140 Rock Slide Update

By Phil Vigil

The rock slide that blocked Hwy 140 for 4 months has finally been spanned. After a long wait, a bridge has finally been constructed to get from Yosemite and El Portal to Mariposa. A second bridge has been finished and small school buses will be allowed to cross starting on the first day of school. Kellye Evans, a Mariposa High School graduate who lives in El Portal stayed with a friend for two months after the slide because driving was far too expensive with current gas prices. In El Portal gas costs about $4. To go around the slide to get to school it took about two hours and 45 minutes. Kellye says she usually did her shopping in Mariposa but after the slide she had to drive two hours to Oakhurst. Kellye is going to college this fall so she won’t have to take the bus or drive across the new bridges to get to school.

These bridges are just a temporary solution to a very big problem. A permanent solution is still a long ways away. We’ll keep you informed as events unfold.







When the slide first slid through the barrier and onto the road.