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| A view of Yosemite Falls // Photo by the Yosemite Conservancy |
The Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau has released a statement assuring travelers that, despite the Rim Fire, which has struck the northwestern edge of Yosemite National Park, the rest of the park remains virtually unaffected by the blaze.
“People don’t realize just how incredibly large Yosemite is,” said Jarrod Lyman with the Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau, the entity responsible for marketing Yosemite’s southern entrance and surrounding Madera County.
“Yosemite is the size of Rhode Island, and the fire is only impacting one area of the park,” he said.
The majority of fire activity happening is near Lake Eleanor and the Hetch Hetchy area. While all of Yosemite has seen about 1.47 million visitors as of June of this year, Hetch Hetchy only recorded fewer than 22,000 visitors, a small percentage of the park visitation.
The most popular part of the park, Yosemite Valley remains virtually smoke free. That means visitors can take in the famous views without the Rim Fire having any effect on their trip.
“We’ve been directing visitors to the Yosemite Conservancy webcams which show up-to-date images of some of the valley’s top attractions, and without fail guests have come away happy knowing their vacation plans don’t need to be changed.”
“Popular spots such as the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia, Wawona, Glacier Point, Tunnel View and all of Yosemite Valley are open and there are no restrictions or affects from the fire,” Lyman said.
While the fire has caused the closure of one of the park’s entrances, Highway 120, three other routes remain open.
“Our entrance, Highway 41, is still wide open with no issues from the fire,” Lyman said. “Travelers can also take Highway 140 and the eastern Highway 120 entrance, known as the Tioga Road.”
Agents can reach out to the Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau at 559-683-4636 or visit www.YosemiteConservancy.com/webcams