Ansel Adams Road Access 2023

[nilloc29]

2023 is going to be a busy year on the Bass Lake Ranger District of the Sierra National Forest. Several projects and the January 2023 storms will impact access to trailheads for the Ansel Adams wilderness. The Reds Meadow road closure for reconstruction will also cut off a major access point from the East for the entirety of 2023.

Logging traffic and construction traffic will be much higher than usual on weekdays so please be careful and expect large trucks to cut the corners on sharp turns. The risk of trees falling into the roadway is also very high after rotting for the 3 years since the Creek Fire. Rocks and mud getting onto the roadways are also reoccurring problems especially after thunderstorms.

The heavy snow pack is likely going to delay the opening of cold springs summit on Beasore Road to some time in June. Until then the only way out to the trailheads will be via Minarets road. You can check on the snowpack at that pass with this snotel station: https://wcc.sc.egov.usda.gov/reportGene ... reen=false

Before planning any trips into the Ansel Adams Wilderness from the West side I recommend calling the Bass Lake Ranger Station for updates. Their phone number is (559) 877-2218. Leslie is the most knowledgeable if you have a specific question. It is usually just her and an intern manning the phones. They also sometimes have a USFS representative at the Oakhurst visitor center, (559) 683-4636. They have had issues with recreation.gov issuing permits for trails that are closed, specifically Mammoth trailhead.

1. Chipsealing the entire 50+ mile Minarets road from the Italian Bar junction to the end of the asphalt at the turn for Clover Meadow/Beasore Road. The project is has been contracted out and is scheduled to begin in April or May. Before chipsealing they will be patching potholes and improving drainage. I would expect the project to last into June or July and for there to be short delays to pass the construction areas on weekdays.

2. Norris Creek Bridge replacement. The Norris creek bridge has a contract for replacement in 2023. I would expect it to be complete later in the season. The official detour is to take a right at the turn for Clover Meadow. There is detour signage that will point you to the relatively rough backroad toward Fernandez trailhead. That detour road will be reconstructed as part of the Port Nor project.

3. Dutch Soda Timber Sale. This project is between Mile High Vista and the lower chiquito creek bridge. Hazard trees within 200 feet of the road will be removed. They will try to coordinate this with the chipsealing project but some of it may occur afterward.

4. Port Nor Timber Sale. This project to remove hazard trees is in between the new upper chiquito bridge and the norris creek bridge. It includes the roads to Norris Creek Trailhead and Fernandez Trailhead. There will be tree felling at the trailheads so I would expect some closures. They may try to do most of the work in September and October to minimize recreational and wildlife impact. The road to Norris trailhead was high clearance only in fall 2022 but will be improved for this project.

5. Yellow-Jacket Timber Sale. This project is to remove hazard trees from most of the roads East of the Fernandez trailhead and North of the junction of Minarets road and the road to Piyau Dome trailhead. This project would most likely occur in September and October and may extend or be pushed entirely into 2024. It would impact Clover Meadow trailhead, Isberg trailhead, and the Mammoth trailhead if they plan to open it.

6. Paving Beasore road from 1 mile east of the new upper chiquito bridge to the junction of the Minarets road. There are plans to make that section a two lane paved road. I find it unlikely that the work would occur in 2023 but it is possible.

7. Cassidy bridge and Miller Crossing are likely to be closed again all year. There was catastrophic erosion damage after the Creek fire and the area is considered unsafe until the trails can be rebuilt.

8. The one bit of good news is that in 2022 all of the potholes were patched beyond Kaiser Pass. This will make the road a bit more dangerous though with people speeding. The reservoirs out there will also be in better shape this season due the dramatically increased snowpack.