As of June 20 the Forest Service has been unable to reach an agreement with the contractor to resume construction of the new access road into Monte Cristo. This delay will push back the start of the public exclusion from the area, which originally had been slated for early summer. How this might affect the overall schedule for the cleanup is unknown. A reminder that the exclusion is due to begin when road construction reaches the top of Hap’s Hill at mile post 2 on the existing county road.
Also, the vault toilet at the entrance to the townsite has become perhaps the first victim of the hazmat cleanup. The Forest Service decided not to maintain or service it this season, expecting the closure to come into effect before normal use became a problem. It is full already, the area around it unsanitary and unpleasant, and the building locked. Plan accordingly and practice good Wilderness ethics. The only maintained toilets are at Barlow Pass and at mile post 1, the trailhead for Gothic Basin just past Twin Bridges.