I apologize if this has been discussed recently and I've missed it, but is the road leading up to Looking Glass open to vehicles, or would I have to make the long hike up to the nose area and the north side? I am planning a trip in early/mid June there and just wanted to be prepared on whether or not I can drive up the road since I know Helene did some major damage to the area. Thanks for any info!
Just talked to the ranger, apparently it’s changing day to day and is not posted anywhere (open today 5/1/25). Best bet is probably to just have Fate Osteen or John Rock as a backup since you park at the fish hatchery before the dirt road.
You can enter 475b from the bottom (near the Fish Hatchery) or the top and I believe the bottom gate has been closed since Helene and the top gate has been open about 90% of the time (open from the top all the way to the nose parking. If for whatever reason both are closed, the hike to the South Side is only ~40 minutes.