Parks / Yosemite / South Entrance

Yosemite · Fish Camp / Oakhurst (Hwy 41)

Yosemite South Entrance: this week

Open — Winter Storm Watch Week of Nov 9–15, 2026

The South Entrance on Highway 41 from Fresno, Oakhurst and Fish Camp leads to the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, Wawona, and then Yosemite Valley, a little over an hour north.

This week's conditions Risks here now Get GOES before you lose signal

When signal drops, GOES steps in.

A winter storm watch, fire-scarred slopes and bears in the groves. Get GOES before Fish Camp so its offline cold-weather and injury guidance is ready.

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Official conditions

This week at the South Entrance

From NPS pages and alerts fetched Nov 12, 2026. Each line links to its source.

OpenWawona Road (Hwy 41): open. NPS
Heads-upNWS Winter Storm Watch for this area, issued Nov 11, in effect until Nov 17 at 4 am PST. NWS
InfoMariposa Grove Road: open only to vehicles displaying a disability placard. Everyone else takes the free shuttle from the Mariposa Grove Welcome Plaza, which runs approximately late April through November. NPS
InfoWawona Campground: open, reservation required until Nov 29. Bridalveil Creek Campground: closed. NPS
ClosedGlacier Point Road temporarily closes Thu Nov 12 at 5 pm. An area east of Wawona Road and south of Glacier Point Road remains closed after the Dome Fire; the Chilnualna Falls trail has reopened. NPS alert NPS
InfoFuel: Wawona, 24/7 by credit card. NPS

Entrance fee: Private vehicle $35. Non-US residents 16+ pay an additional $100 nonresident fee unless entering with an annual / America the Beautiful pass. NPS fees NPS API

Weather

Forecast near the South Entrance

Snapshot from the National Weather Service, fetched Nov 12, 2026. Live forecast loads below if you're online.Full NWS forecast

Winter Storm Watch — Winter Storm Watch issued November 11 at 5:33PM PST until November 17 at 4:00AM PST by NWS Hanford CA

Period	Temp	Forecast	Wind
Tonight	41°F	Clear	5 mph
Thursday	61°F	Sunny	0 to 5 mph
Thursday Night	37°F	Partly Cloudy then Slight Chance Light Rain	0 to 5 mph
Friday	46°F	Rain then Showers And Thunderstorms	5 to 10 mph
Friday Night	29°F	Showers And Thunderstorms then Slight Chance Rain And Snow	0 to 10 mph
Saturday	44°F	Slight Chance Rain And Snow then Mostly Sunny	0 to 5 mph
Saturday Night	29°F	Partly Cloudy	0 to 5 mph
Sunday	47°F	Partly Sunny	0 mph

Know the risks

What actually matters here in mid-November

The goal is a good trip, not a scary one. These are the hazards NPS highlights for this area and season, and what to do about each.

Winter storm on Hwy 41

The NWS forecast here shows rain and thunderstorms Friday, then a chance of rain and snow with a low near 29°F. Chain controls can start with little notice. NWS NWS NPS

In GOESEnvironmental Health: hypothermia and frostbite assessments

Fire-scarred areas

Stay out of the posted Dome Fire closure area. Burned slopes can drop rocks and trees, especially in rain. NPS NPS

In GOESOffline interactive health assessment + 50+ visual how-to guides

Bears in the groves and around Wawona

Bears are active parkwide. Store food properly and keep your distance in forest and meadows. NPS

In GOESWildlife Encounters: location-specific risk indicators for bears and other dangerous animals

Before you go in

Checklist for the South Entrance

Watch the forecast until you leaveThe Winter Storm Watch runs through Nov 17.
Chains and a full tankFuel at Wawona; carry chains even with 4WD.
Plan on the shuttle for Mariposa GrovePrivate cars need a disability placard.
Download GOES in Oakhurst or Fish CampBefore you drive into the forest.

Follow official NPS rules, posted closures and ranger instructions. They override anything on this page.

Park-wide

Yosemite risks everywhere in the park

Black bears in all areas

NPS: bears remain active in all areas of the park. Store food properly, use bear-proof dumpsters, and stay at least 50 yards from bears in forest and meadows — but yell at and scare away a bear that approaches you or is in a developed area. Yosemite has an estimated 300–500 black bears and no grizzlies. NPS NPS

In GOESWildlife Encounters: location-specific risk indicators for bears and other dangerous animals

Rivers and slick rock

Waterfalls are flowing low, as usual for November, but NPS still asks visitors to use caution along rivers and creeks: rocks are slippery even when dry. NPS

In GOESOffline interactive health assessment + 50+ visual how-to guides

Winter storm, chains and ice

NWS Hanford issued a Winter Storm Watch (Nov 11, until Nov 17, 4 am PST) for the park's southern area, and the forecast calls for rain and thunderstorms Friday, with snow possible at higher elevations. Carry chains even with 4WD and expect icy spots on mostly dry roads. NWS NPS NWS

In GOESEnvironmental Health: hypothermia and frostbite assessments

Smoke and air quality

The Dome Fire (Sept–Oct) was 86% contained with minimal activity as of NPS's Oct 13 update, and fire closures remain around the Glacier Point Road area. Air quality can still be affected by fires elsewhere or prescribed burns, so check current AQI before strenuous hikes. NPS NPS AirNow

In GOESRespiratory Hazards: smoke, pollution and pollen (AQI) monitoring

NPS alerts

All active Yosemite alerts

Pulled from the NPS Data API on Nov 12, 2026; the same alerts appear on nps.gov/yose.

Park ClosureTioga Road and Glacier Point Road will temporarily close on Nov. 12 at 5 pm. Tioga Road (continuation of Highway 120 through the park) and Glacier Point Road will temporarily close on Thursday, November 12, at 5 pm due to a forecast of snow. Call 209/372-0200 (then 1, 1) to check road conditions in the park.
InformationNo overnight parking on Tioga & Glacier Point Roads. Overnight parking is not allowed on Tioga Road and Glacier Point Road, including all parking lots reachable from these roads.

Your outdoor safety companion

When signal drops, GOES steps in.

A winter storm watch, fire-scarred slopes and bears in the groves. Get GOES before Fish Camp so its offline cold-weather and injury guidance is ready.

Works with no cell service: interactive health assessment and 50+ visual how-to guides, available offline.
Location-specific risks: wildlife (bears, venomous snakes), hypothermia, frostbite, heat illness, altitude, ticks, poisonous plants, UV and smoke/air quality.
200+ prevention tips across 60+ medical topics, also available offline.
Built by wilderness medicine physicians: founded by Dr. Grant Lipman, former Stanford Emergency Medicine professor and director of its wilderness medicine fellowship; Chief Medical Officer Dr. Colin Little, MD, FAWM.

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

Free to download. Premium features need a monthly or annual subscription after a 7-day free trial. GOES provides guidance. It is not a substitute for professional medical care. Follow official NPS rules and ranger instructions.

Other Yosemite entrances

Arch Rock EntranceOpen — Hwy 140 / El Portal Road
Big Oak Flat EntranceOpen — weekday delays
South EntranceOpen — Winter Storm Watch
Hetch Hetchy EntranceDaylight only — closes for snow

Yosemite overview, closures and park-wide risks →

Sources

Where this week's information comes from

Fetched Thu Nov 12, 2026 (JST), which is Wed Nov 11 evening in US time zones. We don't publish wait times, bear sightings or conditions we can't source. Check the official pages before you go — they're updated more often than we are.