Daily Report – Yosemite National Park Thursday, September 5, 2024

Daily Report – Yosemite National Park
Thursday, September 5, 2024

Yosemite National Park Zone Forecast
Today: Sunny. Highs 69 to 83. Southeast winds up to 10 mph shifting to the southwest in the afternoon.
Tonight: Mostly clear. Lows 45 to 63. North winds up to 10 mph shifting to the east after midnight.
Tomorrow: Sunny. Highs 67 to 83. Southeast winds up to 10 mph shifting to the southwest in the afternoon.

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PG&E Planned Power Outage Wednesday, September 11
PG&E planned power outage at the Powerhouse Substation from 0800-1600 Wednesday, 11 Sept. This outage will affect all of Yosemite Valley. PG&E is also conducting work at the Indian Flat Substation that will affect Chinquapin, Badger, and Yosemite West; there is a possibility that this work will affect El Portal power. There will not be any backup power generation provided during this outage other than what currently exists. (M. Trumm)
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Public Meetings Schedule: Visitor Access Management Draft Plan
Yosemite National Park is pleased to share that the Visitor Access Management Draft Plan and Environmental Assessment (EA) is available for public comment at the project website parkplanning.nps.gov/YosemiteVisitorAccess.
A virtual public meeting was held on August 22, 2024 and the recording from that meeting is available. This recording
will give you an overview of the planning process and walk you through the high-level components of the draft plan and
environmental assessment. The recording is approximately one-hour and 15 minutes.

You can learn more about the plan and its contents by viewing a story map and downloading a copy of the plan on the
project website at parkplanning.nps.gov/YosemiteVisitorAccess.

In addition to the on-line materials, we invite you to join us for one of five public meetings to be held the week of
September 9, 2024. These are open house style meetings that will provide you an opportunity to discuss the plan and
environmental assessment with park staff and planners. Meetings will be held in the following locations:
September 9, 2024 – Mammoth Lakes Community Center, Mammoth Lakes, CA
September 10, 2024 – Groveland Community Resilience Center, Groveland, CA
September 11, 2024 – Mariposa County Government Center, Mariposa, CA
September 12, 2024 – Oakhurst Community Center, Oakhurst, CA
September 13, 2024 – Yosemite Valley Auditorium, Yosemite, CA
For more information about these public meetings, including times and locations, please visit the Meeting Notices page
on the project website. Public comments are being accepted via the project website at the “Open for Comment” link. The comment period will
be open through September 30, 2024. (K. Dunbar-Kari)
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Museum and Media Branch welcomes Mary Orms as a Great Basin Institute Participatory Exhibit Specialist
Mary writes: I am very excited to begin working in Yosemite! I grew up in small towns in the Hill Country of central Texas and attended the University of Texas, where I earned a bachelor’s degree in History and Religious Studies. In college, I loved learning about the history of the American West and the religious undertones present in American ideals and institutions. I see my career in public history, and specifically in museums, as an opportunity for connection and societal betterment. My professional goals are centered around increasing access and engagement with public lands and cultural institutions, especially among presently underserved populations. Right now, I am especially curious about the potential for inclusive design in museum spaces. In my personal life, I am focused on engaging fully with the moment around me. I enjoy hiking, backpacking, canoeing and practicing yoga, as well as cooking, baking, and visiting museums and parks. This position with GBI will take me the farthest from Texas that I’ve ever lived, and I can’t wait to get out there and explore the Sierras. Mary begins mid-October. (B. Latanich)
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Valley Forestry on Northside Drive Friday- Expect Delays
Valley Forestry will be working along Northside Drive between Ranger Y and Devils Elbow on Friday 9/6. Anticipate traffic holds of fifteen minutes or less. Thanks for your patience. (B. See)
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RECENT NEWS

Happy Isles Hours
Happy Isles Art & Nature Center will resume regular hours of operation (9am – 4pm) on Tuesday 9/3. (L.Spielman‑Dell Isola)
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Community Farmer’s Market
Don’t forget to swing by for the Community Farmer’s Market Thursday, September 05 from 4:30p-6:30p located behind the Wellness Center near Curry Village. The Farmer’s Markets are open to all park partners and community members and run through October – come by before the end of season and say a thanks to our Farmers for providing access to fresh and healthy fruits and veggies for the season! Questions? jamie_gonzales@nps.gov (J. Gonzalez)
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W-ERG Cathedral Lakes Hike next Friday!
The womxn’s employee resource group is hitting the trail on Friday, September 13 for a hike up to Cathedral Lakes! We’ll leave the trailhead at 8:30am. If you would like to join, please RSVP here no later than Tuesday, September 10 so we can coordinate carpooling and ensure the group size stays appropriate for the backcountry. (T. Plock)
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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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Nature Journaling – Sept. 5th
Join a small group of Yosemite Area Nature Journalers this week – September 5 at 5 pm by the El Capitan bridge – for an inaugural meeting. We’ll talk about what we’ve been seeing around the park, spend time observing and documenting the area around El Cap Meadow, and then return for more sharing. For more information, visit yosemitenature.org or contact Theresa Ho simplytheresa@gmail.com. (T. Ho)
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Accepting Capstone Proposals for our Yosemite Leadership Program (YLP) Social Change Practicum
The Education and Community Engagement Team and Margo F. Souza Student Leadership Center are currently accepting Capstone Proposals for our Yosemite Leadership Program (YLP) Social Change Practicum! The Yosemite Leadership Program is a 2-year leadership development program that is guided by our pillars of environmental stewardship, community service, social justice, and leadership. The Capstone Project serves as the culminating leadership experience for YLP participants prior to the completion of the program. The projects will be conducted from October – April of this academic year.
Everyone is invited to apply!

Please review some of our Capstone Requirements prior to submitting a proposal:
· Capstone Projects must address social, environmental, economic, education-related and/or public health problems or community needs.
· Capstone projects must be manageable for 3-5 undergraduate students spending extracurricular time on project over the span of 6 months (October 2024 – April 2025).
· All Yosemite National Park Service, UC Merced Campus Partners, and Merced and/or local community organizations are welcome to apply!
For more information regarding capstone project requirements, please visit the website at studentleadership.ucmerced.edu/form/capstone
ALL CAPSTONE PROPOSALS ARE DUE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6th, 2024 BY MIDNIGHT! (S. Bass Werner Jordan)
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Shout out for those who supported Obata Art Weekend
A big big thanks to everyone who help support the Obata Art Weekend, either by lending a hand or attending the events. We had an amazing turn out and have received so many wonderful comments on how successful and meaningful the weekend was. Thanks for your help in making this happen! (E. Weeks)
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MYSO’s 20th Anniversary Season Dates Announced
The Mariposa Yosemite Symphony Orchestra’s Grand 20th Anniversary Season kicks off on October 26 and 27 with concerts in both Yosemite National Park and Mariposa. The Season Opening concert repertoire includes Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s 5th Violin Concerto, K. 210 with the MYSO’s wunderkind 16-year-old Concertmaster Rylan Post as featured soloist and the orchestra will pay tribute to the Hallowe’en season with César Franck’s horrific tone poem Le Chasseur Maudit (“The Accursed Huntsman”) and the grand finale to that concert will be MYSO audience favorite composer Antonin Dvořák’s Symphony No. 6 in D-Major (1880) – a continuation of the orchestra’s survey of the complete symphonies of that great master. The orchestra has so far featured Dvořák’s Symphonies 3, 8 and 9 “From the New World.”

This landmark season also marks the MYSO’s 23rd year of existence, which included a three-year COVID hiatus for its live concerts. Founded in 2002 by Music Director and Conductor Les Marsden initially as an informal, small salon orchestra, his plans accelerated rapidly as word spread, growing from 10 musicians to 17, then to 31 players by the time of the orchestra’s premiere concert on December 21, 2002. The orchestra expanded to 45 musicians by its second concert and continued to grow in the ensuing years. Its size is now limited by the small stage at its primary Mariposa concert venue, the Fiester Auditorium at Mariposa County High School but string players are always sought and those interested in joining can email MYSO.alive@gmail.com for more information.

The current 20th-Anniversary MYSO consists of musicians from Fresno, Madera, Merced, Stanislaus and Mariposa Counties, and was proclaimed “Yosemite’s Own Orchestra” many years ago. Mariposa is recognized as the smallest American town with its own symphony orchestra. It has been internationally recognized as well, most prominently by British music journalist/classical music authority Norman Lebrecht.

The orchestra performs three concerts in Yosemite National Park each year, with another three in the Mariposa area. The MYSO is the only orchestra in Yosemite’s 134 year history afforded the honor of playing in the park, which it has since 2007. For the first time, the orchestra’s upcoming season of an entire year’s dates is now available, as shown below. The Yosemite locations are also confirmed, with only the three Mariposa concerts’ locations to be released later.

The orchestra’s complete 2024-2025 20th Anniversary Season dates are as follows:

Grand 20th Anniversary Opening Concert:
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 26 at 7 PM (MARIPOSA LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED)
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27 at 2 PM – The Garden Terrace (Room,) Yosemite Lodge – Yosemite National Park

Festive Annual Holiday Concert:
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21 (MARIPOSA LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED) – a single 2 PM Matinee ONLY

Annual 2025 Spring Concert Weekend:
SATURDAY, APRIL 12 at 7 PM (MARIPOSA LOCATION TO BE ANNOUNCED)
SUNDAY, APRIL 13th at 2 PM (LOCATION(S) – the Great Lounge of the Ahwahnee Hotel OR the Garden Terrace (Room) Yosemite Lodge

2025 Independence Day Spectacular! Concert:
SATURDAY, JUNE 28th at 7 PM – the Great Lawn of the Wawona Hotel, Yosemite National Park

To celebrate this landmark 20th Anniversary, the orchestra will offer a series of press features over the next few months sharing a chronological retrospective narrative and photos capturing highlights of its history from Marsden and also MYSO musicians past and present.

Extensive program notes as well as online ticket purchase links for (only) the Mariposa concerts will become available on www.MYSO.LIVE six weeks before the season formally begins. The MYSO’s concerts in Yosemite National Park are always free, though a suggested donation of $10 per person or more at the concert is always helpful. Those concerts are made possible by the orchestra’s major donor – Yosemite Hospitality LLC, a subsidiary of Aramark. The orchestra is also grateful for its longtime partnership with Yosemite National Park. From the very beginning, Marsden wanted to ensure that no child – of any age – would be denied the amazing experience of live, symphonic orchestra by dint of geographic location. That opportunity, that orchestra: will now begin its 20 season of presenting “the joy of music,” as Leonard Bernstein called it – in the Yosemite region. .(L. Marsden)

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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 Project Work Continues along State Route 140 from Cathey’s Valley to El Portal
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is extending one-way traffic control on State Route-140 (SR-140) for maintenance and construction operations during the first week of September. Pavement work is underway from beginning of the passing lane in Cathey’s Valley to SR 49 on Tues 9/3 and Wed 9/4, from 8:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. and Thurs 9/5 and Fri 9/6 from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Pavement work is continuing from Whitlock Road to Parkline Tues 9/3 thru Fri 9/6 from 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. Electrical work is also scheduled from Whitlock Road to Parkline Wed 9/4 thru Fri 9/6 between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Motorists should expect 5-10 minute delays and use alternate routes whenever possible. The work schedule is subject to interruption from traffic incidents, weather, availability of equipment or materials and other construction related issues. For up-to-date road conditions, Caltrans urges motorists to consult quickmap.dot.ca.gov. 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 Brett Graves, YOSE D&E Project Manager, for more information. (M. Vantzelfden)
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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)