Paul’s Slide has gotten worse, so if you could reach it, no escorts are being allowed. Here are a number of photos of the Big Creek Slide by Dave Nelson, Thomas Leahy, David Halterman, and Mark Readdie. This is not going to be opened up anytime soon. This notice below is what Cal Trans sent out, but I heard from a local that a couple people from Esalen got through 35. Only way out for some people.
\”NEW INFO—PAUL’S SLIDE (PM 21.6) HAS WORSENED, NOT PASSABLE/ESCORTABLE TODAY…NEW SLIDES KEEP ROAD CLOSED FROM FULLER’S TO RAGGED POINT
+++CHP CONTINUES WITH NORTHERN CLOSURE OF HWY. 1 AT FULLER’S (PM 42)–EMERGENCY VEHICLES ONLY ALLOWED THRU ANDERSON CLOSURE–LOCALS WILL BE CITED BY CHP AND NOT ALLOWED TO TURN AROUND+++
State Route 1 CONTINUES closed from Ragged Point (SLO PM 72.87) to Fuller’s(MON PM 42) due to rock/mudslides in multiple locations.”
definitely a hard hat area – best to stay far away with stuff that big coming down. Grandpa Hettich had 8mm pictures of active slides from his days at Caltrans. You could see the unpredictability of the slides.
An Esalen staffer waited at limekiln for 2 hours today and was escorted through paul’s slide and able to drive through the big creek slide… Maybe around 1/1:30pm.
He was delivering food!
Jenny, can you provide a year and place for your grandpa?
bigsurkate
Old timers can remember when a worker was killed by a slide on CV Rd. Be careful, please.
Kate, Think they moved up to Big Sur around 1953. They lived in the convict house next to the Cal Trans Yard, south neighbors were the Forest Service Facilities. Ralph Dengate was the top guy that I remember. We loved going over to look at the heavy equipment. Wish there was a slide map for the north – can never remember where the Loblolly was – north of River Inn, but that is all I remember. After he retired from Caltrans, they bought a trailer and lived up above Loma Vista – he pumped gas and Gma Pat worked the gardens (she had worked for Steve and Alice for many years)
Mom sent me an email with the following – she was his oldest daughter: trying to find something about when he retired. Born in ’09. Retired at 62, I believe. So that gives you rough dates for when dad would have been working. They used to work 24/1, trying to keep the roads open for locals. He’d come home and drop onto the couch and sleep . Then eat and go out again. They did that until, I believe it was after he retired, when a Cal Trans worker was killed at night. From 51-57, when I would have been living there, we had a number of winters like this one.
Jenny, I just uploaded the “Central” Big Sur interactive map to the map page. That one goes up to Juan Higuera Creek and the Grange, so the next map. This one is pretty intensive as there are so many landmarks to include.
bigsurkate
More from my mom – We moved to bs in Sept 1951. Dad transferred up from theMorro Bay maintenance yard.. “Mac” MacQueen was foreman and lived in the stone house which is part of the MAF now. That area was actually the the Cal Trans maintenance yard. Next to it was our house, a convict cabin moved to bs from south coast con camp. While building Highway One there was a free camp and a convict camp. No PC in those days. Across a horse pasture was the house for the USFS Ranger, seasonal barracks, and stables for their mules. At the end was the little red school house. Manila Meyrose was the teacher while Johnny was in elementary school. Dad worked along with Steve Jaeger, Alvin Brazil and Jimmy Sommervill at different times. He retired…have to eatmore coming
I loved Paul and Pat Hettich. Loved the stories they shared, and Pat’s art. They were wonderful old-timers.
Thanks Kate for the new map.
Hello, I just came across this site searching the “Hettich” surname, as I grew up with Johnny Hettich. I lived in Big Sur from birth in 1947 until 1956, and then the summers of 1963 and 1964 when I worked at Big Sur Lodge.
My dad (Evon “Gus” Till) was a park ranger. My grandparents owned Redwood Lodge (George and Francis Phillips), and my aunt/uncle were Charlotte and Alvin Brazil.
I also see other familiar names here, include my grammar school teacher – Manila Meyrose.
We knew the Henry Miller family quite well, as I also went to Big Sur Grammar School with Tony Miller.
Lots of memories in this blog.
Stuart Till
Stuart, welcome. You can follow what is happening now, here in Big Sur, on this blog, and every so often, get some wonderful history lessons,
Thank you. I look forward to it.