Sonora, CA — Crews are making progress clearing the winter snow from Highway 108 Sonora Pass.
The pass is currently closed at Eagle Meadow (13 miles east of Strawberry), but Caltrans hopes to move the closure gate up to Kennedy Meadows by next week, and is currently on schedule to have the pass fully open ahead of Memorial Day weekend.
Late this week the plows were encountering a snow depth of around 5 ft., however, up ahead there is a depth of around 8 ft., and a good size rock and mud slide. Near the summit, there is 10 ft. of snow, and a Tamarack tree across the road.
While crews are finding much less snow this year compared to a year ago, there is much more ice under the snow, making for challenging conditions. The goal is always to have Sonora Pass, Ebbetts Pass and Tioga Pass open ahead of the busy Memorial Day travel weekend. Ebbetts Pass is currently closed at the east end of Lake Alpine and Tioga Pass is closed at Crane Flat.
This post was last modified on 04/21/2018 7:52 am
Written by BJ Hansen.
Sign up for our Breaking News Alerts and the myMotherLode.com Daily Newsletters by clicking here. Report breaking news, traffic or weather to our News Hotline (209) 532-6397. Send Mother Lode News Story photos to news@clarkebroadcasting.com.
For Caltrans traffic information for Highway’s 4, 49, 59, 108, and 120 plus a view of traffic on other Mother Lode roads and gas prices click on “Traffic” or keyword: traffic For an overview of extreme weather news stories go here.