Yee, Public Information Officer Media Contact: (559) 679-2866 E-mail: seki_public_affairs@nps.gov   Reference Number: 8553-2006 Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are Further Modifying Operations to Implement Local Health Guidance SEQUOIA AND KINGS CANYON NATIONAL PARKS, California March 25, 2020– Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks is announcing additional modifications to operations in response to guidance from the Tulare County Department of Public Health. The health and safety of our visitors, employees, volunteers, and partners is our number one priority. The National Park Service is working servicewide with federal, state, and local authorities to closely monitor the COVID-19 pandemic.    Effective immediately, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks will be closed to all park visitors until further notice. California Highway 180 will remain open for pass-through traffic to access Giant Sequoia National Monument and private property. All other roads and parking facilities are temporarily closed.     We will notify the public when we resume full operations and provide updates on our website www.nps.gov/seki and social media channels @SequoiaKingsNPS.      We encourage visitors to use a variety of available tools and resources in preparation for future visits and to enjoy the parks from afar. The official Sequoia & Kings Canyon app is available for free and can be downloaded by searching for “NPS Sequoia & Kings” in the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store. Our park website www.nps.gov/seki allows you to download the park newspaper, plan a trip, enjoy snowy vistas from our webcam, explore natural soundscapes across the elevations of these parks, and browse our photo gallery. If you’d like to speak with a park ranger to help you with future trip-planning or request park information by mail, call our main park line 559-565-3341 (dial 0) during business hours.     For information about Sequoia Parks Conservancy services including Pear Lake Ski Hut and Crystal Cave please visit www.sequoiaparksconservancy.org. For information about lodging, restaurants, and markets managed by Delaware North Companies please visit www.visitsequoia.com.   - NPS - About Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks These two parks, which lie side by side in the southern Sierra Nevada in Central California, preserve prime examples of nature’s size, beauty, and diversity. Nearly 2 million visitors from across the U.S. and the world visit these parks to see the world’s largest trees (by volume), grand mountains, rugged foothills, deep canyons, vast caverns, the highest point in the lower 48 states, and more. Learn more at http://www.nps.gov/seki. - ### - Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks  47050 Generals Highway Three Rivers, CA 93271 559-565-3341 | www.nps.gov/seki

COVID-19 - Cooperator Update – Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks - 3-22-20

From: <SEKI_Public_Affairs@nps.gov>

Date: March 22, 2020 at 8:12:07 AM PDT

Subject: COVID-19 - Cooperator Update – Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks - 3-22-20

Hello, 

You are getting this e-mail because Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks staff have identified you and / or your organization as having interests with or inside the parks.  

With the dynamic nature of this pandemic, we want to keep you informed to the best of our ability so that you too can inform your stakeholders. 

How This Is Set-up: 

• If you would like to be removed from this list, please reply to this address and we will remove you. 
• If there are others in your organization that you would be preferred to be added, please let us know.  
• We have intentionally bcc'ed addresses, so we ask that you check with your organization first to see if someone has gotten our messages that you may be thinking of. 
• We will send out updates as conditions change or the situation warrants. So you may not see a message daily, that doesn't mean we've forgotten about you.   

 

Here is the update for March 22, 2020. 

Key Messages: 

• No entrance station or camping fees are being collected. 
• All areas of the parks are currently closed, except for South Fork, North Fork and Mineral King Road in Sequoia NP and Redwood Canyon in Kings Canyon NP as weather allows. 
• All concessions lodges, restaurants, gift shops, and markets are closed. 
• All campgrounds are closed except South Fork. Private campgrounds may be available in gateway communities. 
• The road between the parks is closed as is typical this time of year. 
• No Ranger programs are being offered. 
• We expect winter conditions to continue, and chains may be required at any time. 

 Current Situation:   

Sequoia: 

The Generals Highway is closed from the entrance of Sequoia National Park (Ash Mountain) to Quail Flat with barricades and signs at the Ash Mountain Entrance Station. Closure is being enforced with law enforcement rangers.

 

Other front-country areas including South Fork, North Fork, and Mineral King Road are open and are being monitored by parks' staff.  

Kings Canyon: 

Highway 180 remains open with side roads off of 180 closed with barricades and signage. These include Grant Grove Village, Big Stump Picnic Area, Grant Tree Road, and the Admin access road.  

The Generals Highway is open from Highway 180 to Quail Flat.   

 

Questions? 

We are working to develop a form where you can submit questions. Please be patient with us a we work on this. We will send it out as soon as we are able. In the mean time, please send all questions to this e-mail address.  

 

Important Links: 

Main Parks' Website - https://www.nps.gov/seki/index.htm 

Current Parks Condition  Website -  https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/conditions.htm 

Oak Grove Bridge

National Park Service and County of Tulare Are Partners in Mineral King Road Improvement, Oak Grove Bridge Renovation
by John Elliott

During a recent visit to Three Rivers, Kuyler Crocker, county supervisor for District 1, updated plans for the 2020s to see some huge investment being made in eastern Tulare County. Some of that untold millions of dollars will be spent right here in Three Rivers as first Sequoia National Park rehabs its portion of the Mineral King Road from the park boundary at Lookout Point to the eastern terminus of the roadway in Mineral King.

That’s more than 13 miles of one of the most breathtaking and historically significant roads in the Sierra Nevada region. The preliminary studies and survey work for that project have already been completed and reconstruction is expected to begin in 2020.

The National Park Service’s road work will pave the way for the rehabilitation of the historic Oak Grove Bridge, built in 1923. Bids on that work are expected to go out before the end of 2020.

Then it’s Tulare County’s turn to garner the funding to complete the 12-mile portion of Mineral King Road that is the County’s responsibility. As fortune would have it, the County’s portion includes the historic Oak Grove Bridge and is the only vehicle access to the Mineral King area of Sequoia National Park and its unique Mineral King Road Cultural Landscape District.

To read the full story, click here.

(Posted by permission of https://3riversnews.com.)

Anyone Going Up to Mineral King?

Is anyone going up on Dec 20, 21, 22nd? Dan needs to check the Silver City webcam and might need a snowmobile ride if there is too much snow on the road.

If you can help, please contact Dan directly at Daniel@illrepute.com.

Thank you!
Sandra Kindred