Daily Report – Yosemite National Park Friday, August 30, 2024

Daily Report – Yosemite National Park
Friday, August 30, 2024

Yosemite National Park Zone Forecast
Today: Sunny. Highs 66 to 80. Southeast winds up to 10 mph shifting to the southwest in the afternoon.
Tonight: Mostly clear. Lows 43 to 59. Northwest winds up to 5 mph shifting to the east after midnight.
Tomorrow: Sunny. Highs 65 to 79. East winds up to 10 mph shifting to the southwest in the afternoon.

Happy Isles Hours 8/30 & 9/2
On both Friday 8/30 and Monday 9/2, Happy Isles Art & Nature Center will close early at 2pm. We will resume regular hours of operation (9am – 4pm) on Tuesday 9/3. (L.Spielman‑Dell Isola)
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Obata Art Weekend Aug 30 – Sept 1
Celebrate the work and legacy of Chiura Obata, a Japanese American artist most celebrated for his stunning portrayals of Yosemite’s high country. Attend free art workshops, demos, ranger programs, screen printing, and more! For a schedule of event times and locations, stop by a visitor center, visit go.nps.gov/SPEV, or view the events calendar on the NPS App. Registration for art workshops and demonstrations are required and can be viewed at www.yosemite.org/obata-art-weekend-2024. (C. Lau)

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RECENT NEWS

El Capitan Picnic Area Traffic Control
Trucks will be staging and loading out of the El Capitan Removal Action site between 7AM-11AM starting 8/29. The left lane of Northside Drive will be closed approaching the El Capitan Picnic Area throughout work week, traffic control will be removed for weekends. (M. Calm)
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Glacier Point Road Delays (Sept. 4-20, 2024)
Crews will begin next Wednesday, Sept. 4th, addressing some drainage issues along the Glacier Point Road. So as part of this work there will be alternating single lane traffic control with up to 15-minute delays between 6AM and 8PM, Monday thru Friday. Please be patient, drive safe and aware of the additional time you will need to your destination. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Michael Pieper (209) 200-1131. (M.Pieper)
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Now Hiring Wilderness Patrol Nordic Volunteers
Starting to wonder how to spend your winter season? Ever wanted to work with NPS at Badger Pass over the winter? Learn the ways of the Yosemite Wilderness Ranger! Join this Volunteers-in-Parks opportunity for the winter season! Work with Wilderness patrol staff to issue backcountry wilderness permits, patrol ski trails, conduct snow surveys, assist and educate visitors, and respond to emergencies. Gain valuable Wilderness snow travel and winter rescue experience. Volunteers will work from approximately early December through early April. Park housing is available. Experience skiing and WFR/EMT certification is preferred but not required. If interested in this opportunity, please send a resume that includes details of your wilderness travel, winter skills, and customer service/public speaking experience to Lisa_Kahn@nps.gov. (L.Kahn)
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Merced Grove closed for restoration
Giant sequoias are adapted to frequent, low-intensity fire and depend on fire for reproduction. Frequent fires reduce fire intensity by thinning the forest of small and unhealthy trees and reducing the accumulation of dead branches and trees. But over the past century, fires were suppressed, and drought and insects killed millions of trees in Yosemite. In the Merced Grove, there is limited sequoia regeneration and fuel loading has increased to dangerous levels. Currently, we cannot safely introduce fire without first mechanically removing fuels first. Since 2020, wildfires have killed almost 20% of mature giant sequoias across their range due to extreme fuel loading, and we aim to prevent that outcome in the Merced Grove. Therefore, we are removing small diameter conifers, trees posing a hazard to firefighters and containment lines, and dead and downed wood to reduce wildfire risk to the sequoias and firefighters as preparation for the first prescribed fire in and around the grove. The grove will be closed for ~2 months during the restoration for visitor and worker safety. Please contact garrett_dickman@nps.gov with questions or for access. (G. Dickman)
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Library Closed
The Research Library is closed through mid-September. For inquiries, email yose_library@nps.gov or yose_archives@nps.gov. (V. Sanchez)
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Obata Special Exhibit Aug 26-31!
Stop by the Yosemite Museum (Yosemite Village) for Obata’s Yosemite: His Legacy. Our Future. This special exhibit showcases original Obata pieces in Yosemite’s collection alongside the works of local students from Yosemite High School and Obata Art Weekend workshop artists. The exhibit is open during normal Museum hours, 10am-5pm. (C. Lau)
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Film Screening: Obata’s Yosemite on Sat 8/31.
Join us as we celebrate the extraordinary life of Japanese American artist Chiura Obata, which included his incredible artistic talent such as the watercolor and woodblock prints of Yosemite and his writings on “Great Nature.” This will play in the Yosemite Theater on Saturday, August 31, every half hour, starting at 9:30am with the last showing at 3:30pm. “Spirit of Yosemite” will alternate with this film and will play on the hour starting at 10am. (C. Lau)
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Happy Isles Art & Nature Center Operating Hours
For the remainder of the season, Happy Isles Art & Nature Center will only be open Monday through Friday from 9am – 4pm. The building will be closed on Saturdays and Sundays. (L. Spielman‑Dell Isola)
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Yosemite’s 14th Annual Volunteer Awards (2024)
Do you have a volunteer, intern, or volunteer supervisor you have been eager to recognize for their talent, skills, and interests during their time with us in Yosemite National Park? We need your help in helping to acknowledge them! We ask that you take a few minutes fill out this year’s nomination form for your favorite volunteers. Any park employee, intern, volunteer, partner, or visitor can submit a nomination. Nominations are due by midnight on Tuesday, September 10th. An online version could be found here: 2024YOSEvolunteerAwardsNominationForm.docx Feel free to contact yose_volunteers@nps.gov with any questions! (S. Hernandez)
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Yosemite Conservancy Winter Season Position – Apply Now!
Do you love the crisp winter season in Yosemite Valley? Enjoy working with small teams, always looking for something to improve with attention to detail? Do you have a strong social battery full of positivity and information about Yosemite? Join us for a winter season in the Valley Welcome Center and Exploration Center! Apply with the link below or Yosemite.org/careers https://yosemite-conservancy.breezy.hr/p/378ff6495f7a
(K. Bouchard)

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ONGOING PROJECTS

Forestry on Tioga Road: Traffic Delays Mon-Thu
Beginning August 26th, Mather Forestry will be working along the Tioga Road between White Wolf and Olmsted Point. Work will take place Mondays through Thursdays, 7:30am to 4:30pm. Expect traffic delays. The work will last several weeks. (J. Brown)
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Valley Forestry Through September
Valley Forestry will be performing residential tree trimming and hazard removal in Old El Portal, Rancheria and Yosemite Valley through the end of September. Workers will be entering yards for tree inspection and trimming. Email Brian_See@nps.gov for more information or work requests. (B. See)
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El Capitan Removal Action
An environmental cleanup contractor will be implementing the El Capitan NTCRA 7/29-11/8. The El Capitan site includes 13 Decision-Units (DUs) to be excavated for removal of buried waste. This former waste disposal area was used up until the 1930’s, with waste mainly coming from Yosemite Valley hotel/campground operations in the early part of the 20th century. The DUs are located in various depressions along the Merced River and slaughterhouse meadow. Upon a satisfactory confirmation testing of these locations, the contractor will be restoring the DUs to a natural grade.

Impacts: The Valley Loop trail will be barricaded at the west end of the project site and at the entrance to the project site south of the El Capitan picnic area. A trail detour is available to hikers by walking north of the project site. The contractor will also be periodically closing the left-hand lane of Northside Drive for approximately 2500 feet west of and in front of the El Capitan picnic area in order to stage trucks for off hauling of waste/soil from the site. Please contact Moshe Calm with any questions/concerns. (C. Moshe)
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Ackerson Meadow Restoration Project
Earth-moving for final phase of the Ackerson Meadow Restoration Project on Evergreen Road has begun. Operations are planned through October 31. Please watch for trucks on roads in the area.

The goal is to eliminate excess soil erosion, slow water loss, and reverse loss of water-loving plants and animals, especially rare/endangered species. To do this, the project team will completely fill the century-old human-caused erosion gully that is >3 miles long, and up to 14’ deep by 100’ wide. Phase 1 of the project was a huge success protecting and rewetting 78 acres of vital wetland habitat, by completing earth-moving of nearly 60,000cy of material between Aug 14 and Nov 9, 2023, and planting over 127,000 wetland container plants on the restored surface this spring. Though smaller in extent, Phase 2 requires the placement of nearly 100,000cy of combined mineral soil and woodchips. More than 290,000 container plants will be installed in May 2025 to complete the restoration project. The project is a partnership of American Rivers, Stanislaus National Forest, Yosemite Conservancy, and Yosemite National Park. Learn more at: https://go.nps.gov/ackerson, or https://youtu.be/3u9TpTTcArk. For questions, contact tim_kuhn@nps.gov. (T. Kuhn)
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Mist Trail Repair July 1st – October 31st, 2024
The Lower Mist Trail – from the John Muir Trail (JMT) junction (just uphill from the Vernal Fall Footbridge) to the top of Vernal Fall – will be closed M-TH between 7:00am and 3:30pm from 7/1/24 – 10/31/24 (subject to change).
The trail will remain open Fridays, weekends and holidays. It is expected to be open overnight, however there may be certain days when trail crew is not able to make it safe to open overnight. In that case, the gates will remain closed, and signs will be posted at the two closure gates that the trail is closed.
Hikers and backpackers headed to Half Dome and points beyond from the trailhead at Happy Isles may hike uphill on the Mist Trail if they reach the Mist Trail/JMT junction by 7:00am, Monday through Thursday. Otherwise, they must hike the JMT. (W. Weaver)
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Historic Preservation Crew – Post Office
The Yosemite Historic Preservation Crew is performing stabilization work on the Yosemite Valley Post Office. The project will repair damaged and broken windows, repair cracks in the masonry, and perform preservation carpentry on log elements. There will be no impact on Post Office operations. Please direct all questions to Kevin Brothers (kevin_brothers@nps.gov). (K. Brothers)
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Caltrans Announces Improvement Project on State Route 140: Cathey’s Valley to Mariposa
On Monday, April 29, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) will begin a maintenance project to improve State Route 140 (SR-140) between Cathey’s Valley and the town of Mariposa. Work will include pavement preservation with hot-mix asphalt, and removal and installation of guardrails, culverts, dikes, shoulder backing, signage, and corner curb ramps at seven intersections. Crews will work night shifts for approximately 170 working days, Sunday through Thursday, with alternating lane closures on eastbound and westbound SR-140. Project completion is expected in December 2024. The contractor’s work schedule is subject to change due to traffic incidents, weather, availability of equipment and materials, and construction-related issues. Please drive carefully and watch for laborers and equipment in roadways. (J. Donovan)
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Wawona Hotel Roof Replacement Project
The Wawona re-roofing project is underway and the Contractor, Southwest Property Management, continues to work at the hotel phasing demolition and reroofing in sections progressively. Without unforeseen discoveries, the completion should occur in the fall of this year. Contact Steve Dunakoskie, YOSE SPPM Project Manager, for more information. (S. Dunakoskie)
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Dispatch Expansion Project
The Dispatch Expansion project is converting most of the El Portal Warehouse lobby into additional office space for the Emergency Communications (Dispatch) Center. The lobby stairs are no longer walled off, but the stairwell and adjacent entrance will periodically need to be temporarily closed as work dictates. When the stairs and entryway are blocked off, Warehouse occupants and visitors will need to use alternate means of ingress/egress. Do not enter through the RMS building unless you work there. To access the Dispatch office area, follow the signs in through the Trails area door just inside the fence/gate. Contact Alyssa Sharp, YOSE Project Manager, for more information. (M. Vantzelfden)
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Vegetation Removal and Maintenance Work in Wawona
PG&E contractors from Arborworks will be conducting vegetation removal and maintenance work in the Wawona residential area. Some traffic control may be necessary. This work will occur during a Tuesday to Friday schedule until August 30. (A. Kunz)