Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

Parts of Yosemite National Park closed due to wildfire

Sunrise light on a grove of tufa towers emerging from the water of Mono Lake with soft green and dusty-red wild grasses in the foreground, Canada geese in the shallow water with reflections of the rocky towers, and desert hills in the distance.

This post was written by Gabrielle Renteria, 2015 Bookstore Assistant, 2016 Mono Lake Intern, and 2016–2018 Project Specialist.

On Tuesday, July 24, National Park Service officials announced that Yosemite Valley, Wawona, and the Mariposa Grove would close temporarily due to the Ferguson Fire burning just west of the park boundary.

Smoke from the Ferguson Fire in Yosemite Valley. Photo courtesy of Inciweb.

In addition, both the park’s South Entrance (Highway 41) and the Arch Rock Entrance (Highway 140) are closed. The closure took effect Wednesday at noon and is expected to last until at least Sunday, July 29. Tuolumne Meadows, the Tioga Road (Highway 120), and Hetch Hetchy remain open.

The Ferguson Fire began on July 13 and had already caused evacuations of El Portal and Yosemite West, as well as the closure of Glacier Point Road for fire operation staging. As of the last published update the fire is 45,911 acres and 29% contained.

The Ferguson Fire burns west of Yosemite National Park. Photo courtesy of Inciweb.

Due to the closures, Yosemite Area Regional Transit (YARTS) will be operating a modified route. Buses will depart as scheduled with the only destination being Tuolumne Meadows until further notice. Buses will hold in Tuolumne Meadows and return at the scheduled times.

Helpful links:
Yosemite Current Conditions
Road Conditions
Fire Updates