Newhalem Rockslide

[chalkball]

Does anyone know if the climbing area has been affected?

 

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2001791125_slide14m.html

 

Seems to be close, but looks like it is a bit east of the area...

 

[philfort]

Maybe you could go check it out:

 

"Nobody, save a few brave rock climbers, geologists, engineers and highway workers, is being allowed up Highway 20 beyond Newhalem, so precarious is the fractured mountainside"

 

???

[chalkball]

I think they are talking about these guys...

 

"Rock-climbing subcontractors, racing an approaching storm, worked yesterday to place a string of electronic reflectors and highly sensitive Global Positioning System sensors across the fractured slope. With bitter winds whipping through the canyon, the work — conducted by climbing up the face from below to gear caches dropped by a helicopter — was precarious. "

[Tod]

It looks like the spot where the river makes a significant turn right and drops through large boulders. When they actually let water run through that section of the canyon below Gorge Dam it's the most violent set of rapids I have ever seen. It's almost visible from the Newhalem powerhouse bridge when looking east up the road. The road does a curve to the right out of sight, goes a little further up canyon then does a quick climb and right hand turn up to the slide area. There is a pullout on the road right where the slide happened that overlooks this section of canyon (and rapids when the water is running).

 

Now I know where those boulders come from...