Staff Report –
Glacier Point Road is back open after more than two weeks behind a closure gate, a sign that Yosemite’s Dome Fire is being contained.
The National Park Service says the fire burned through 6,805 acres, but is now 69% contained with 926 personnel still assigned to combat the blaze. Crews shifted to pulling out excess equipment and cut back the number of spike camps in the wilderness, with mule trains still hauling supplies to remote areas.
Weather swung in the firefighters’ favor with rain showers on Sunday and Monday, and high temperatures dropped into 50s with lows down in the 40s at night.
Yosemite National Park remains open and operating normally, although drivers are still being warned to watch out for firefighters along Glacier Point Road. Every trail inside the fire footprint remains closed, including the south and eastbound trails that leave from the road. The Buena Vista Trail is still closed, while the Alder Creek Trail is open north to the Deer Camp Trailhead and the Chilnualna Falls Trail is open east to Chilnualna Fall and Crescent Lake.
The fire started September 15 above Wawona and took the lives of helicopter pilots Ryan Cutter and Greg King on September 20. Full containment is projected for October 17.
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