It will be interesting to see if you can go any farther beyond Ripplebrook or if the road will be closed there....

At least it is progress..... I question whether this would have happened if it hadn't been for the Facebook group.

I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for Road 46 and/or Road 57 to open.  The FS recently started a second and redundant environmental review process of all the roads in the burned areas, including 46 and 57.  If they follow their standard timelines, it will be many months before any action can be taken based on that environmental review.  Access to the Collawash, Lake Harriet and other unburned areas is being held hostage until this pointless paperwork exercise is completed. 

Doug Firman said
I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for Road 46 and/or Road 57 to open.  The FS recently started a second and redundant environmental review process of all the roads in the burned areas, including 46 and 57.  If they follow their standard timelines, it will be many months before any action can be taken based on that environmental review.  Access to the Collawash, Lake Harriet and other unburned areas is being held hostage until this pointless paperwork exercise is completed.   

I share your concern for sure.  There is quite honestly no reason why 46 couldn't be open the few miles that are burned until its junction with 63, which would open up HUGE swaths of completely unburned land.

I think we should recruit Pete to help in this endeavor - I think he was a HUGE reason why 224 is finally opening up.  I hope some similar common sense will be in play at the FS now.  Who knows, maybe the new Ranger is more amenable to citizens actually being able to enjoy the national forests?

After a meeting last night with the FS, they still won't give a timeline for when FS 46 from 57-63 might open. I agree with Doug that this is a meaningless paperwork exercise to include that section of road into the plan for miles and miles of spur roads in the heart of the fires. But alas, that seems to be where they are at. I've tried many times and again last night to stress that in order to avoid a problem-plagued summer on Hwy. 224, they need to get travel open up to the upper river to give some place for people to spread out. It is certainly hard to tell with the FS whether they are truly understanding that point or just nodding their head until I stop talking. They also wouldn't commit to when the Forest Closure order would be adjusted to reflect the actual fire-impacted areas rather than making roads as boundaries.

There was also a lot of gloom and doom talk about Hwy. 224 after it is open but it is hard to tell whether that is just trying to scare people away or whether it will be the reality.

So still in a holding pattern unfortunately and it will be interesting to see how this all plays out by July. My hope is that there will be some come to Jesus moment for the FS in June and they will make some appropriate changes in their approach but we shall see.

Wish I had better news.