Where is Highway 120 closed?

Does anyone know where highway 120 is closed from the east side? I'm wondering how long it would take to snow shoe in to the Valley. If anyone has done that and can share some beta, it would be much appreciated.
Thanks!
Dan

The closure is at Lee Vining at the bottom of the pass.

yea it would probably take you a few days cause it's usually close right at the start of the 120

Is that 5 miles a day, or 35?

As of right now, you could walk mostly on pavement up to Ellery Lake or just past from the bottom of the grade. Pretty bare…

Thanks for all the info! Bummer it's so dry, I was hoping for more snow. At least that would make it faster.I do have 8 days to do it, so I should be fine.

Dan Richards wrote:Thanks for all the info! Bummer it's so dry, I was hoping for more snow. At least that would make it faster.I do have 8 days to do it, so I should be fine.

That was my original idea. But I'm not sure of the distance, and I do have to do the round trip.I figure with a heavy winter pack, this will be a significant challenge.

Round trio in 8 day on shoes? I want to read the trip report! I've skied this monster, it's a looooooooong ride! More power to ya! And post it!!

Ya, I'm a bit curious about the feasibility of that round trip.I've decided to start at the Valley side and go as far as Tuolumne meadows. That way I can avoid starting near Lee Vinning. Still it will be a looong way. I'm still deciding on what trail to take. Do you have any info you can share with me? Like the time it took, trail you used, conditions you where in?
Any beta would be appreciated!
Dan

Back in the day (says yer ol'gramps) when i was a youngun, why we used to ski that thing in the morning.... NOT!
So i admit it has been way longer than i care to admit, but as far, and it ain't, as far as my memory serves we came down the Muir trail. The trick is finding the damn thing when there was 16' of snow in the meadow! Things just looks so different. There were some ancient tree flags (rangers would cut marks high in the trees so in the snow they were at eye level, if not buried)
I have come in from both sides to the meadow. It is a looooongg way from Crane flat, man, it kills, short and hard from Lee Vining. This was all on skis, mind you. The trail down to the valley is sweet, if you want to call it a trail. I remember a lot of avalanche shoots and a lot of wondering where the hell we were.I can not speak of either doing this valley up, or doing it on shoes. I know it would take mere mortals longer than 8 days to roundtrip this thing on shoes, fo sho! We were out for 2 weeks, if i remember, but that was normal for us then, lots of time. Stayed in the meadow for at least 10 days, just playing. You want a real adventure, i always thought doing Volgolsang to Merced lake and down to the valley would be fun.

Oh, conditions. 16' of snow in the meadow (a guess from the buildings, trees, etc.) dry at Mirror Lake. This was the '70's. We had great powder on top of a wet base, areas of Sierra Cement, but all in all, it was cold and dry. I remember a hard bad day from the gate on the East side to the top, if you start in the early (4 a.m.ish) you deal with ice for a while. I think it was two long days, dark to dark, from Crane Flat, but we had #80 packs...no shit, young and stupid! (we were out for 29 days on that trip...fun!) I would call the backcountry ranger for snow conditions and levels. And do not count on any cell service the whole while, even in the summer the only place i know to get service is on top of the domes and at the ranger station by the High Sierra camp in the meadow, which, of course, is closed.
DO IT! Have fun...and keep a couple of days for 'epic'.The boss/school does not take "I'm stuck in the snow" as a valid excuse.

Muscrat, Thanks for all the info! It sounds like I may have too high of expectations. I may need to adjust my plans. I'll probably just stay flexible and turn around when my time is up. I'm still undecided on which side to start on. I would love to make it Tuolumne, not sure I want spend 2 days on Hwy 120 though. Thanks for the info, I'll let you know how it turns out.