Date:	Friday, May 31, 2024
District:	05 – Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties
Contact:	Kevin Drabinski or Jim Shivers
Phone:	(805) 549-3138 or (805) 549-3237

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

UPDATE #7

HIGHWAY 1 AT PAUL’S SLIDE NOW EXPECTED

TO REOPEN EARLY TO MID-JULY

MONTEREY COUNTY – Highway 1 at Paul’s Slide, closed since January 14, 2023, when an estimated 500,000 cubic yards of material was displaced and engulfed the roadway, is now expected to reopen by early to mid-July. The southern closure of Highway 1, currently in place at Limekiln State Park, will move north and open direct access to the community of Lucia, the Camaldoli Hermitage, and area residents.

Paul’s Slide (Post Mile 22) has been a known active slide area for much of the history of Highway 1 on the Big Sur coast. Continued movement of the mountain at various locations within the repair zone proved a challenge during construction and will continue to be a background dynamic of the reopened highway. 

In part to address slide activity at this location, the roadway has been moved slightly inland and elevated at its south end. The repair will feature an expanded catchment area between the travel lanes and the slope. A concrete protective barrier and fencing will also extend along the northbound shoulder.

Crews are installing the last of three culverts which will convey water and debris below the roadway. Crews are also installing base material prior to final paving. In coming weeks crews will install guardrail, protective barriers, and place final striping in advance of the estimated early to mid-July reopening. 

Completion Estimates for Other Slide Repairs

Dolan Point (Post Mile 29.5) Activated March 8, 2024

Repairs at the Dolan Point Slide are expected to be completed by early summer. Completion of repairs at Dolan Point will not result in an adjustment to the northern turnaround point at Lime Creek.

Regent’s Slide (Post Mile 27.8) Activated March 9, 2024

The last of the repairs to be completed will be at Regent’s Slide. Due to challenging conditions associated with the extreme slope at the site, repairs at Regent’s Slide are now estimated to be completed in late fall. Completion of repairs at Regent’s Slide would open up Highway 1 to direct travel between Cambria and Carmel.

Bicyclists are not permitted through construction zones at the Dolan Point Slide or Regent’s Slide but are permitted to pass during regular convoy times at Paul’s Slide. Please note that Regent’s Slide is active, extremely steep, and the material across the road is unstable. There is absolutely no bicycle or pedestrian access on Highway 1 through Regent’s Slide.

Except for an 11-mile section where repairs continue, travelers from the Cambria / San Simeon area are able to travel north as far as Limekiln State Park. Travelers from the Monterey / Carmel area are able to travel as far as Lime Creek, south of the Esalen Institute.

Road information and updates can also be found on Caltrans District 5 Social Media platforms: Twitter at: @CaltransD5, Facebook at: Caltrans Central Coast (District 5) and Instagram at: Caltrans_D5.

Video shot on Sunday, May 26, 2024 from 3 to 4 pm by Marcus Foster

If you are a resident of Monterey County or own a business in Monterey County, the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau wants to hear from you. Please take their survey re tourism in Monterey County here:

https://survey.us.confirmit.com/wix/1/p577935877521.aspx?vend=99

Photos sent to me by Tricia Jackson

And from the chp (note an hour and 10 mins just to assign a patrol to check on this!):

Date:	Friday, May 24, 2024
District:	05 – Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties
Contact:	Kevin Drabinski or Jim Shivers
Phone:	(805) 549-3138 or (805) 549-3237

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

UPDATE #6

HIGHWAY 1 SLIDE REPAIRS MAKE PROGRESS WITH FULL OPENING BETWEEN CAMBRIA AND CARMEL ESTIMATED FOR LATE FALL 

MONTEREY COUNTY – With the exception of an 11-mile section where repairs continue seven days a week at three major slides, the remainder of Highway 1 on the Big Sur coast is open to unrestricted public access.

Although direct travel between Carmel and Cambria is still not possible due to these repairs, the traveling public is welcome to take advantage of all the features of the Big Sur coast. Travelers from the Cambria / San Simeon area are able to travel north as far as Limekiln State Park. Travelers from the Monterey / Carmel area are able to travel as far as Lime Creek, south of the Esalen Institute.

Completion Estimates for Slide Repairs

Repairs at the Dolan Point Slide are expected to be completed by early summer. Completion of repairs at Dolan Point will not result in an adjustment to the turnaround point at Lime Creek.

Repairs at Paul’s Slide are expected to be completed by late summer. At that point the current turnaround at Limekiln State Park will move north and provide direct access to the Camaldoli Hermitage and the community of Lucia.

The last of the repairs to be completed will be at Regent’s Slide. Due to challenging conditions associated with the extreme slope at the site, repairs at Regent’s Slide are now estimated to be completed in late fall. Completion of repairs at Regent’s Slide will open up Highway 1 to direct travel between Cambria and Carmel.

Progress at Repair Sites

Dolan Point (Post Mile 29.5) Activated March 8, 2024

After a top-down removal of slide material and reduction of rocks by blasting crews, double twist cable mesh has been installed along the face of the slope. Crews are working to connect the seams of dozens of 150-foot lengths of mesh which were lifted into place by helicopter. This mesh will add an additional layer of protection to the highway below the slope.

Paul’s Slide (Post Mile 22) Activated January 14, 2023

Crews have started installation of four major culverts at the site, completed final surveys for the new alignment of the roadway, and begun to install base material at the northern section of the repair. Crews continue to monitor and address slide activity above the repairs.

Regent’s Slide (Post Mile 27.8) Activated March 9, 2024

Crews began top-down removal of slide material on April 30. Crews are employing bulldozers at the top of the slide and smaller and more nimble machines called spider excavators to work material down the slope. Because of the severe slope even the spider excavators, which are designed to negotiate steep terrain, need to be tied to and anchored by the bulldozers above them.

Crews ceased work entirely for five days last week due to movement in the slope uphill of the repairs. Crews were able to resume debris removal work this week.

It is approximately 450 feet from the top of Regent’s Slide to the roadway and the slide itself covers the roadway and extends to the shore of the ocean. Repairs at Regent’s are complex and will at some point include reduction of rock material by blasting crews. The steep slope at this site means that repairs will continue with due deliberation and caution.

Highway 1 remains open to bicyclists on either side of the north and south turnaround points. However, bicyclists and pedestrians are not permitted to cross through Regent’s Slide. The slide is active, extremely steep, and the material across the road is unstable. There is no bicycle or pedestrian access on Highway 1 through Regent’s Slide.

Road information and updates can also be found on Caltrans District 5 Social Media platforms: Twitter at: @CaltransD5, Facebook at: Caltrans Central Coast (District 5) and Instagram at: Caltrans_D5.

Our crews deserve to get home safely too.

Drive slowly and carefully in work zones.

CHP Traffic Incident Information Page: http://cad.chp.ca.gov

Traveler information at: https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/

Regent’s Slide Repairs, May 16, 2024

###

Kevin Drabinski

Public Information Officer

Nick Sine sent me this, when he sent me notice that Rock Knocker’s former teacher/climbing boss and geologist for Caltrans passed on last week. He is featured in a few segments of the documentary. It is a wonderful documentary with old footage of building the road from Mexico to Canada. Of course the Coast Road in Central California is featured prominently. I must admit, I stopped watching at SF, so I can’t speak to the rest of it, but I sure loved Mexico to SF. It is a beautiful piece I had never seen before, and so I will share it with the rest of you, here. Enjoy, as I did. Thanks, Nick.

https://youtu.be/Ronb8bu-nlc?si=VhBl8jT25678Rs-L

Guest Commentary: The Best Way to Keep
Big Sur Accessible? Limit Lodging Development
By Tim Green
Anyone who has had the pleasure of winding along Highway 1 through Big Sur knows that it is one of the most beautiful and breathtaking drives on the planet. With cascading cliffs dropping sharply into the Pacific Ocean on one side of Route 1, and rugged, mostly inaccessible canyons carved by millennia of rainfall on the other side, driving through Big Sur can be a stunning, even spiritual experience. With as many as seven million visitors each year, chances are, if you’re reading this, you’ve experienced the wonder of Big Sur for yourself.
Maybe you’ve pulled over to take a picture by Bixby Bridge or got a lucky parking spot to take in the purple sands along blustery Pfeiffer Beach. For better or worse, Big Sur remains one of California’s – and the world’s – most wild and treasured places.
Sadly, this ecologically delicate region is facing a surge of visitors that threatens to crush the very things that make it so popular. When Highway 1 is intact and clear of slides, most people take in the sights of Big Sur on a one-way drive, heading north to Carmel or south to Cambria. This mobile mode makes sense, given that the Big Sur Coast Highway is officially designated an American National Scenic Byway. People pass through, rather than stay, in Big Sur.
Hotel and motel rooms can be tough to secure. That’s by design.
Four decades ago, Monterey County adopted the Big Sur Land Use Plan in recognition of all that was worth protecting in this one-of-a-kind coastal region. The Plan limited development and prioritized protecting Big Sur’s amazing views and very limited road capacity to enable widespread enjoyment of the area, keeping residents and overnight accommodations to a minimum.
But now there is a movement to weaken the Land Use Plan in favor of more development, largely the conversion of campsites into lodgings and homes into event venues. Developing Big Sur beyond its current limitations would cause irreversible harm, for residents, visitors, and for future generations. So, while policymakers are debating the Plan’s update, they should act now to establish a temporary moratorium on new lodging units.
There’s a good reason for these limitations. It is physically impossible to widen Highway 1. No one, including Caltrans, will argue otherwise. The coastline here is steep and rugged, not well suited to recreation and with very limited access.

The Big Sur Land Use Plan has been referred to as the gold standard of such plans. It takes extraordinary steps to limit all development – residential, commercial, and public – to preserve the area’s remarkable, unspoiled beauty and equally, to allow continued access for the greatest possible number of visitors. Throughout the Plan, visual access to Big Sur via Highway 1, a very limited capacity two-lane road, is emphasized, while physical access – destination development – is strictly limited.
Almost 50 years ago, the Coast Act of 1976 required the protection of and public access to coastal resources. In response, the California Coastal Commission initiated the Big Sur Special Study Area and cooperated with Monterey County in developing the highly protective Big Sur Local Coastal Plan. The resulting Monterey County transportation study included a statement that “Since the capacity of the existing highway cannot even support the projected recreational travel demand, no significant capacity appears to remain for future residential development, and future recreational use must be regulated as well.”
Yosemite National Park and Lake Tahoe, with their intense traffic and supersized overcrowding in peak seasons, have become cautionary tales for anyone trying to protect a universally loved natural area. The public complaints and pleas for a reservation system at Yosemite bolster the argument that the Plan limit all destination development in Big Sur and prioritize the public’s access to its Scenic Highway is the right decision.
It’s essential for the California Coastal Commission and Monterey County to hold the line against the growing efforts to increase development.
Increasing lodging capacity in Big Sur – including converting homes and campsites to high-end commercial facilities – would exacerbate already-heavy traffic and would materially diminish the sense of tranquility and awe so many people come to Big Sur to experience.
Big Sur doesn’t belong only to the people who live there. It is an international treasure that needs protection from being overrun. Our county and state leaders may take months or years to hash out updates to the Land Use Plan. Meanwhile, they should set a moratorium on new lodging development, to prevent irreversible damage. Like so many of the most special places on the globe, the way we save Big Sur for future generations is to use it lightly now.
Tim Green is a 50-year resident of Big Sur and co-founder of Keep Big Sur Wild.

(Originally printed in the Monterey Herald. Reprinted by permission of the author)

To learn more about Keep Big Sur Wild or to donate to this non-profit’s mission of protecting Big Sur by protecting its land use plan, see: https://www.keepbigsurwild.org/