High Sierra Topix

My friends and I drew a permit for the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne starting from White Wolf the first week in July. When we requested the permit the NPS office warned us that the bridge in the Pate Valley flooded out last year but that there were plans to have it repaired for this season. He also said that if it wasn't repaired that the river could not be crossed without the bridge. Jump ahead a few months and now I am hearing that it most likely will not be repaired. Is the bridge a deal breaker or is the NPS airing on the side of caution? Is there a place in the Pate Valley that we can wade that early in July. Thanks for any input.

I believe the ranger. You should, too.

The bridge is still across the river, but it is badly damaged.

balzaccom wrote:The bridge is still across the river, but it is badly damaged.

It was badly damaged last year. It has now withstood a year of the river pounding on it, and currently it's withstanding snowmelt. Would not place any bets on how many people skip across it safely vs. send the rest of it crashing down.

Nice!

A picture is worth a thousand words, maybe a short video is worth 10,000. I've been across bridges in Nepal that were sketchier feeling, where they had "patched" holes in the wood by placing rocks over them.

If it were me, I'd go... but be mentally prepared to turn around if it didn't feel right. I'd have retreat and some sort of plan B already working in my mind. And I'd also send the fat guy with the big pack across first.

I wouldn't walk across that structure unless belayed by a buddy where the rope is tied to a tree. If it collapses during, at least I have a shot at swinging back to a shore (if the bridge doesn't hit me and kill me in the river.) Then if I made it, I'd set up a belay for him for the crossing as well. The video also shows a LOT of rot in the beams. If the park really wants people safe, they would remove the bridge.

SSSdave wrote:One of the last places one ought consider gambling on is whether one can get past Pate Valley because of the huge vertical one would then be climbing back up if blocked. And note that huge warm wet AR storm we had in late March caused many rivers and streams to rise to highest levels since the 1997 floods so it may be in worse shape than those did using the bridge last summer.

I think the huge vertical is a bonus. If you decide to retreat then at least you get an extra workout before heading off to do something else.

I'd have to see the bridge in person to decide if I were willing to gamble crossing it. If it collapsed it could easily be fatal. I'm not sure a belay would be worth the trouble. But if it's still standing after being pounded all winter odds are a human isn't going to trigger its collapse.

Thanks for all your replies. I was hoping that you guys might say that there was a wadable place somewhere in the valley that we might take advantage of.

Thanks for the youtube link Mark. I had found it when trying to research about the bridge and thought it was even more sketchy than the guy in the clip. Guess it's time to start considering other options and hope that the NPS gets something in place by July (not hopeful).