Good news, everyone! Starting today, May 26th, several areas of the Station Fire Burn Area are officially re-opened for public use.
While the vast majority of the Burn Zone remains closed, the Magic Mountain Wilderness is now re-opened, as are the majorities of the Pleasant View Wilderness, West Fork of the San Gabriel River, Rincon Shortcut Road, Millard Campground, Chilao, Bandito, Horse Flats, Meadow Loop, Manzanita Loop and Coulter Recreation Areas.
There is a map of the new closure area on the Forest Service web site (PDF), but it is frustratingly-low res, so it’s still tough to tell where some of the boundaries actually are. The Forest Service tells me a high-res map is on the way, and I’ll try to update my closure map as soon as I get a chance.
For those planning on heading to the Chilao area to relive some old hiking memories, just be aware that CA-2 is still closed from La Canada Flintridge (as of 5/26/10), so you’ll have to enter the Forest from Wrightwood.
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“…what happened exactly to the Caltrans employee that fell off the road? Did the road give out? I saw a part of the road being reinforced with steel beams, I assume that’s the spot.”
I remember reading in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune that the vehicle was parked and that the Caltrans worker and his vehicle slipped off in to the canyon below which I think is at that place where you saw the I-beams where that chunk of highway is still missing.
It’s strange because those Caltrans people are paranoid about safety from what I read about their projects and policies on their web sites. Maybe the vehicle was a tractor and not a transport, the article I read didn’t say. I just did an archive search on the San Gabriel Valley Tribune and could not find the article.
@Alison: Not going to directly suggest heading to Crystal Lake b/c I believe it is allegedly “closed”, but… right now I believe the shortest way starts in the same spot I used on a trek I did a year ago.
http://socalhikes.com/2009/07/hawkins-5-peak-loop/
If you drive past Islip saddle (maybe a mile?) you’ll reach a turnout on the road opposite of a use trail that directly heads up to Windy Gap. 1/2 mile later you’ll reach Windy Gap. From here, you can take the Windy Gap trail (unmaintained) down to Crystal Lake. Maybe 10 miles, 2500 ft gain hike?
Thanks Frederic
Zé, Windy Gap will be getting cleaned up this Saturday from the bottom where Big Cieneca and Windy Gap split off from Mount Saint Hawkins road, hopefully all the way up to the ridge line with a focus on removing downed trees that block the trail and clearing that persistent rock slide which keeps getting cleared and keeps getting re-slid for the past two years:
http://www.crystallake.name/twork/17may08/17may08.php
Basically the focus will be on improving safety since people scramble over that rock slide (despite the campgrounds being closed) which slopes to a 200-foot cantered drop generally South which, if anyone fell, wouldn’t be easily fatal but would still hurt a whole lot. }:-} And there may be hanging tree limbs that must be pulled down to reduce those safety hazards.
Big Cienica still has a good amount of water crossing it in a stream about a half mile from where the trail attains the ridge line, but Windy Gap is dry from end to end.
Any way, it should be a fun, hot, sweaty Saturday! }:-}
Yeah, I thought Windy Gap would be easier, but I didn’t know Windy Gap was even reasonably hike-able at this point. But if you did it a year ago and had no problems, it’s probably worth considering.
I am aware that it is “closed”. Shhhhh…. :)
Er, no. Angeles Forest Hwy is definitely NOT open to get from Big Tujunga to ACH. Need to go through Upper Tujunga.
yes you can enter from big tujunga. also the cosmic cafe is open inside the mount wilson observatory pavilion until 4pm weekends. All new equipment inside the kitchen, delicious hot and cold sandwiches…ice cream and soda, juice.
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