“Personality One” Part 1
Tag: Highway One
Commercial shoot on March 20th may impact Highway One traffic
This is from The mid-coast fire brigade, but could impact the rest of us, if one is going to town north that day.
On March 20, 2014 a commercial shoot will take place at the Grimes Ranch @ Highway 1 and Palo Colorado from 7am to 7pm.
Although everything should take place in the grass field please leave early and give yourself time as they may block the road for short periods. The commercial shoot will include the “Bixby Bridge” with CHP potentially closing the road for undetermined times. If you are headed South (or North for the rest of us)….please be aware and plan accordingly.
—
Cheryl Goetz
Fire Chief
Mid Coast Fire Brigade
831-625-8175
The “Personality One” by Don Harlan, or How Elephant’s Trunk Got its Name – Introduction
Don Harlan is the original road warrior. He worked Highway One for many, many years. He was the Supervisor at Willow Springs when Rock Knocker first came to work there in 1980. Don was part of the Lucia Loge Harlan’s and grew up and was schooled down here. He had many road stories, dating back to the 30s, when he watched the north and southern portions connect.
In 1971 he wrote an article which is passed on to the Supervisors (foremen in Don’s time) who work this section of the Highway. Greg DeAlba, the current supervisor shared this with me, and I think it would make an interesting serial for this blog. In it, Don describes the various trouble spots and how they came to be named. There is nothing PC about this piece, but it is a delight to read, both for the historical value and for Don’s writing style. He was one of a kind. Long after he retired, he showed up to Rock Knocker’s and my wedding in his hard hat. He never left home without it.
On Mondays, absent an emergency fire, flood, or road closure, I will be offering a segment of this piece, as it is 11 pages, single spaced. I am taking photographs of each portion, rather than re-typing it so that it is entirely true to the man Don was – and I can’t mess it up! Look for part 1 next Monday.
Highway One Open as of 6:30 am
I think the title says it all. From Cal Trans:
“A rock slide overnight on Highway 1 south of Big Sur near Coast Gallery @ Post Mile 42 has been cleared and the roadway reopened. this morning with no restrictions.”
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
Found Terrier-mix puppy
UPDATE – what an awesome place we live in! Only moments after I first posted this, we got a comment with a lead on the owner, and now, only hours later, Biggie has been identified as Sammie, and the owner is off to SLO on Tuesday to bring him home. Thank you ALL for taking care of each other – including our pets!
Last weekend, a traveler in our midst, from SLO, found a terrier-mix puppy running down the middle of the road on the northern end of Big Sur. she has this to say:
Hey Kate!
I found “Biggie” as I’ve been calling him at the north most end of Big Sur running down the middle of HWY 1. He is a tan wiry furred terrier with a black nose, small, about 15lbs or less and adorable. He was super scared but also very sweet and came to me when I stopped, but was skittish about being picked up. He’s never been aggressive though always loving. He is also intact. He had a brand new black color with white dog bones on it, but now tags :[ I did take him to the vet to be scanned but no microchip was found…he is a pup. 1 year max. Missy is beautiful you’re lucky! This little guy is adorable and I would love to be his owner but with school and classes I don’t have time to give him the attention and training he needs. And him not being neutered has made potty training difficult as he want to mark everything in the house…Here are some pictures of him:
I believe he’s some sort of terrier and chihuahua or dachshund mix. Possibly Cairn Terrier…I found him last Sun the 19th!
Thanks for the help! I really appreciate it. I know he would love to find his owners and if not that, his forever home.
Roxy Smith
Roxy.smith10@gmail.com
Cell – 310-245-1227
Sent from my iPhone
I have several really cute photos Roxy sent, I finally got them uploaded.
Highway closed in both directions
3:00 pm – completely open
1:00 pm – one lane controlled traffic with very long delays.
Sigalert – Monterey County, SR-1 just South of Bixby Bridge, roadway closed in both directions by emergency vehicles due to a vehicle in the water.
Bridge closed while fatal accident being investigated.
Motorists are advised to expect delays and to use alternate routes. There is no estimated time of opening.
photo by Pete Slauson. Herald article can be found here: Herald Article
Big Creek Signal
Today’s Date: Thursday, January 2, 2014 @ noon
District: 05 – Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz Counties
Contact: Susana Z Cruz (bilingual) or Colin Jones
Phone: (805) 549-3138 or 549-3189
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
***Update #2***
TEMPORARY TRAFFIC SIGNAL ON HIGHWAY 1 NEAR LUCIA IS INSTALLED AND ACTIVATED
MONTEREY COUNTY (Big Sur Coast) – The installation and activation of a temporary traffic signal and on Highway 1 just north of Big Creek Bridge (Post Mile 28) near Lucia is complete, Caltrans officials today announced.
This section of roadway will have signalized, reverse one-way traffic control 24/7 for the next several months. Motorists can expect minor delays not to exceed 10 minutes. Hwy. 1 for all motorists, cyclists and local businesses will remain open during this traffic control.
Major instability in the southbound (ocean-side) lane (150-foot section) requires its closure until permanent repairs can be made.
The signal will remain in place until a short viaduct or other structure is built. A contractor for the permanent repair will be selected later this year.
Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway construction zones.
For more information on this project and for traffic updates on other Caltrans projects in Monterey County, residents can call the District 5 toll free number at 1-877-448-6771 or can visit our website at: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/paffairs/release.htm#mon.
