Year: 2014

NWS Drought Monitor

20140220-172751.jpg

Here is the link drought monitor

Likely chance of rain on the 27th and 28th, but there are also early indications that early March may hold substantial rain. If so, maybe we can go from exceptional drought back down to extreme!

I am having trouble deciding whether to keep my links as-is (recently changed from fire to my winter weather watch links), go back to fire, or change to a combination, but pared down version of each. Think I’ll wait until mid-March and then decide.

BSMAAC Meeting 2/28 at 10 am – Highway One projects

When the agenda comes out, I will post it here, but I have a heads up about yet other Cal-Trans projects which will be leave the highway with one lane for both directions for a year or longer. Two of the 3 projects overlap and will have an impact on the South Coast – Elephants Trunk (down by Ragged Point) in October of this year, and Cow Cliffs (just north of Big Creek) starting in March of 2015. For 7 months or more, those of us on the South Coast between those points will have to deal with the lengthy lines that occur from the stoppage of traffic, no matter which direction we go. The third project is scheduled to impact the area between Hurricane Point and the new Rocky Creek Viaduct, but won’t start until July of 2018. That project and the Cow Cliffs project are scheduled to be added to the agenda for the 28th. The Elephant’s Trunk project was previously presented. Here is some information on the projects to be presented on the 28th.

20140218-163945.jpg

Boat on Beach

20140216-054210.jpg

This boat was found on Garrapata Beach Saturday. Law Enforcement are on board checking it out. Capt. Lingcod drove by and posted below: “Next, at Garrapata beach, there were various enforcement personnel, from NOAA, to DFG, to the CHP, parked along the road responding to what appeared to be something down at the beach.”

In January, panga boats smuggling marijuana were found in Ventura and Santa Barbara, and in December, one was found north of Piedras Blanca. In 2013, 16,000 pounds of mj were found smuggled into California on panga boats, according to KCOY news in SLO.

Photo by Lisa Kleissner

Here is a link to Sunday evening’s Herald article: Hearld

Saturday Among the Tourists

So, today, I’m braving the tourists and traveling down to Cambria to have lunch with a friend and do a bit of Cookie Crocking. It is President’s weekend. (Isn’t it early? Or is it just me?) There are high clouds and little sun. Yesterday was gorgeous up here, so I postponed this trip in order to catch a few rays on the deck. Today is a good day to wander on down. I’ll take pics, and if anything worthwhile finds its way into my camera, I’ll upload later.

Upcoming Week

While I completely LOVED the rain, and like everyone, I am praying for more, today was a nice change from the last four days. Sunny, gorgeous, summer-like – including looking down at fog on the coast. Our drought is the lead story on the CBS Evening News tonight, while the East and South are preparing for another horrific snow storm. Here, this week is expected to be warm and sunny. I’d like to get away from my computer, away from the Internet, and start working in a dreadfully, woefully neglected garden. So, if you don’t hear from me, check outside in the dirt!

And just for grins … Something I found on FB. 😉

20140210-204217.jpg

Road Conditions, Slides, and Sundry Sunday Musings

10:00 pm – from CHP website:

Details 00440 9:20 PM Trfc Collision-No Inj 3700 MM1 SR1 1/2 JNO JULIA PF BURNS STATE PARK Monterey

Detail Information
9:50 PM 3 [8] 1039 27-S6 AT OFC WITH CAL TRANS INFO
9:42 PM 2 [6] VEH RHS PER RP
9:26 PM 1 [2] 1125 LARGE BOULDERS 1/2 MI JNO JULIA PFEIFFER BURNS TATE PARK AROUND THE CORNER // 2 VEH TC – RP LEFT VEH’S HERE
Unit Information
9:32 PM 3 Unit Assigned
9:32 PM 2 Unit Enroute
9:33 PM 1 Unit Cleared

8:49 pm – wow! .67″ of rain per hour is the rate. It’s gone down to .39″

3:30 pm – I have no clue what this means, and no details noted. I do know we only have a Willow Springs CT, no Willow Glen! I do know that this is ONE of the places electronic signs are put when there are slides or other road conditions, but that’s all I know that might be applicable.

Details 00242 2:40 PM Request CalTrans Notify Willow Glen BIG SUR WILLOW GLEN C/T

10:00 am – NOAA discussion for today:

THIS ONE WILL ARRIVE THIS AFTERNOON AND FINALLY PUSH HEAVIER RAIN SOUTH THROUGH THE REST OF
OUR FORECAST AREA LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THE MODELS AGREE THAT THE MOST INTENSE RAIN RATES ARE BEHIND US AND THAT ADDITIONAL RAINFALL TODAY AND TONIGHT WILL MOSTLY BE MODERATE IN
INTENSITY. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL TOTALS THROUGH THIS EVENING ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 0.25 TO 0.75 IN AT LOWER ELEVATIONS AND FROM 1.0 TO 2.0 INCHES IN THE HILLS…AND PERHAPS LOCALLY UP TO 3INCHES ALONG SOUTHWEST-FACING COASTAL SLOPES.

SHOWERS WILL TAPER OFF FROM NW TO SE TONIGHT. A FEW SHOWERS MAY LINGER OVER THE SOUTHERN HALF OF OUR AREA INTO MONDAY MORNING. BUT FOR THE MOST PART MONDAY WILL BE A DRY DAY UNDER PARTLY CLOUDY SKIES WITH MILD TEMPERATURES. IN FACT…DRY AND MILD WEATHER IS EXPECTED FOR MOST OF OUR FORECAST AREA FROM MONDAY RIGHT ON THROUGH TO THE END OF THE WEEK.

Good day to make a 15-bean soup with left-over turkey. Putting off making a fire as cooking all day, and the housekeeping I plan on for today, too – forget the floor with 5 dogs tracking in mud all day, but other things need doing.

7:30 am – (oh my, my dogs let me sleep in!) Checking in with the CHP website, it appears the two slides from last night are cleared, and Cal-Trans is working at another – “Old Faithful” let loose. Interesting, since it is draped. Here is what it says:

Detail Information
7:45 AM 4 [10] A27-014 JNO MM 41 LRG BOULDERS PARTIAL 1125 IN NB LANE / CALTRANS ATTEMPTING TO MOVE THEM BUT NO SHOULDER IN AREA
6:29 AM 3 [7] 1039 ROGER BARNES – THEY WERE TURNED ON LAST NIGHT AND ALL OF THEM BELOW PLUS SOME ADDITIONAL ONES TURNED ON
6:25 AM 2 [5] RESIDENT HAS PUSHED MOST OO RDWAY / STILL PARTIAL 1125
6:16 AM 1 [1] ,,,, LRG ROCK SLIDE 1125 NB LANE COMPLETELY AND SB LANE PARTIALLY

Okay, water is boiling for coffee, so enjoy your day, stay safe and DRIVE SLOWLY!

Slide on Highway 1 near JP Burns SP in Big Sur

A locals perspective -Jon Knight drove from Big Creek to Partington Cove and saw no significant slides – rocks, yes. Slides, no. But there is now a second slide near Limekiln. This is what the CHP website says:

[31] 2ND SLIDE / SR1 AT LIMEKILN / VEHES CAN PASS OVER THE RUBBLE / FLARES OUT / ONE WAY TRAFFIC CONTROL
9:06 PM 12 [30] ORIG SLIDE SR1/JSO JULIA PFEIFFER BURNS / NB LANE IMPASSABLE / SB LANE OKAY / FLARES PUT OUT
9:05 PM 11 [29] B27-062 1039 ROGER BARNES / TURNED ON PORTABLE CMS SIGNS SB 1 JSO RIO RD/NB 1 AT WILLOW SPRINGS/ AND NB 1 AT HEARST CASTLE TO WARN OF ROCKSLIDES AHEAD
8:38 PM 10 [27] B27-062 DETERIMED LIMELKIN SLIDE MORE IMPORTANT / VEHS CAN SLOWLY PASS OVER RUBBLE / WILL DO ONE WAY TRAFFIC CONTROL
8:22 PM 9 [25] NB LANE COMPLETELY BLOCKED / SB LANE OPEN
7:50 PM 8 [21] [Notification] [CHP]-BRUCE OHAGEN CAL TRANS L/L ADVS THIS IS AT MM 36 WILL NOT RESP DUE TO SAFETY BUT CAN RESP TOMORROW AT 0600 HRS
7:01 PM 7 [19] S1 CTC CT REQ BARICADES FOR SLIDE, L1 NOTIFIED, S1 AVAIL BY CELL FOR UPDATES, NEEDS TO KNOW IF FULL RDWY OR 1 LANE ONLY
Note that there is no MM noted, yet, so this slide could be anywhere within 5 miles of JP Burns, especially if reported by tourists.

Details 00349 6:24 PM Mud/Dirt/Rock Cabrillo Hwy SR 1 AT JULIA PFEIFFER BURNS STATE PARK Monterey

Detail Information
6:50 PM 6 [17] THEY MAY BE ABLE TO RESPOND IF CLOSE ENUF
6:49 PM 5 [16] 1039 RAY ORTEGA / WHEN UNIT GOES 97 ADVS WHAT MM
6:48 PM 4 [15] 1039 SLO CHP W/INFO
6:42 PM 3 [11] 27-S1 SINCE CT WILL NOT RESPOND, ASK FOR ETA IN THE MORNING FOR WHEN THEY WILL RESPOND
6:41 PM 2 [10] 27-S1 ATIVATE CMS SIGNS FOR SR1 CLOSED OR DELAYED DUE TO MUDSLIDES NB AND SB
6:26 PM 1 [3] MAJORITY IN NB LN
Unit Information
6:35 PM 2 Unit Assigned
6:35 PM 1 Unit Enroute

Boulder in Road, Highway One, Big Sur

UPDATE – Correction, incident near Coast Gallery, mm 40. Here is the CHP update:

Detail Information
1:29 PM 5 [20] A27-014 SO DPTY W/UNIT WHILE HE WAITS FOR 1185 FOR HIS PATROL VEH [Shared]
1:25 PM 4 [19] A27-014 97 W/SO MM 40 SO BO VEH AND SML ROCK SLIDE / NEAR TC W/PATROL VEH // REQ CALTRANS [Shared]
1:04 PM 3 [17] 1039 BRUCE W/DOT WILL SEND PLOW OUT [Shared]
12:56 PM 2 [13] [Appended, 13:02:10] [4] 2FT BOULDER IN THE #1 LANE
12:54 PM 1 [1] 1125 NB LN , RP WAS ABLE TO GET AROUND ON SB SIDE

There is a big boulder in the road near the Deli. As those who live here know, this might just be the first of many. This is in the area burned in the Pfeiffer Fire in December. Fortunately we are not getting pounded like Marin – 6″ in 12 hours, and parts of Sonoma are approaching 12″ of rain. Still, be aware, pay attention, and SLOW DOWN!

1:04 PM 3 [17] 1039 BRUCE W/DOT WILL SEND PLOW OUT [Shared]
12:56 PM 2 [13] [Appended, 13:02:10] [4] 2FT BOULDER IN THE #1 LANE
12:54 PM 1 [1] 1125 NB LN , RP WAS ABLE TO GET AROUND ON SB SIDE