Into the woods
Stanislaus National Forest and others will reopen 2 days earlier than expected
Atemporary closure order for the Stanislaus National Forest and other national forests in California — imposed Aug. 31 due to active fires elsewhere in the Golden State and heightened fire dangers in the Central Sierra Nevada — was scheduled to be lifted at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, two days earlier than expected.
Drift smoke from fires north of Calaveras and Tuolumne counties added haze to the air and atmosphere along the Highway 108 corridor in the Stanislaus National Forest on Wednesday. A manned road closure remained in place at Pinecrest on Wednesday afternoon. A ranger at the road closure said no one could go into forest areas without a permit.
Highway 108 and Sonora Pass remained open through the temporary forest closure. Temporary road closures with signs, barriers, and gates were set up on many roads that branch off Highway 108, including Crabtree Road east of Cold Springs.
The original closure order was supposed to be effective from 11:59 p.m. Aug. 31 to 11:59 p.m. Friday, Sept. 17. As of Wednesday afternoon, at least one lighted Caltrans sign, on eastbound Highway 108 east of Via Este in East Sonora, still stated the forest closure was through Sept. 17.
Some Highway 108 businesses were open Wednesday in Sugar Pine, Mi-wuk Village, Cold Springs, Strawberry, and at Pinecrest. Few motorists on the road combined with deserted and near-deserted parking lots showed business was slow to non-existent for most.
The Forest Service justified closing all national forests in California for two weeks, including the normally lucrative Labor Day holiday weekend, by stating the closure was intended to “better provide public and firefighter safety due to the ongoing California wildfire crisis.”
Staff with the Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Region in Vallejo said the agency hoped to minimize the likelihood that visitors could become entrapped in national forests during fires and other emergencies.
In addition, the temporary closure was intended to decrease possible new fire starts while the Forest Service and other agencies were stretched thin fighting so many large fires throughout the state.
Blazes burning at the time of the closure included the massive, 1,500-square-mile Dixie Fire — as big as the state of Rhode Island — and the 340-square-mile Caldor Fire that threatened Lake Tahoe.
Two weeks ago was “a time of extremely limited firefighting resources,” and the Forest Service hoped to “enhance firefighter and community safety
by limiting exposure that occurs in public evacuation situations,” especially while COVID-19 continues impacting human health and straining hospital resources.
Some business owners along Highway 108 were disappointed to learn of the closure two weeks ago.
“We’re devastated by it,” Jim Lewis, co-owner of Dardanelle Resort, told The Union Democrat newspaper on Aug. 31. “It’s a huge hit to our revenue, to everything.”
Matt Bloom, owner of Kennedy Meadows Resort, estimated the business would lose between $70,000 and $100,000 in revenue due to the closure.
Lewis and Bloom could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Mary Buche, owner of the Strawberry Store for the past five years, said Wednesday she had no complaints about the temporary closure due to heightened fire dangers.
“Bless them for doing what they’ve been doing and doing what needs to be done,” she said Wednesday in a phone interview. “Thank god we haven’t had a major fire in this forest so far this year.”
No one could be reached Wednesday at Cold Springs Market and Mi-wuk Market.
The Forest Service said a key factor in the decision to reopen most national forests in California two days earlier than originally planned was an anticipated increase in available firefighting resources due to decreasing fire dangers in other states.
Reopening campgrounds and other forest facilities will take time, Traci Allen, acting spokeswoman for the Stanislaus National Forest, said Wednesday in a phone interview.
She asked forest visitors who are planning to return beginning Thursday to be patient.
Enhanced fire restrictions will remain in place in the Stanislaus National Forest to reduce chances for new wild
fires. Wood and charcoal fires are prohibited everywhere in the forest, including campgrounds, developed areas, and wilderness areas. Anyone who lights a campfire when restrictions are in place can face a $500 fine.
Portable stoves or lanterns using gas, jellied petroleum, or pressurized liquid fuel with a shut-off valve, are permitted with a free California Campfire Permit, available online and at any Forest Service office. Target shooting is not allowed in the forest. Lawful hunting is permitted.
Jason Kuiken, the Stanislaus National Forest supervisor, said enhanced fire restrictions are for public and firefighter safety.
Anyone who violates a federal forest closure order can be fined $100 plus a $30 court fee, the lowest-level ticket Forest Service law enforcement officers can write visitors up for, Allen said. The maximum penalty for violating a forest closure order can be $5,000 and six months in jail.