It was never officially closed, just blocked by so much debris it was almost impassable.
Back in the cooler months paddlists willing to climb, bash, drag and crawl in mud would
pass us while we worked on the trail. I haven't been down there since it got hot and
buggy but I understand that they have locked the gate at the highway during other
summers. So few people would attempt to slice through the bugs in the summer that
they locked it just to reduce patrolling areas.
I was down on Thursday and Saturday, both days the gate was open. The roads a bit rough. A new buttonwood has come down across the trail near the launch but we hope to clear it within the next two weeks. There are still a few trees that you have to zig around but it's better than most trails. Some pneumataphores still need to be cleaned out but the ones that we removed has restored better tidal flow. Hopefully, this and some increased traffic will clean out some of the more silted in areas that will be a problem at the end of the dry season.
OBTW: Terry was that you I saw pulling out of noble hammock on Saturday around 6 pm??