The Seasonal Closure has been lifted (with restrictions)

http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/eldorado/ ... RDB5364726

Eldorado National Forest Seasonal Dirt Road and Trail Closure Lifted With Exceptions

Release Date: Apr 24, 2012 Placerville, CA

Contact(s): Frank Mosbacher, 530-622-5061

The Forest Service announced today that the wet weather seasonal closure of designated dirt roads and trails in the Eldorado National Forest has ended, with the exception of forty-two routes that remain closed by court order.

“The recent warm weather dried out most of the lower elevation dirt routes,” said Forest Supervisor Kathy Hardy. “As a result, I’m opening the majority of these routes to motorized vehicle use. However, forty-two routes that cross meadows will remain closed to motorized vehicle traffic due to a recent court order.”

Hardy says that some of the open routes aren’t as dried out as others. Forest visitors are responsible for staying on the routes and not causing resource damage. Travelers may also encounter hazards on the open routes since little maintenance has been completed.

Many high elevation routes are still covered with snow and the Forest Service says drivers should use care not to cause resource damage. In most cases, these routes are located on soils that drain better than lower elevation routes constructed in clay based soils.

Forest visitors can obtain free-of-charge motorized vehicle use maps at all Eldorado National Forest ranger stations and at the Forest headquarter’ s office in Placerville.

The U.S. District Court directed the Forest Service to keep the forty-two routes seasonally closed until a final court order is issued later this spring. Hardy says the court may direct her to keep portions of these routes closed until the Forest Service completes a supplemental environmental impact statement for the route segments that cross meadows. The SEIS is scheduled to be completed by April 2013. Information about the court order and the locations of the 42 routes are posted on the Eldorado National Forest website. The seasonal closure does not apply to the Rock Creek Recreational Trails Area near Georgetown, which has its own wet weather closure procedures.
The Mormon Emigrant Trail remains closed to through traffic due to snow.

"finder_87" wrote: Any one going by a ranger station that can pick up maps for the club?

We'll have two Rangers from the El Dorado National Forest coming to our May meeting on the 10th to talk about the recent activities, I'll call and ask them to bring maps with them.