The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park’s south rim will reopen Monday after a more than month-long, wildfire-fueled closure, park officials said.
The 4,232-acre sparked during a lightning storm on July 10, forcing evacuations and .
Operations on the national park’s north rim returned to normal on July 31 while firefighting activity continued on the south edge.
Now, just over two weeks later, some of the south rim will reopen to the public, according to a Thursday news release from the National Park Service.
Park officials said the visitor center and park store, Tomichi and Gunnison points, Rim Rock Trail from the visitor center to Tomichi Point, and the Red Rock Canyon wilderness route will reopen Monday morning.
The south rim, about 15 miles northeast of Montrose, will be open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, with the entrance gate locking at 6 p.m., park officials said.
The following areas will remain closed until further notice, according to the park service:
- East Portal Campground and the East Portal Road
- South Rim Drive beyond the visitor center to all traffic, including pedestrians and bicyclists
- The South Rim Campground
- All trails and wilderness routes accessed from the South Rim and East Portal
- All burned areas in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Those closures remain in effect so park staff can repair fire damage, according to the news release. Violators may be cited.
The rest of the park along South Rim Drive will open in stages as repairs are completed and deemed safe by the superintendent, park officials said. Burned land areas will remain closed indefinitely.
As of Thursday, fire officials said the wildfire remained 52% contained.
The number remains low because there’s no safe way for fire crews to physically check the canyon walls of the national park, where the fire was partially burning, . Firefighters confirm containment by placing their hands in the dirt and ash.
There’s “very little risk” of the fire spreading outside its current footprint, according to fire officials.
