Grizzly Giant sequoia looks ‘great’ in Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove, open after wildfire

Carmen Kohlruss

The Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias in Yosemite National Park has reopened.

The popular destination, home to the beloved Grizzly Giant tree near the park’s south entrance, reopened Wednesday morning after closing because of the Washburn Fire.

The perimeter of that human-caused wildfire was declared 100% contained on Thursday. The blaze ignited nearly a month ago.

Yosemite spokesperson Scott Gediman visited the Mariposa Grove on Wednesday and said the Grizzly Giant tree and grove looks great.

“Lots of excited people there!” Gediman said, including over seeing a black bear walk by the Grizzly Giant tree around noon. He called it a “truly magical moment.”

A black bear approaches the Grizzly Giant tree in Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias around noon Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022 – the first day the grove reopened to the public following a closure due to the Washburn Fire.
A black bear approaches the Grizzly Giant tree in Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias around noon Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022 – the first day the grove reopened to the public following a closure due to the Washburn Fire.
A black bear walks beneath the Grizzly Giant tree in Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias around noon Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022 – the first day the grove reopened to the public following a closure due to the Washburn Fire.
A black bear walks beneath the Grizzly Giant tree in Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias around noon Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022 – the first day the grove reopened to the public following a closure due to the Washburn Fire.
The Grizzly Giant in Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias on June 12, 2018.
The Grizzly Giant in Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias on June 12, 2018.

Free Mariposa Grove shuttle buses running

The Mariposa Grove free park shuttle is operating. It leaves from the Mariposa Grove Welcome Plaza near Yosemite’s south entrance along Highway 41. Yosemite officials recommend grove visitors arrive at the plaza by mid-morning to secure one of about 300 parking spaces there that “may fill up by late morning.”

Shuttle buses are scheduled to pick up visitors at the welcome plaza about every 10 minutes. The current schedule: Buses run from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., with the last bus leaving the Mariposa Grove at 8 p.m., through Sept. 7.

The South Gate entrance to Yosemite National Park is shown as the Washburn Fire burns in the distance on July 11, 2022.
The South Gate entrance to Yosemite National Park is shown as the Washburn Fire burns in the distance on July 11, 2022.

Starting Sept. 8 through Nov. 7, shuttle buses are scheduled to run from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., with the last bus leaving the grove at 6:30 p.m. Those end times shorten to 3:30 p.m., with the last bus leaving the grove at 5 p.m., from Nov. 8 through Nov. 30, with pickups approximately every 15 minutes instead of every 10 minutes.

Day-use visitors still need reservations to enter Yosemite during peak hours, from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., through Sept. 30. Peak-hour reservations can be purchased on recreation.gov.

Some trails to Yosemite giant sequoias are closed

Yosemite officials announced earlier this week that some trails in the Mariposa Grove area will remain closed.

Those closures include:

  • The Washburn Trail, between the Mariposa Grove Welcome Plaza and the arrival area at the grove.

  • The western portion of the Perimeter Trail, from the Galen Clark Tree to near the Grizzly Giant Loop Trail.

  • The trail from the Mariposa Grove toward the Yosemite community of Wawona.

“Please stay on trails: hazards may exist off trail,” Yosemite officials said. “Firefighters will continue patrolling the area until the fire is declared out.”

A giant sequoia tree in the Mariposa Grove stands amid smoke rising from the forest floor after the Washburn Fire burned through the area in California’s Yosemite National Park on Saturday, July 9, 2022.
A giant sequoia tree in the Mariposa Grove stands amid smoke rising from the forest floor after the Washburn Fire burned through the area in California’s Yosemite National Park on Saturday, July 9, 2022.

Washburn Fire and Oak Fire updates

The Washburn Fire was 4,886 acres and its perimeter 100% contained, announced in an Aug. 4 update from fire officials.

Officials said last month that the wildfire caused minimal damage in the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias.

Yosemite Fire and Aviation reported July 25 that there was “zero impact” to giant sequoias there thanks to aggressive firefighting.

A giant plume of smoke rises beyond Mariposa Grove as the Washburn Fire continues to burn in Yosemite National Park Monday, July 11, 2022.
A giant plume of smoke rises beyond Mariposa Grove as the Washburn Fire continues to burn in Yosemite National Park Monday, July 11, 2022.
A plane drops fire retardant on the Washburn Fire as it burns near the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias and the south entrance of Yosemite National Park Monday, July 11, 2022.
A plane drops fire retardant on the Washburn Fire as it burns near the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias and the south entrance of Yosemite National Park Monday, July 11, 2022.

Residents were able to return to the nearby Yosemite community of Wawona last month. Vacation rentals, including the Wawona Hotel, reopened later that month.

Fire officials stopped providing detailed daily updates for the Washburn Fire on July 30. Planned actions included continuing to monitor and improve containment lines to keep the Washburn Fire within its current footprint. The Mariposa Grove and Wawona is included in the area where firefighters continue to work.

The Oak Fire, also in Mariposa County but outside Yosemite, started about two weeks after the Washburn Fire ignited. Yosemite officials said the national park was not being impacted by the Oak Fire.

The larger and more destructive Oak Fire burned through 19,244 acres and was 86% contained as of Thursday. That wildfire has destroyed an estimated 127 homes. Its cause remains under investigation.

Cal Fire expects to have full containment of the Oak Fire this week.

Fire investigators say the Washburn Fire was human-caused but remains under investigation. People near the Mariposa Grove when the fire ignited on July 7 are asked to contact the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch by calling or texting 888-653-0009, emailing nps_isb@nps.gov, or filling out a form online at nps.gov/orgs/1563/submit-a-tip.htm.

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