State Park closure October 2007

[AlanK]

Mt. San Jacinto State Park is closed.

[Cy Kaicener]

Does this include the Skyline Trail ? The last closure did not, even though the Park was closed beyond the Ranger station and soon thereafter opened to one day hikes which excluded camping.

[AlanK]

The Skyline Trail is not in the State Park. Back in 2003 they closed the State Park and the rangers explicitly told me that Skyline to the Tram was ok. I remember while doing the hike that we met a couple of locals who were going to the peak anyway. Neither the threat of a $5K fine nor the illegality of what they were doing seemed to have any deterrent value.

[KathyW]

What's the air quality like out in Palm Springs? - it's pretty smokey in Redlands. Not much wind in Redlands though - it was 56 degrees when I left my house in Redlands just before 8 am and when I got to Ontario where it is windy it was 83 degrees - those winds are sure making a difference in the temperature.

[IgoslowUgoaround]

Mt. San Jacinto State Park is closed.

well this F@#$ING sucks! i have been planning a hike this saturday for an entire year! -sighs- thank you for the info

[Hikin_Jim]

I think Joshua Tree is still open.

http://www.nps.gov/jotr/

Weather: http://ifps.wrh.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/dwf?outFormat=Text&duration=72hr&interval=6&citylist=Select+City%2C%2Cnone&latitude=&longitude=&ZOOMLEVEL=1&XSTART=&YSTART=&XC=&YC=&X=231&Y=542&siteID=VEF&click.x=232&click.y=541

And there's always the Eastern Sierra.

[guest]

Hi,
Part of Skyline is in State Park boundaries, but my guess is that as long as those who reach Long Valley go to the tram, it should be ok.
The last few times they closed SJSP, they still allowed people to hike around Long Valley, but, I just called the tram, and everything is closed.
This is because they have taken all the personnel that work there to fight the fires.

ss

[Davis2001r6]

Any idea how long it will be closed? I have a group coming from AZ the weekend of the 3rd/4th of Novemeber, been planning it for months as well. We all made it to the tram last time, but wanted to the peak this time.

This sucks, but it's better than the peak being on fire.

I just called the tram as well and the message said it will still be operating it's normal schedule. I wasn't able to talk to a person directly, but the recording clearly said the park was closed but the tram was still running.

I'll keep a close eye on here for updates.

Thanks,

-TIM-

[Hikin_Jim]

Weather conditions are supposed to shift again this weekend. A blanket closure of the type we're having now is pretty rare. This may be the first time a closure of this type has ever happened. Pretty much all of the Nat'l Forests in S. Calif and a lot of the state parks are shut down.

I'm just guessing at one level (since I'm not God and don't control the weather), but I doubt that the closure will continue into Nov. Worst come to worst, you'd do Skyline and then still have the peak to look forward to another year.

[AlanK]

Part of Skyline is in State Park boundaries, but my guess is that as long as those who reach Long Valley go to the tram, it should be ok.
The last few times they closed SJSP, they still allowed people to hike around Long Valley, but, I just called the tram, and everything is closed. This is because they have taken all the personnel that work there to fight the fires.

ss raises a good point. I have had a couple of private communications on this subject after posting about my 2003 experience. What I was told back then evidently doesn't apply now. If I was planning on hiking to/in Long Valley, I would check with the rangers first.