Author: bigsurkate

Appointed appellate counsel for indigent defendants (retired.) I have lived in Big Sur since 1984, first on the north coast, and on the South Coast since 1989.

Missy alerting on Thunder

4:32 pm – Immediate evacuation of the Alamo Fire burn area due to expected flash floods. Significant damage in Santa Barbara Harbor due to the high winds. Flash flood warning for SLO Co and Southern Monterey County as well. AA 340 just sent to Santa Barbara for a search & rescue mission.

4:00 pm – I can’t hear a thing, but Missy? She has come to sit by my feet under my desk, a behavior she only exhibits for thunder and gunshots. I also got a weather alert for severe thunderstorms in Santa Barbara, and apparently that is happening now. SLO is expected to get thunderstorms as well. This is what KSBY in SLO says:

“The Central Coast is looking at another day of heat combined with the threat of continued isolated showers and thunderstorms. Tropical storm Lidia will shift north while expanding coverage today. The Central Coast should expect increasing mid to high level subtropical clouds, rain showers and chance of thunderstorms Sunday evening into Tuesday morning. About 1/3 inch of rain is expected for many locations over three days.”

This is not good news as there are fires throughout California threatening homes. There are too many to list. Two just started this afternoon, Mission Fire in North Fork, south of Bass Lake and Oakhurst, and Peak fire in Bootjack, near Mariposa.  Structures already lost in both, and people can’t evacuate from one housing area. The La Tuna in LA has caused the evacuation of parts of Burbank, Glendale, and LA.

Stay alert and aware. It is a bad weekend.

Weather West CA temps map for Sat

Daniel West, weather forecaster extraordinaire issued this map late Thursday.

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Look at those temps! “Why is it always so hot on big weekends?” the fire chief, Martha Karstens, bemoaned. This is critical fire weather folks. No campfires, no matches, no cigarettes, and as one visual says:

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Honestly, this community cannot survive another big one this close to the Soberanes. We have another heavy winter ahead of us, and we haven’t yet recovered from this double whammy. Please, help us by being vigilant and reporting any and all campfires.

More Illegal Campfires

This one was found this week by Sander Koning at the Grange. Note all the redwood duff?? Hard to miss the unburnt log, either…sigh…

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The Study of Mud Slides

There is an interesting article in Nature.com sent to me by Anni Agren on global mudslides. Of course, the cover photo is our own local phenomena. I love this global map, showing Mud Creek, California, as if it were a town.

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The article is not accurate, at least as far as Mud Creek is concerned, “And after two years of slow movement, the Mud Creek landslide in Big Sur, California, rapidly wiped out half a kilometre of the state’s popular Highway 1 in May this year.” Mud Creek  has been moving a helluva lot longer than 2 years. At least 37, according to Rock Knocker, who has the photos to prove it. Nevertheless, the article is worth reading Here.

 

 

Cal Trans & Mud Creek

Meeting today between all the responsible parties (and PIOs) re developing the time line for opening as well as projected costs. Will be released to the media (and others) at Susana’s update on Tuesday. Anxiously awaiting release.

Vegetation fire early this am on John K’s property

As some of you already know, there was a fire early this am in the eucalyptus grove on John K’s property (don’t ask me to spell it. I can’t.) back behind the deli, sorta, south of Rancho Rico, and the BSVFB got the call out. I got a notification at about 2:30 am from a local (I was up as it was too hot to sleep) and others woke from the smell of smoke. I decided not to post then for many reasons – no need to panic, wanted additional information, etc. and I was right. By this morning, it was a done deal. 14 BSVFB members were on scene in no time and had it under control. According to WildCAD LPNF members were also dispatched. Now is a good time to make a donation to our local fire brigade. 😘

Highway One Closure Update, 8/28/17

1) Photo of Mud Creek (PM 8.9) from last week attached; 2-3) Photos below of Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Launching (PM 45.42) from last week.

HIGHWAY 1 UPDATE – Monday, August 28:
Highway 1 in Monterey County continues to provide 35 total miles of Hwy. 1 to the public from south of Gorda (PM 10) to just south of Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.5), accessible only via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. State Route 1 remains closed from north of Salmon (just south of the Ranger Station (PM 3) to just south of Gorda (PM 10) due to the Mud Creek event. State Route 1 south of Salmon Creek is accessible via State Route 1 in San Luis Obispo County, past Ragged Point to Salmon Creek.

REMINDER: Travelers CANNOT travel the entire length of Highway 1, but local businesses are open on both sides of the closure points at Pfeiffer Canyon and Salmon Creek.

Mud Creek (PM 8.9)
Mud Creek had a major slide on Saturday, May 20, 2017, losing 5 million cubic yards of material. Caltrans continues with its plan to realign the existing terrain. A tentative cost and timeline are targeted to be announced next week. The roadway remains impassable.

There is no public access through the Mud Creek area as this is an active construction zone.

Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)
Paul’s Slide continues to provide access to the public 24/7, with one-way reversing traffic control with flaggers.

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge [PCB] (PM 45.52)
· The bridge launching over the canyon took place last week. Removal of the tower grillage and construction the cribbage at the abutments is next, in preparation

LOVING THE WILDERNESS TO DEATH…

“If you were to hike nearly nine miles into a wilderness area, paralleling a creek through alpine meadows and woods, you might expect to find solitude. But that’s not the case at Conundrum Hot Springs, an extremely popular area of natural pools at an elevation of over 11,000 feet with views of surrounding peaks in White River National Forest. Dozens — and on busy weekends, sometimes hundreds — of overnight visitors hike in. Some even carry speakers and cases of beer. “It’ll be like you’ve gone to someone’s backyard for a pool party,” Karen Schroyer, Aspen-Sopris district ranger, says.”

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One can read the rest of this article here: http://www.hcn.org/articles/recreation-the-conundrum-of-loved-to-death-wilderness?utm_source=wcn1&utm_medium=email