FILE - Crater Lake, with Wizard Island center, is seen on July 17, 2021.
Meagan Cuthill / OPB
UPDATE — Aug. 21, 2024 : The National Park Service announced Tuesday that the north entrance to Crater Lake National Park will remain closed indefinitely, to protect the safety of fire crews and the public. Get the latest updates here.
Original story below:
The north entrance to Crater Lake National Park is closed for a week to assist crews battling the Middle Fork Fire.
According to the National Park Service, the closure, which began Tuesday, will give firefighters access to prepare wildfire control lines along North Entrance Road.
Officials say fire crews will reduce fuels along the north-south route, creating a defensible zone to keep the fire from threatening park infrastructure.
It will also help prevent the fire from progressing farther east.
North Entrance Road will be closed from North Junction to the park boundary, at the junction with Highway 138. It will reopen on Monday.
According to officials, all other park roads will remain open, including the the park’s south entrance on Highway 62. But the Pacific Crest Trail was closed from the Dutton Ridge intersection to Highway 138, and other trails inside the park were also closed.
As of Monday, the Middle Fork Fire had burned nearly 5,000 acres. It was still 0% contained. Although only 31 firefighters are assigned exclusively to the Middle Fork Fire, crews from the Diamond Complex, which has 734 people assigned, are sharing resources.
The Diamond Complex, comprised of 27 lighting-caused fires outside the national park in the Umpqua National Forest, had burned about 8,500 acres and was 51% contained on Monday.