Merced County’s COVID-19 rules have loosened. What’s OK during Memorial Day weekend?

It’s been tough for Merced County residents to celebrate recent holidays during the coronavirus pandemic.

Many people weren’t able to gather with family for Mother’s Day or religious holidays like Easter, Passover and Ramadan.

However, Memorial Day weekend may look different than the recent holidays under COVID-19 restrictions, now that Merced County is taking the next steps to reopen with approval from the state.

“Memorial Day 2020 will be different from Memorial Day 2019 and probably different from Memorial Day 2021,” said Merced Mayor Mike Murphy. “I’m relieved to hear of the loosened restrictions, as far as what activities can be done, coming down from the state. That will be helpful as far as our residents being able to participate in the economy.”

On Wednesday, the Merced County Department of Public Health announced Merced County has been approved by the state to move into the latest phase of reopening some businesses.

Despite the loosened rules, community life will not be returning to its pre-coronavirus days. Businesses, parks and lakes will all have guidelines for people to follow to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Local restaurants and gatherings

With Merced County approved to begin Stage 2.5 of the state’s reopening plan, gatherings of 10 or fewer people are permitted. Which means a small gathering for a Memorial Day barbecue in the backyard can take place.

Of course social distancing guidelines still must be adhered to for people not in the same household, which means staying 6-feet apart.

If you’re tired of cooking at home, many restaurants are now permitted to begin service for dine-in customers.

Restaurants and businesses will have modifications for limited capacity in place so individuals can social distance by 6 feet. They will also provide hand-washing stations or disinfectant. Workers will be regularly cleaning surfaces and posting signs at entrances to inform employees and customers of requirements.

Employees are encouraged to wear face coverings.

Enjoying the outdoors

The National Weather Service predicts the temperatures to rise from the mid 80s on Friday and Saturday to as high as 97 degrees on Monday.

For those looking to get out of the house, Lake Yosemite, Lake McSwain and Lake McClure are all open.

Boat and kayak launching will be available at Lake Yosemite. However, visitors will not have access to the two playgrounds, the walking pier and the group picnic area, due to COVID-19 restrictions, according to County of Merced spokesperson Mike North.

“It’s the same rules that we’ve had in place for the last few days,” North said. “The park around the lake will be open. We’re following the health orders and asking people to social distance. We can’t have groups of more than 10 people.”

Local residents will have access to boating, shore fishing, hiking and biking at Lake McClure and Lake McSwain.

Local residency is currently defined as those people from Mariposa County and eastern Merced County (Snelling, Planada, Le Grand, Merced, Atwater, Winton, Cressey, Ballico and Livingston) as well as Turlock, Denair, Hughson, Hickman, Waterford and Oakdale. Also included are residents within 10 miles of the Lake, Coulterville and La Grange.

Camping with RVs and trailers with self-contained restrooms are available at Lake McSwain and Lake McClure, according to Mike Jensen, Merced Irrigation District public and government relations officer. Camping with a tent is temporarily not allowed. As of Thursday, there are still a few campsites available.

People headed to Lake McSwain and McClure are advised to get there early and bring their own soap or hand sanitizer. The day-use area opens at 6 a.m. and closes at 8 p.m.

“We are only allowing 50% capacity for the day-use area to allow for social distancing,” Jensen said. “Last weekend we reached capacity and had to turn people away. Our advice is if you’re coming up, come early.”

Restroom facilities at Lake McSwain and Lake McClure are available, but only one person is allowed in a restroom at a time. No campfires are permitted.

All five state parks located in Merced County are open to local residents, but are closed to vehicular access. The parking facilities are not open and parking isn’t allowed on the roadways.

This week 27 state parks were able to partially open their parking lots, but there were no state parks located in Merced County included on that list.

People can still bike or walk-in to George J. Hatfield State Recreation Area, Great Valley Grasslands State Park, McConnell State Recreation Area, Pacheco State Park and San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area.

The State Parks Website lists a set of guidelines for visitors including to stay active. “Keep walking, jogging, hiking and biking. Watch for one-way trails.” The guidelines also include, “Maintain a physical distance of 6 feet or more. Gatherings, picnics and parties are not allowed. Visitors are being asked to leave if there are too many people at the park or on trails to allow for the required physical distance.”

Outdoor museums are included on the list of approved businesses for reopening. The Castle Air Museum reopened for visitors on May 8. If you’re interested in viewing planes, the museum has 73 planes and aircraft on display.

Parks are open in Merced but playground equipment and sheltered areas are off limits, according to city spokesperson Mike Conway.

“So far we’re following the county guidelines as far as parks go,” Conway said. “People can go in the grass areas and have picnics with their family.”

What you can’t do this weekend?

If you’re looking to get together with friends or family for the holiday, be mindful that gatherings of more than 10 people still won’t be allowed under the public health guidelines.

While shoppers can return to many stores, the Merced Mall won’t be permitted to open until after June 3.

If you want to see a movie, you’re still stuck with streaming flicks at home — with the exception of the relatively nearby Madera 2-Drive In, which opens Friday.

Regular sit-down movie theaters aren’t permitted to open yet. Neither are bars, nightclubs or wineries. Gyms still aren’t able to open, either.

No weekend gambling trips are permitted because casinos are still included on the list of businesses that aren’t allowed to open. Although that didn’t stop a Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento at Fire Mountain in Wheatland from reopening on Thursday.

Zoos will also remain closed. Public pools, picnic areas and playgrounds are still off limits.

Those looking to get outdoors to go for a hike can also scratch Yosemite National Park off as a possible destination this weekend.

The park released a reopening plan earlier this week with the hopes of opening in early June. With the visitor capacity expected to be reduced to about 50%, day-use permits will likely need to be requested in advance.

This story was originally published May 21, 2020 at 6:16 PM.