Once again (I swear I am staying home for a month when these appointments are done), but I thought you might like to see the aerial of Mud Creek I posted yesterday side-by-side with the same area BEFORE the slide as depicted by Google Earth, thanks to Everitt Chase. You got it perfectly, Ev. Thanks.
I’ll keep you posted on our only way in and out when I get a chance. Oh, and a nice article on the history of slides here in Big Sur by KQED HERE
Mud Creek remains completely closed. Paul’s Slide continues as it has been, opening times above in the “sticky” permanent post above. Aerial of Mud Creek by Madonna Construction:
Convoy times for 6/15/17:
*Update #6*
CALTRANS ANNOUNCES NEXT CONVOY TO PFEIFFER CANYON BRIDGE—LONG DELAYS EXPECTED
MONTEREY COUNTY – Caltrans will continue the process of delivering construction equipment and materials to the site of the demolished Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge on State Route 1 via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road from US Highway 101 on Thursday, June 15. Some equipment will begin moving out one piece at a time, throughout the week.
These convoys will be escorted by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and will include intermittent closures of Nacimiento-Fergusson Road on Thursday, June 15 from 8 am until 7 pm. Motorists wishing to travel east/west in the morning must do so before the first convoy begins. On Thursday, motorists will encounter delays during the movement of these four convoys westbound from 8 am to 10 am and 2 pm to 4 pm and eastbound from 11 am to 1 pm and from 5 pm to 7 pm. All vehicles must not exceed 30 feet in length and a weight of 15 tons.
The Thursday convoy again will include rock, sand, cement and reinforcing steel. Future convoys will include more of the same, in general, materials and equipment to construct the abutment support and overall construction of the new Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge (PM 45.52).
This cheetah mama had 5 cubs, two are out of the frame. She is famous as she was a very hard-working mama to have so many in the wild, with all surviving. Here, there are almost as big as mama, but here is another photo of her when her cubs were small. I did not take the photo below, but it is gorgeous.
This may be true for other days, but this Friday evening around 5:30 pm, going WB on the flats by the Nacimiento River, 3 pick-up trucks and 1 SUV, probably driven by the contractors going home for the weekend, were bound and determined to have a head-on collision with us. Driving that narrow windy road as if it were a race track, with no regard to staying on their side of the road, we had to come to a complete stop, screaming and yelling at them to slow down. They were traveling together. Fast and reckless. Someone is going to get hurt. We will be avoiding Friday evenings if at all possible.
Last night, there was a head-on collision. USFS and the CHP were still on scene at 9 pm, and estimated the time for a tow-truck to get to the scene…3-8 HOURS. Fortunately, the injuries were minor – evenly matched cars, not car vs. big truck, I suspect, and seatbelts. This was inevitable. People are unfamiliar with that road. It is 1 and 1/2 lanes wide in many places, very mountainous, no guardrails and very windy. People are driving it way too fast and not staying on their own side of the road around blind corners. SLOW IT DOWN, PEOPLE!!!
UPDATE: Pick up vs. SUV, Locals vs. Euros
The noon opening at Paul’s Slide is scheduled to happen, but FHL warns of significant delays. I saw a lot of tactical equipment and soldiers being gathered in various places today, a flashing sign warning of delay, and a fire burning since yesterday south of the gate on the western side, presumably in the tank field. FHL issued this announcement:
“Hi all!
So our peak training season started June 1 and will last through end of
July. There will be period temporary road closures along
Nacimiento-Fergusson Road and other on-post roads to allow for military
traffic. I try my best to get info out on Facebook (it’s the only social
media platform I use) when I actually get info from staff.
On June 7, the Mission Rd and Nacimiento Ferguson Rds will be closed from
1130-1330 or possibly longer due to the significant military activities.
However, the police may allow for public to pass as long as they can control
the situation. There will also be a loud noises due to explosives used by
Air Force.”
Amy Phillips – PIO, FHL
Having just done that exhausting run today, I must say, just when one thinks the challenges can’t get any more, well, challenging … they do.
HIGHWAY 1 UPDATE – Monday, June 5 at 10:30 AM:
PAUL’S SLIDE ON STATE ROUTE 1 REMAINS CLOSED TO EVERYONE THROUGH TOMORROW EVENING, TUESDAY, JUNE 6 BUT WILL RE-OPEN ON WEDNESDAY MORNING, JUNE 7 FOR ITS USUAL ACCESS SCHEDULE TO LOCAL RESIDENTS/DELIVERIES ….WE WILL CONTINUE RE-ASSESSING AND AN UPDATE PROVIDED BY MID-DAY THURSDAY, JUNE 8. (See Update under “Paul’s Slide” for more details.)
STATE ROUTE 1 REMAINS FULLY CLOSED IN BOTH DIRECTIONS AT MUD CREEK DUE TO CONTINUED SLIDE ACTIVITY. DELIVERY VEHICLES AND LOCAL RESIDENTS WILL NEED TO USE NACIMIENTO-FERGUSSON TO EXIT SOUTH OR TO CLEAR THE ACCESS TIMES AT PAUL’S SLIDE.
THE INFORMATION BELOW IS FOR LOCAL RESIDENTS AND DELIVERY VEHICLES ONLY;THE ONLY ACCESS TO THE PUBLIC REMAINS THE SAME AND IS SHOWN IN BRACKETS BELOW.
Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)— Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)— REMAINS CLOSED TO EVERYONE THROUGH TOMORROW EVENING, TUESDAY, JUNE 6 BUT WILL RE-OPEN ON WEDNESDAY MORNING, JUNE 7 FOR ITS USUAL ACCESS SCHEDULE TO LOCAL RESIDENTS/DELIVERIES.
IMPORTANT NOTE: THE ROADWAY THROUGH PAUL’S SLIDE CAN CLOSE DOWN AT ANY TIME WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE . CALTRANS NEEDS TO CONTINUE RE-ASSESSING THE SITUATION AND DETERMINE WHETHER LOCAL ACCESS CAN REMAIN THROUGH PAUL’S SLIDE.
· 12:00PM Monday / Wednesday / Friday– A single caravan south and a single caravan north, you must be in line by noon! There may be up to 45 minute delay to clear the road before the opening.
· Delivery vehicles (Restriction is 30 feet maximum length and 50,000 lbs. maximum weight) can now use all access windows 7 days a week.
· Access times for the morning and evening are still the same except for Friday:
5:30AM to 6:00AM and 7:00PM to 7:30PM – Sat.-Thurs.
· Friday’s hours will be shortened to:
5:30AM – 8:00AM and 6:00PM to 7:30PM
· The noon opening will be for PAUL’S SLIDE ONLY, (NOT MUD CREEK); you will need to use Nacimiento-Fergusson Road to exit the coast.
The targeted “public access” date of early July needs to be re-assessed with recent activity, public opening date could be pushed further out.
Finally, another convoy for supplies and equipment to Pfeiffer Bridge is scheduled for Thursday, June 8th from 8 am to 7 pm.
The Thursday convoy will include rock, sand, cement and reinforcing steel. Future convoys will include more of the same, in general, materials and equipment to construct the abutment support and overall construction of the new Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge (PM 45.52).
Cal Trans did not explain what that yellow outline at the bottom of the Sea View Ranch means or is.
I like this one because it shows where the road used to be so clearly.
This was sent to me by a reader. It was taken yesterday. Any of you taking that road, please take photos and send to me at kwnovoa@mac.com Please do NOT send them to me via FB PM, as I can’t always download those. I have sent this photo on to County and to Cal Trans. We need to keep an eye on our only way in and out and let the people responsible know what the speeding, overloaded trucks (probably Cal-Portland, the blue trucks, witnesses report) are doing to this road. I will try to get my own photos on Thursday. BTW, this section of road was JUST repaired after the storms and before the convoys started.
Wednesday, we left for town – they all have to be an overnighter, unless it is a quickie in King City. That is when we saw the Cal-Portland unannounced convoy with 8 trucks. It has been reported to me by a reliable source that these 8 loaded trucks were not headed to the bridge, so where were they going? Someone sneaking in a private project when there is no oversight? I am curious, and will do what I can to try and find out.
UPDATE ON CAL-PORTLAND: “Hey Kate the Cal Portland company is repairing the area between Paul’s and the bridge. Today they were working on the 2 slips south of Lucia. They dumped about 1/2 of the road base in our lower parking area. I am not sure where the rest of it went. I’m sure some went by Lopez point. Just thought I’d let you know what I’m seeing down here. It is nice to see some of the damage getting worked on, but really scary that it all has to come over naci.”
Thursday, we got caught in the announced convoy.
We got to a very wide turnout on Nacimiento, east of the Pinedorado Campground, with a lot of empty trailers parked on the side of the road. We were greeted by this:
It was only 4:30. The Cal Trans press release seemed to say that passage between 4 and 5 was okay. I was perturbed, but no use, so relaxed with it. We were only the second car to arrive at the road block, and this nice CHP officer, when an hour of waiting concluded, lined us up in the order in which we had arrived. We visited with Robert Willett and Kate Healy, and a few others, but basically just relaxed in the shade.
The convoy was about 18-19 trucks, give or take 1 or 2 as I stopped counting at a dozen, then realized what I was doing and started up again, adding 2 for what I figured I missed. They were transfer trucks. What happens is that the trucks unhook their trailers and leave them by the side of the road, then go dump the load they have. These were probably the same type of “super 10 yards” (which are actually 15 yards, per a trucking friend with Windsor) that we saw by Cal-Portland trucks we saw on Wednesday, but these were Granite and a few private ones. After they dump the truck load, they come back and load the transfer onto the truck, leaving the trailer bed behind. Once they dump the contents of the transfer, the come back and load the transfer on to the trailer bed, hook up and take off.
Quite the operation. I do not know if the Cal-Portland trucks did the same thing, or not, as it was not a Cal Trans sanctioned convoy, and may have been commissioned by a private party. I did find the newly installed East side sign, not too far inside the forest boundary:
And there are always silver linings:
A beautiful room at the Nine Iron on Moonstone Beach:
And here is a better one of Missy:
Dinner at the Sow’s Ear with a friend:
And paratrooper drops on FHL:
Two final items of note, I have been working with a very cooperative county Public Works representative, and will obtain a copy of the latest bi-annual bridge inspection report in about 10 days or so – they are in the middle of moving their office.
Finally, Cal Trans current projected opening dates are, from north to south:
*Pfeiffer Bridge – end of Sept. 2017
*Paul’s Slide – end of July 2017
*Mud Creek – June 2018
REMINDER: PAUL’S SLIDE CLOSES TONIGHT AT 7;30 PM THRU TUESDAY, JUNE 6TH, UPDATE EXPECTED MONDAY.
