Factors affecting clearing operations:

• Heavy snow pack with deeper snowdrifts in some areas slows the whole operation.
• Trees that have fallen across the road and been buried in the snow. These can cause substantial damage to the equipment and result in a stop to all operations.
• Rock slides over the road when the snow begins to melt.
• Snow avalanches over cleared sections of the road.
• Snow storms during the operations impede progress.
• Lingering ice once snow is cleared.

 

May 28, 2009 - Plowing Update

The road crew made great progress this week. The road has been cleared to Kings Creek Meadow and slightly beyond. They will probably break through on Monday. Tuesday they will haul the dozers and other "wide load" equipment back to headquarters. Wednesday will be the time we can remove hazards from the road shoulder (boulders & debris). Final grooming & sign placement to take place Thursday morning and the road should open at 12:00 PM.

May 15, 2009 - Plowing Update

We have finally started downhill. This week the crew had to shut down and go out to Warner Valley on Monday to remove a few monster trees from the road. One of them was over five feet in diameter. Then it took two days of pushing to clear the Peak Trail parking lot. Yesterday, plows resumed clearing on the Main Road which is now a downhill push. Current estimate for opening is in two weeks.

It is somewhat reminiscent of what Dennis Haag used to say about the area the road crew just finished. When the operation got to Emerald Lake he would say, "It is like throwing out the anchor." It is time consuming because the dozers have to push snow uphill to remove it from the road and this is the heaviest accumulation area on the entire route. After leaving the Peak parking lot we are back to pushing the snow off to the side of the road where it can cascade down the mountainside. In addition we start losing elevation rapidly as we head north of the Peak parking lot, which means the snow depth decreases as we go. We should get back to covering between .5 and 1 mile per day next week.

Dennis Haag was Roads and Trails Foreman at Lassen for over 25 years. Much of the equipment and techniques that are in use today were implemented during Dennis' tenure. He had a great sense of humor and was a lot of fun to work with. He passed away in November of last year and we miss him.

1. Warner Valley Road is now open to the public. The campground is open for dry camping and vault toilets are available.

2. Butte Lake Road is open. The day-use area has a vault toilet.

3. Main Park Road is open from Highway 44 to Devastated Area [vault toilets available] and from Highway 36 to Bumpass Hell [vault toilets available].

May 8, 2009 - Plowing Update

Activities on Spring Road Opening were challenging this week. Rain, snow, wind and fog characterized Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Much of the time was spent in safety stand down mode as zero visibility created safety concerns. Thursday saw the return of clear skies and spring type weather. The plows have nearly made it to the Peak Parking Lot. Right now it looks like an early June opening for the main road through the park.

Updated road opening dates

1. The Butte Lake Road will open for public vehicular travel May 8th - vault toilets available

2. Main Road From the Visitor Center to Sulphur Works opens May 8th - vault toilets available at Sulphur Works

3. Main Road to Bumpass Hell Parking Lot scheduled to open on May 15th to the public - vault toilets available at Bumpass parking lot

4. Warner Valley Road scheduled to open on May 15th to the public

May 1, 2009 - Plowing Update

It's a good news bad news report this week. The good news is we made it across Emerald Side hill safely. That is probably the most difficult area to clear because of the steep terrain. Tuesday was a safety stand-down day due to zero visibility from fog, clouds and snow. The other item in the good news category is that the 950 rotary plow has been repaired and is back on the job. We have also been sweeping gravel and dirt from the roadway with the mechanical self propelled broom. Gravel especially on the corners creates a hazard for vehicles and is particularly precarious for motorcyclists.

In the bad news department, our GPS computer is giving us problems. We are troubleshooting the problem but it is at a critical time when the road is the most difficult to find. The lead dozer is several hundred feet out of the Bumpass Hell Parking Lot, Just about to Lake Helen. In this area the surface contour of the snow makes it impossible to tell where the road is located (20 feet below the blanket of snow). It is also the deepest snow area on the entire route. Just missing the road a few feet means that a lot of the effort to remove that section of snow was in vain. That area has the most depth because blowing and drifting snow displaced from the Peak is trapped along the ridge above the Lake Helen Quarry and the Bumpass Hell trailhead.

We have decided to delay the opening to Sulphur Works until after the impending storm. We will revisit opening it for vehicles next week after we have cleared the new fallen snow and rocks from that section between KYVC and Sulphur Works. We did manage to get all of the mud cleaned up and the safety fence in place.

April 24, 2009 - Plowing Update

The Lassen Roads group reports that Spring Road Opening continues to move forward in an efficient but safe manner. So far they have covered about 4.5 of the 18 miles left to get the Main Road completed. They are ready to start across the Emerald Sidehill area next Monday morning. Several more Roads and Trails seasonal staff start next week and they will work on preparing to open the road for vehicular traffic to Sulphur Works. There is quite a mess there from the geothermal area and safety fence needs to be installed around the boiling fumarole next to the sidewalk. Anticipate a May 1st open for that section of road. The next milestone will be the Bumpass Hell Parking Lot and it could be open by May 8th.

Estimated Road Open Dates:
Main Road through Park - Anticipate late May Open
Butte Lake -Anticipate a mid May Open
Warner Valley - Anticipate a late May Open (we will begin plowing our road once Plumas County opens the road to the boundary)
Juniper Lake - Anticipate a late June open

Each of these roads requires inspection and some work from the road crew before they can be opened for traffic but for now the highest priority is continued snow removal from the Main Road through the park.

April 20, 2009 - Plowing Update

The Crew is making steady progress on opening the main road. All three dozers are now on the South side and working in unison. Cal Trans has shown up with a large Truck Mount Rotary Plow that assists the NPS for 6 to 7 hours per day. The park has one disabled loader mount rotary affectionately known as the "950" (except when it is broken) and one operable rotary, the "938" that continues to work with the "caravan".

As of this afternoon, April 20th they were working on Diamond Sidehill approximately 2.8 miles beyond Kohm Yah-mah-nee. You may recall that the road has been opened to Devastated Area, the road to Butte Lake has been minimally plowed by the dozer but remains closed. The road to Sulphur Works will remain closed this week until we complete tests near the boiling cauldron that is adjacent to the sidewalk. That section of road is tentatively set to open by May 1st.

With warm temperatures and modest snow pack the operation moves right along. Impending weather can slow or halt progress as the equipment must back track to remove newly fallen snow from areas already cleared. There is about 18 miles of road that will be cleared in order to connect with the snow free road that was addressed from the north side of the park.