Walking in/near Yosemite & Seqouia/Kings Canyon during closures
 

My father and I are flying over to California from the UK as a once in a lifetime father son trip (to celebrate his two years all clear of kidney, bowel and liver cancer) but the park closures have thrown our trip plans into disarray.
Were booked in to stay at Three Rivers, Yosemite Gateway and Curry village with the intention of spending a week or so walking (from the 12th-19th). It looks asthough we're going to have to spend atleast some of the time elsewhere but I've got a question.
I gather the parks are technically closed and gates have been closed, but the 120 and 180 routes/roads pass within or near the parks. Is it possible to do any walking in that area before the gates or nearby? Even just short walks!

Thanks

So sorry the parks are closed and your plans messed up. Could you consider doing a drive along the coast Highway? There are several state parks, like Nuevo Ano, Julia Pfeiffer, Point Lobos etc. that would provide plenty of hiking opportunities and even a look at some pretty big trees.

In the mean time I'll keep hoping the parks will open before you get there.

Cheers for your reply emalloy,
We had a day in Santa Cruz (we fly to and from SF) so I think were going to have to extend it and spend some time in Monterey Bay etc. Julia Pfeiffer is a park we've just found, I'll definitely check out the other two.

Thanks, fingers still crossed we can go see the world famous views!

You could go to Lake Tahoe for several days.. Drive down Hwy. 395 and visit Bodie and Mono Lake. Then drive over Tioga Pass on Hwy 120 thru Yosemite. Or do the reverse from Santa Cruz.

Assuming there is no snow before your visit, Hwy 120 is open and you can drive across Tioga Pass. However the stupid park service has posted notices that one may not stop anywhere w/i the park boundaries.

I'm willing to bet most every car crossing on 120 will stop here and there.

But don't give up hope. There is probably a decent chance the 'Government shut down' will be over by then.

The PR is really getting bad -- the Feds actually forced the Cliff House restaurant (in SF) to close because of the shut down. The restaurant has NO Federal employees, there is NO Federal presence of any sort, it receives NO Federal money (in fact it actually pays a yearly rent to the Feds - which it's paid for the full year). The reason it is shut - putting all civilian employees out of work - is because the building sits on Federal land. Obviously no reason at all to close it -- except for spite. Other places that are open/free access 24/7 are being barricaded to 'close' them for the shutdown. So they are actually spending $$$$ to close properties.

Keep your fingers crossed and watch the news reports.

You could use CA120 to cross the Sierra, although I think that CA4 is more attractive. Crossing through Yosemite will bring you closer to Mono Lake and Bodie State Historical Park, but check to see if it will be open. You still won't get to see what is the best of Yosemite: the valley seen from Glacier Point or the surrounding mountains seen from the valley floor.

Taking CA4 will take you past http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=551 which is an alternative to see giant sequoias.

I was thinking of suggesting driving to the Redwoods. I have no idea on the status of this/these park/parks. The reason I mention it, it is actually 3 State Parks within a National Park, so I wonder if it is open or closed? It would be a fantastic option, if it is indeed open.

<i>I was thinking of suggesting driving to the Redwoods</i>

That is far from the OP's original location in the Sierra and would imply a completely different trip.

I was thinking of suggesting driving to the Redwoods

That is far from the OP's original location in the Sierra and would imply a completely different trip.



Big Trees State Park is in Calavaras County.

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=551

That's right Michael, I was suggesting a totally different trip.

Suzie, I was going to suggest Calaveras Big Trees also. The drive over Highway 4 is spectacular, but some people might not like driving on such a winding road. Calaveras Big Trees is easily accessible from the western side.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I think Redwoods is probably too far for us. Tioga pass might be an option though.
Honestly the worst bit about this is the uncertainty. I have sympathy for both sides of the argument politically, but its leaving people in limbo with booking alternative accomodation and such!

According to last night's local news, Tioga Pass is now closed because of snow; which means that the roads crossing the Sierra south of US50 are probably closed too.

To check roads that are open in California use http://www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roads.cgi for the latest up today information.

Good luck! We're pretty much in the same boat, we have reservations in Zion on Sunday.

Utahtea

Utahtea! Good to see you on board again! You have been missed!

Thanks MichelleY!