Re: Tioga Plowing - Finally

I found this on the Daily Report.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tioga Road Opening progress
Status of Tioga Road opening ending on 4/22/08.
Progress report:
April 21, 2008
Tioga Road progress for April 21, 2008
Starting Location: Crane Flat Gate
Ending Location:7.2 miles from Crane Flat Gate (South Fork Bridge)
Distance plowed today:7.2 miles
Snow depth: 4-5 ft.

April 22,2008
Tioga Road opening operations continued yesterday.
Tioga Road progress for April 22, 2008
Starting Location: South Fork Bridge
Ending Location:12.4 miles from Crane Flat Gate
Distance plowed today:5.2 miles
Average Snow depth: 5 ft. 9 (T. Brochini - 4/23/08)

In the same report it mentions that they have plowed to Glacier Point!

Latest Conditions From Tuolumne Back Country Rangers Jeff and Kathi

http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/tm.htm



April 24, 2008

Weather: (April 16 to April 23)
High temperature: 59°F (April 18)
Low temperature: 6°F (April 21)
New Snow: 3 inches (April 22)
Total settled snow depth: 23 inches as of April 24

Ski Conditions and Weather: It has been a cool and windy week at Tuolumne Meadows. A series of storms have passed us by to the north, bringing many prolonged episodes of high winds and clod temperatures. We did get a few inches of new snow on Tuesday, but most of that blew away in the high winds the next day. The snow has been firm to icy in the mornings, softening somewhat in the afternoons. The Tuolumne River and most of its tributaries are now free of ice; in most spots the only way across is to use the summer trail bridges. The latest snow conditions report from the east side is that Highway 120 has been plowed from the road closure gate outside of Lee Vining up to the lower end of Tioga Lake. If all goes according to plan, Caltrans will have the road cleared and open to the public up to the park boundary at Tioga Pass for the opening day of fishing season on April 26. On our west side, skiers coming up the Snow Creek trail report that the snow line begins just above the summer trail bridge, which is about 1/2 mile above the top of the switchbacks; everything below that level has melted out. The latest report from the west end of the Tioga Road is that plow crews have cleared the first 12 miles of road east from Crane Flat.

This link shows how far they have plowed from the West Side


http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&hl=en&geocode=4059252119712363500,37.845290,-119.609151%3B13447064207315322169,37.760910,-119.801813&saddr=37.84829,-119.622574&daddr=CA-120%2FTioga+Pass+Rd+%4037.760910,+-119.801813&mra=dme&mrcr=0&mrsp=0&sz=11&sll=37.777228,-119.773464&sspn=0.377191,0.683212&ie=UTF8&ll=37.782112,-119.586868&spn=0.754334,1.366425&z=10

They are making great progress.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tioga Road Status report as of April 28, 2008
Tioga Road Opening operations continued on Saturday 4/26/2008.
Tioga Road Progress for April 28, 2008: Ending location 28 miles from Crane Flat Gate (Olmstead Point Parking Lot).
Average snow depth 6 feet.

Glacier Point Road update:
Glacier Point road proposed opening date will be Friday May 2nd, 2008. ( pending any weather conditions or
operational issues).
Lower Mariposa Grove Road proposed opening date will be Saturday April 25, 2008 ( With weight restrictions on
road).

Hey AlpenGlühen,

Do you have the GPS cordinates for the Olmstead Point Parking Lot??

I liked seeing how far they plowed on the map!

Thanks!

---

Dan

Dan-O wrote:

> Hey AlpenGlühen,
>
> Do you have the GPS cordinates for the Olmstead Point Parking
> Lot??
>
> I liked seeing how far they plowed on the map!
>
> Thanks!
>

{{location dms|37|48|38.88397610518098|N|119|29|6.803855895996094|W}}

Tioga Road opening operations continued Tuesday 4/29/09
Tioga Road progress for April 29, 2008:
Ending Location: 32 miles from Crane Flat Gate (Pywiak Dome/Spring Hill).
Average Snow Depth: 3 Feet (one small bare spot adjacent to Tenaya Lake).

I think Sping Hiill is about here:

so when do you think Tamarack flat campground will open?

why do they plow east to west? wouldn't it be easier to start at the west end where there is presumably less snow and the plow toward the east over time, giving the thicker snow time to melt down more?

Nothing will open on 120 from Crane Flat to the Tioga Pass until all work has been done on the snow removal and any needed repairs have been completed.

The plowing does start on the west side and proceed toward the east. The plowing at the Tioga entrance station probably doesn't go very far.

---

Old Dude

cthenn2 wrote:

> so when do you think Tamarack flat campground will open?

It'll probably be a while. The snow has to melt and the ground has to dry before they'll open it.

May 1: Ending location 34.5 miles from crane flat in the ghost forest area.

Average snow depth: 5 feet.

The avalanche team wanted all crews west of Olmsted by 1 PM.

Gates will be placed at walker party on Friday to allow visitor access to this point for the week end, after a hazard tree assessment is completed.