California parks close as atmospheric river sweeps through state
SFGate – By Eric Brooks – Jan. 3, 2023
With an intense atmospheric river forecast to hit the Bay Area, many parks and open spaces in Northern California are closed in anticipation of flooding, mudslides and more.
Officials with the Golden Gate National Recreation Area have announced the closure of several park sites on Wednesday and Thursday: Muir Woods, Fort Point, the Point Bonita Lighthouse, Nike Missile Site, Muir Beach and Stinson Beach. For now, Alcatraz Island is closed on Wednesday. The park’s status for Thursday remains to be determined.
In the Presidio, the Outpost and Field Station at Presidio Tops are scheduled to be closed on Wednesday. A number of sites are closed both Wednesday and Thursday: Golden Gate Welcome Center, Presidio Pop Up, Presidio Visitor Center and the Warming Hut.
All of the parks in the East Bay Regional Park system are closed Wednesday and Thursday. Those include Lake Chabot Regional Park, Del Valle Regional Park and Sunol Regional Wilderness Preserve.
Trail and facility assessment is ongoing in the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, which encompasses over 70,000 acres in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Several trails are closed because of mudslides and washouts, including Purisima Creek Redwoods, Windy Hill and El Corte de Madera Creek. Hikers are asked to check trail conditions before heading out.
San Francisco had its second-rainiest day since 1849 last weekend, with more expected over the next two days. The city’s Recreation and Parks Department has closed Stern Grove and Pine Lake through Thursday.
Read entire article & see video here.
Posted by Teri Perticone
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