Re: Glacier Point Road in Yosemite National Park Closed for the Season

Glacier Point Road in Yosemite National Park Closed for the Season
Date: November 23, 2011

Tioga Road Still Closed, To be Assessed Over the Weekend

The Glacier Point Road in Yosemite National Park is closed for the season due to ice and snow. The road is currently closed at the Chinquapin and Wawona Road (Highway 41) junction, and will open to Badger Pass once the ski area becomes open. The Tioga Road remains closed at this time due to ice and snow. A winter storm is expected in the Yosemite region Thursday evening and into Friday morning. Over the weekend, the road will be reassessed and there is a slight possibility it will reopen. If the road reopens, the park will issue a news release.

All roads within the Yosemite National Park are subject to chain control or temporary closures due to hazardous driving conditions. Tire chains may be required at any time during the fall and winter season. It is strongly recommended that all motorists carry tire chains while driving in the park during the fall and winter months.

For updated 24-hour road and weather conditions for Yosemite National Park, please call 209-372-0200.

Never understood the reasoning of shutting down all of Glacier Point Road in the late Fall until Badger Pass ski area opens for the season.

In the springtime the closure is understandable so Badger Pass can be used as a staging area for the snow removal equipment and the park crews can move about the road unfettered getting the road ready for the summer season. But the late Fall closure of all the road?

At least keep it open through Badger Pass, regardless if the Badger Pass ski area is operational.

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plawrence
Never understood the reasoning of shutting down all of Glacier Point Road in the late Fall until Badger Pass ski area opens for the season.

In the springtime the closure is understandable so Badger Pass can be used as a staging area for the snow removal equipment and the park crews can move about the road unfettered getting the road ready for the summer season. But the late Fall closure of all the road?

At least keep it open through Badger Pass, regardless if the Badger Pass ski area is operational.

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I agree with you. But I think that their rationale is that until the Badger Pass Ski Area parking lot is set up, there may be no appropriate place for you to pull over and park. And they won't be sanding and plowing that long hill when it needs it, nor is there likely to be cell phone service if you get in trouble. Once the ski area opens, there is plenty of traffic. I suppose that they have had trouble in the past with flatlanders on that road. Ultimately, it's just a road maintenance question. Only a few crackpots like you and me want to go there right now....

It makes sense NOW because Badger Pass opens Dec. 16th. (cond permitting)
However, I think it's goofy that you cannot park at BP at
ANY other time of the year. Probably they just had too
much issue with too many people poking around the ski area.
No parking along GP road after Oct. 15th includes BP.
Just hike the old road though. 2.5 miles. 1200ft. That's what I be doing tmr.

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chick-on
It makes sense NOW because Badger Pass opens Dec. 16th. (cond permitting)
However, I think it's goofy that you cannot park at BP at
ANY other time of the year. Probably they just had too
much issue with too many people poking around the ski area.
No parking along GP road after Oct. 15th includes BP.
Just hike the old road though. 2.5 miles. 1200ft. That's what I be doing tmr.

Old Wawona road?

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hotrod4x5

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chick-on

It makes sense NOW because Badger Pass opens Dec. 16th. (cond permitting)
However, I think it's goofy that you cannot park at BP at
ANY other time of the year. Probably they just had too
much issue with too many people poking around the ski area.
No parking along GP road after Oct. 15th includes BP.
Just hike the old road though. 2.5 miles. 1200ft. That's what I be doing tmr.

Old Wawona road?

I think he is referring to the Old Glacier Point Road that intersects with the new road and the Wawona Road at the Chinquapin Junction behind the comfort station (rest rooms).

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plawrence

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hotrod4x5

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chick-on

It makes sense NOW because Badger Pass opens Dec. 16th. (cond permitting)
However, I think it's goofy that you cannot park at BP at
ANY other time of the year. Probably they just had too
much issue with too many people poking around the ski area.
No parking along GP road after Oct. 15th includes BP.
Just hike the old road though. 2.5 miles. 1200ft. That's what I be doing tmr.

Old Wawona road?

I think he is referring to the Old Glacier Point Road that intersects with the new road and the Wawona Road at the Chinquapin Junction behind the comfort station (rest rooms).

Cool map, are there that many houses at Yosemite West? That is a LOT of lots on that map.

There are 294 lots in Yosemite West and I think that around 1/3 - 1/2 of them have houses on them. I can't recall the exact number but it keeps changing since the building moratorium was lifted a few years ago.

Ok. So that statement about not parking at Badger Pass was b/c
I explicitly called last year to see if could park there... and
they said no. So... had to hike from Chinquapin ...
This sign would lead one to believe otherwise though:

But then there is the "road closed/admin traffic/yadda yadda yadda" sign right
at the entrance to Badger Pass... so go figure. That sign at BP was there on
Oct. 15th this year for sure. I guess I'll just call again next year to see
if things have changed. Either they like to make things confusing or ....

Why do they close Glacier Point? Last week on the 41 we saw snow plows everyday driving up and down the 41 which was clear. I wondered why they couldnt be plowing Glacier Point. Still one of the best views in the park.

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madmxe
I wondered why they couldnt be plowing Glacier Point.

Money and icing problems with the switch backs.

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eeek

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madmxe
I wondered why they couldnt be plowing Glacier Point.

Money and icing problems with the switch backs.

It's plowed...

Friday near Summit Meadow:


but, yeah... the switchbacks are a huge problem...

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chick-on

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eeek

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madmxe
I wondered why they couldnt be plowing Glacier Point.

Money and icing problems with the switch backs.

It's plowed...
...
but, yeah... the switchbacks are a huge problem...

Agree about icing on the switchbacks at the end of the road. Would be very treacherous driving.

While icing is now a constant concerning on ANY of the park roads this time of year, it could be manageable – for the time being – to keep Glacier Point plowed and opened up to the Washburn Point parking lot, or at the very least, up to the Taft Point/Sentinel Dome trailheads pullout.

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plawrence
. . . snip . . .
While icing is now a constant concerning on ANY of the park roads this time of year, it could be manageable – for the time being – to keep Glacier Point plowed and opened up to the Washburn Point parking lot, or at the very least, up to the Taft Point/Sentinel Dome trailheads pullout.

But then you wouldn't be able to X-country sky on the road!?

That might be part of the reason it's closed

expensive to keep clear
icy road on the switchbacks + flatlander drivers in winter = lots of accidents ( those are scary enough in summer! I've heard stories about cars wrapped around trees )
groomed road for x-country skying is another winter sporting activity they can offer out of BP ( x-country skying to Glacier point and spending the night in the snack bar is a big attraction for some )



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/29/2011 12:48AM by qumqats.

Alternate crosscountry ski routes to Glacier Point from Badger Pass could be developed and maintained if need be.

But in this thread, I'm not proposing that Glacier Point Road necessarily remain open all winter long to the Taft Point/Sentinel Dome Trailhead, let alone to the Washburn Point Parking Lot (though I have suggested that in the past).

What I am suggesting in this thread is just that until the real heavy snows do arrive (making the road suitable for crosscountry skiing and such, that the Park Service keeps the road open as far as it's practical, which I suggested could be as far as the Taft Point/Sentinel Dome trailhead or even the Washburn Point parking lot.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 11/29/2011 10:56PM by plawrence.

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plawrence
Alternate crosscountry ski routes to Glacier Point from Badger Pass could be developed and maintained if need be.

And you'll be supplying the money for this?

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eeek

And you'll be supplying the money for this?

No, the Yosemite Conservancy will.

They have more money than they know what to do with. It would be a worthy endeavor for them to take on. (A lot more worthy, IME, than their Tenaya Lake "restoration" project.)

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plawrence

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eeek

And you'll be supplying the money for this?

No, the Yosemite Conservancy will.

No, it won't. They don't want the road open in winter and neither does NPS.

There's also the fact that the proposed "Alternate crosscountry ski routes to Glacier Point from Badger Pass" don't have a non-wilderness corridor through which the grooming machines could traverse.

(Edit: However, I do think the road, and overnight parking, should remain open between Chinquapin and Badger Pass prior to the downhill ski resort opening (and after its closing in the spring))



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/29/2011 10:27PM by ttilley.

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eeek

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plawrence

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eeek

And you'll be supplying the money for this?

No, the Yosemite Conservancy will.

No, it won't. They don't want the road open in winter and neither does NPS.

Well it's obvious that the Park Service likes it just how it is now. But how do you know what the Yosemite Conservancy's position would be? Have you asked them? Have they stated it publicly somewhere?

My comment above is more about stating the fact that through the Yosemite Conservancy fundraising efforts, there's more than enough money to do such a project if there were any desire to do so. I don't disagree with you that the Park Service has no desire for such a project though. But the issue isn't about the money.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/29/2011 11:08PM by plawrence.

It may be about the money to keep the road plowed and open + rangers payroll patrolling the road and handling the increased # of accidents from the turions on the road + loss of revenue at BP from the loss of the x-country sking.

I'd also guess "public safety" is a factor from the perspective of the rangers.

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qumqats

I'd also guess "public safety" is a factor from the perspective of the rangers.

I think that public safety AND wildlife safety are probably the two most important factors in deciding when Glacier Point Road should be shutdown, though other considerations may creep into the decision making process.

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plawrence
But how do you know what the Yosemite Conservancy's position would be? Have you asked them? Have they stated it publicly somewhere?

I just know. (Here's a hint: who is the head of the Conservancy?)

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eeek

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plawrence
But how do you know what the Yosemite Conservancy's position would be? Have you asked them? Have they stated it publicly somewhere?

I just know. (Here's a hint: who is the head of the Conservancy?)

Oh I wanna guess! ......Is it you?

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riverkat

Oh I wanna guess! ......Is it you?

The current president of the Yosemite Conservancy is Mike Tollefson, a former NPS Park Superintendent of Yosemite.

(Still, I'm not sure what Tollefson's personal view of keeping Glacier Point Road open longer is.)

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I am guessing that they have weighed the pros and cons of keeping it open in winter or longer, and decided against it... long ago. The concessionaire makes good money renting cross country equipment and without the road, that market would be severely cut. Perhaps an alternate route could be established, but not without great expense, and then still, could they use the machine to groom? Doubtful.