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Photos: Yosemite reopens under a blanket of snow

A view of El Capitan is reflected in the Merced River at sunset .
A view of El Capitan is reflected in the Merced River at sunset. The park received several feet of snow during the last storm.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)
By Carolyn ColeStaff Photographer 
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Yosemite National Park has reopened — or at least part of it has.

The latest park closure was Jan. 19 because of a windstorm that toppled hundreds of trees, including 15 in the park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias.

Other recent park closures occurred from March 20-June 11 because of the pandemic, then from Sept. 17-24 because of smoky air from the nearby Creek fire in the Sierra National Forest.

Rangers reopened most of the park Monday, including all of Yosemite Valley. But the park’s southern entrance, Wawona Road (Highway 41) will remain closed indefinitely, as will the Wawona, Badger Pass, Tunnel View and Mariposa Grove areas.

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Curry Village

Deep snow blankets the tent cabins at Curry Village.
Deep snow blankets the tent cabins at Curry Village, which remains closed after the most recent storm. The park received several feet of snow during the last storm.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)

Tunnel view

El Capitan and Cathedral Rocks dusted with snow.
El Capitan and Cathedral Rock dusted with snow as seen from Tunnel View. The southern entrance to the Yosemite Valley via Highway 41 remains closed because of damage from the recent storms.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)

Digging out

Mirella Gutierrez shovels snow in front of Yosemite Visitor Center.
Mirella Gutierrez, a park Spanish-language interpreter, shovels snow in front of Yosemite Visitor Center on her first day back to work.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)
Shuttle buses buried under snow and covered with snow.
Shuttle buses remain out of service and buried after a snowstorm.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)

Winter wonderland

A cross-country skier in the snow in Yosemite Valley.
A cross-country skier enjoys the snow in Yosemite Valley.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)
Two people walk through deep snow in the park.
Tourists from France hike back from Mirror Lake in deep snow.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)
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Parting shot

Snow-dusted Cathedral Rocks behind the partially frozen over Merced River in the Yosemite Valley.
Snow-dusted Cathedral Rocks behind the Merced River in the Yosemite Valley.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)

More visual journalism for the Los Angeles Times.

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Carolyn Cole

Carolyn Cole is a staff photographer for the Los Angeles Times. Her coverage of the civil crisis in Liberia won the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for feature photography. Cole has been named U.S. newspaper photographer of the year three times. Cole grew up in California and Virginia, before attending the University of Texas, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She went on to earn a master of art’s degree from Ohio University.

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