Mariposa was known as the gateway to Yosemite. On May 25th, 2006, a giant rockslide buried Highway-140, the only direct road leading out of town into the park.
What happens when a tiny town, dependant on tourism is cut off from Yosemite at the height of the summer season? Some fear Mariposa could go from gateway to ghost town.
Update August 19, 2006
There’s great news for visitors to Yosemite and for the people of Mariposa. Officials have opened a half-mile detour around the rock-slide and vehicles have access to Yosemite and Mariposa at all times. The town of Mariposa has experienced a boom.
- Finally Bridging the Gap, The Fresno Bee, August 19, 2006
- Ferguson Rockslide Incident Information, Incident Information System
- Multiagency Response Plan, Sierra National Forest (pdf)
January 9th, 2007 at 12:10 am
I live here, and I wasn’t affected at all.