Yosemite officials warn of 'highly unusual' Royal Arches crack

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A Crackdown on a beloved tourist attraction in Yosemite National Park Park rangers have been forced to close several popular trails and issue safety warnings to visitors.

A rapidly growing crack on the western side of the Royal Arches cliff, Near the popular super slide climbing routeThere is danger of rock fall. These natural geological processes involve the separation and rapid downward movement of rock, According to the National Park Service.

California The park has temporarily closed the super slide track to ensure the safety of visitors. According to The Travel.

The crack in the massive granite rock, named Super Natural, was about an inch wide when it was first discovered by a climber in 2023. According to reports, it has since widened by about four inches.

Geologist and mountaineering ranger Jesse McGehee, sent to the area, said he could hear the Royal Arches “breaking like a frozen lake that had not been consolidated.”

Royal Arches Grassland in Yosemite Valley is located directly below Royal Arches, which park officials warn is rapidly growing cracks in its façade. ,National Park Service,

Half Dome is a famous hiking area located right next to the Royal Arches in Yosemite National Park ,getty images,

While Yosemite is prone to rockfall, McGehee said the way the rock fragments “were hitting the crack without touching” was highly unusual.

McGehee, who works as a climbing program manager at Yosemite, said, “The park geologist said he had never seen anything like it. He had never been able to observe it in his 15 years at Yosemite.”

Park officials have been vigilant about the crack since its discovery, and constantly warn visitors to be aware of their surroundings and to notify rangers if they see rockfall.

When announcing the closure in 2023, park officials said that their investigation showed that “this crack has partially separated a large column of rock, and cracking was actively occurring.”

Park officials continue to urge visitors to be cautious of their surroundings due to the possibility of cracks and rock falls ,AFP via Getty Images,

“As a precautionary effort to reduce the risk of rockfall, National Park Service A temporary area and trail closure is being implemented while the area is further investigated,” the closure notice read.

Those closed include the popular routes Serenity Crack/Sons of Tomorrow and Super Slide and everything in between, including Peruvian Flake West and Rhombus Wall.

According to reports, more than 1,000 rock falls have occurred in Yosemite National Park in the last 150 years. In 2024, there were 42 documented rockfalls, which the National Park Service described as a “relatively quiet year.”

There were 42 documented rock falls in Yosemite National Park last year. ,getty images,

Several popular trails in Yosemite National Park are closed through 2023 while officials investigate cracks in the rock formation ,getty images,

the officials also noted They will continue to closely monitor the crack to the west of Royal Arches next to the Super Slide climbing route.

two people Died in rock fall in Yosemite National Park in 2022Before that, it had been 18 years since the last accident involving a rock fall, which killed rock climber Peter Terbush in 1999, according to the NPS,

There have been at least 18 deaths and more than 100 injuries from rock falls since park records began in 1857.

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