Every year as the snow melts and crews work to get the roads to our favorite national parks ready and open for the thousands of tourists that visit every month, California Department of Transportation District 9 encounters massive boulders dislodged over the winter on State Route 120 West near Yosemite National Park.
While some of these boulders can be removed with equipment, the largest rocks, reaching up to RV sizes, need a different method of removal. Caltrans District 9 brings in a trained blasting team to safely execute detonations along the roadway.
Caltrans ensures there are no unauthorized personell on the highway or downhill from the blasting area and all are moved far away before the detonation. Once the explosions are complete, State Route 120 West can reopen to the east entrance of Yosemite National Park.
