2010 is THE YEAR for MiddleForkGiants

2010 is going to be a very exciting year with the release of Dreams in the Wilderness: Stories from the Middle Fork (a documentary film) and The Middle Fork: Finding Significance in a Forested Valley (a book). In preparation for those big events, I am completely updating the website. This is a good time to look around and more "new" will be there over the next couple of months.

www.middleforkgiants.com

Road Open for 12.5 miles (not 5.2)!!!!

It's the perfect after Christmas place to go! The Middle Fork Road is open all the way to the Dingford Road. You can access the Middle Fork Trailhead, the Campground, and the Taylor River Trailhead. The picture above shows the new gate.

Ignore the sign that says "Road Closed in 5.2 miles", it's really open for over 10.

The Gate is Open!!!

The gate is finally open at the Forest Service Boundary. You can get at least as far as the Middle Fork Trailhead and across the Taylor River. There is still a sign by the Mailbox Peak trailhead that says "road closed 5.2 miles" but the gate was open all last week including the weekend.

In spite of any frustrations I might have over the road being closed I would have to commend the Forest Service for repairing the road, the bridge over the Taylor, and the new bridge just past the boundary (no more saying "this sure is a ratty little bridge, I wonder why it never washes out?").

The Road may open on November 30th

I was up by the gate on Wednesday, Nov 25th and spoke with the guy guarding the gate and later a representative of the Forest Service. They said the work on the bridge is done and they were grading the road. Said the gate would probably be opened on Monday the 30th.

I went up the CCC road and spent the day poking around, could hear equipment grading the road all morning. Maybe we'll be able to finally get in to the Taylor area next week!

A New Resource on the Web Site

I have added a new resource on www.middleforkgiants.com . It is a set of downloadable photos that I specifically give permission to use in almost any public or private media use. You can find them here:

www.middleforkgiants.com/MFpictures.html

I find that all too many news articles have photos from the Middle Fork that just don't capture the essence of the area. They are usually not taken deep within the main valley. With emphasis coming due to the road opening and perhaps even the Pratt Valley trail being put in next year, I hope these can be used for articles, papers, and reports on the Middle Fork Valley.

Middle Fork Road is Closed at the new 5 mile Gate

As of Tuesday the 8th the Middle Fork Road is once again closed at the new gate just past five miles (near the USFS boundary). This is for road maintenance and to repair the Taylor River Bridge.

The road is completely closed to all use for the first four days, then there are mixed messages on whether or not we can bike or hike past the gate.


My guess is that it is like any other USFS closure, tight for a while but low budgets and little staff mean the gate isn't going to be guarded for long.

Middle Fork Road is Closing Again

The Middle Fork Road is going to close again at the Forest boundary (new gate at mile 5.6). I have heard from two sources this will be a complete, enforced closure starting Tuesday, September 8th through the rest of the year.

There is some conflict in message, though, the USFS website only says closed Sept 8-11. We will see, but my bet is it is closed for balance of the year.

Good news is the closure is to allow the USFS to fix the bridge across the Taylor and restore access.