hanman Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Looks like it may be challenging reaching many excellent climbing areas come spring.... Not surprising considering some of the weather we have had recently. I'm heading up to camp in Bedal, and will post some photos of 2060 and 49 on Monday. Anyone been up to see the damage? MH From FS website: "2060 Clear Creek UNREACHABLE Avalanche damage to road at mile 2, near Asbestos Creek, impassable beyond. Some avalanche debris in the road before the impassable damage. Use caution. Downed trees, snow, rocks and icy conditions likely. 49 Sloan Creek/North Fork Sauk INACCESSIBLE Road washed out at MP 1.7, just past North Fork Sauk Falls Trailhead. Snow and icy conditions likely.. 2040 Squire Creek UNKNOWN Road damage has closed this road to all motorized vehicles 2 miles from trailhead. Major slide in 2002 took out the road about 3.5 miles from Darrington. 2000 Mt. Loop Scenic Hwy Hwy 7 County Mt. Loop Hwy – Verlot UNREACHABLE Snohomish County closes the Mt. Loop Highway at Red Bridge milepost 18, seven miles east of the Verlot Public Service Center, while road crews work to stabilize the Silverton-Waldheim debris slide. This closure cuts off access from Granite Falls to the Deer Creek snow play area. Only residents are allowed past Red Bridge. The Darrington to Barlow Pass side of the Mt Loop is reported to have 4” of snow at Chokwich Creek, approximately 19 miles south of Darrington. Minor slumping and rocks are impacting the roadway in some areas, use caution. For more Snohomish County Road Updates" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyson.g Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Wow! Looks like some work parties are going to be in order in a big way come spring huh? We should have a bash and get some of the Darrington regulars together. On a side note, heard you were @ Index on Saturday. Smedley and I were on City Park confirming the fact that we are indeed the slowest and most pathetic aid climbers in history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainmatt Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Eeek! That does not sound good at all. Let me know what you find. If you think we can do some clearing, I am definitely willing to help out. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanman Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 Hey there Tyson- we were up on the Zipper. I haven't aid climbed in a couple years, it was great to get back on the cam hooks Dtown road work will definitely be on the list... MH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanman Posted January 20, 2011 Author Share Posted January 20, 2011 http://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7988939 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riley81 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 After I heard about the washout on the Mt Loop I started thinking about those roads as well. Definetly going to have to take a look at what happened on FS 49, I don;t want to lose are access to Springy Spring. Regardless work parties are fun, thats why they are called parties! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainsloth Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 sad, but I would be dumb to say I am surprised. Last year's mild Winter was a blessing for those Forest Roads, I assumed this Winter would ruin a lot of them. Work parties it is. Keep me in the loop come spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanman Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 I went up to 2060 and 49 Saturday. 2060 is blown out 1.7 miles in down to a clay layer, 15 feet deep and 25 feet across, same spot as the 2003 damage. 3' diameter culvert is mostly exposed. Way worse shape than that year, it appears We didn't hike the road further, but I would expect one of the remaining 4-6 prominent paths may have done some damage as well. FS 49 has a pretty good blowout at Pender's Canyon, just beyond NF Sauk Falls trail, shouldn't be too difficult to fix, even by a dedicated group of billhillies. I'll see about contacts on who to write to, as our good folks in charge in previous years might have changed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benmurphy Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 wow dude...pretty crazy. lots of road problems around the mtn loop this winter...let's hope they get on fixing them this spring! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riley81 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 That Sucks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainsloth Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 clear creek pics look terrible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curtveld Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 2060 is blown out 1.7 miles in down to a clay layer, 15 feet deep and 25 feet across, same spot as the 2003 damage. 3' diameter culvert is mostly exposed. Way worse shape than that year, it appears Bummer for sure. The scale of damage sounds way beyond what can be patched by a work party. Or for a small backhoe project that is probably all the FS could commit this season. Sounds like it might be a bike-in deal for a while? Or a good year to get to know Spring and Squire better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyson.g Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 A little more work to get to the routes means alot more solitude. This could be a good thing for the 3 o'clock area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genepires Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 I felt that solitude was standard fare for even 3 oclock rock. (when compared to the other usual suspect climbing areas) Now it will be practically deserted and become another static point. Road to spring mtn has issues too. Road to squire is unknown also. Could be a long walk to anything with slabs for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayB Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 I felt that solitude was standard fare for even 3 oclock rock. Same. I'm also constantly amazed by how rapidly the vegetation makes roads up there impassible when there's no vehicle traffic on them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain panther Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 weaksauce. i can probably get 5 or 6 people to come help out with some advance notice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanman Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 Perhaps this give a bit better scale- some engineering and big tools will be required (stronger sauce) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlympicMtnBoy Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 My memory of that road is vague, how long is the walk/bike after this to get to the 3 O'Clock Rock trail? Is it before or after the turn-off for Exfoliation Dome? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riley81 Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 It is about a 4 to 5 mile hike from there to get to the trailhead, probably about the same distance to get to the base of Exfo dome as well, maybe a bit further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mountainmatt Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Wow, that is a HUGE washout. Its hard to see in the picture, but how likely will it be to make some kind of 4WD route through it? Or are we all going to be biking a lot this summer? Definitely no crowds on any of the walls this year! . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genepires Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 all right then, who do we have to shmooze with to get funding to fix THAT? make calls early and often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyson.g Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I like the way Matt and Gene are thinking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyson.g Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 My last three trips to the Revolver/Silent running area, There were other parties on all routes and one waiting for the crew on SR to get up a ways so they could follow. In my experience in the Darrington area that is a veritable traffic jam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanman Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 (edited) I like the thought, but generally have never seen more than 6 or so cars at 3:00 rock trailhead, and way less at any other of the numerous crags... Not exactly overrun As the fool with a chainsaw cutting sprung alders for miles, I think a fix and ongoing maintenance would be a big help as it has been in previous years. Take a walk up past Exfo Dome. In 2001 I rode my mountain bike to Deer Creek Pass. It is now nearly impassable. That's what lies ahead if the road is closed. Affected crag areas (for those not knowing)are Green Giant Buttress, Chrome Dome, Wawetkin Dome, The Comb, 3:00 Rock, Exfoliation Dome and Blueberry Hill, Baloney Dome, and 8 mile Trail. Overall, hundreds of wonderful climbs I'll call the FS to get some contacts MH Edited January 27, 2011 by hanman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hanman Posted January 28, 2011 Author Share Posted January 28, 2011 I spoke with Jim Mitchell at the Sedro Wooley FS office. He is the roads manager for the north district. He was very helpful and took quite a bit of time to explain the issue at hand. Essentially, there are two flood events (one in December, and the recent MLK event) that are open to Federal submittal for flood subsidy $$. The December flood has been declared a state emergency by the Governor, and he felt that the MLK event would also be declared in time. The timeline for this type of funding approval for flood repairs may be up to 2 years. If the FS tried to repair under their current budget rather than flood subsidy, this ONE slide would amount to roughly 30% of their operating budget. The wash in the above photos is expected to cost 30K$ on the low end. Further up the road there is another trough which is reported to be wider and deeper. As expected, their repair budgets are non existent, and this winter's toll includes many large similar problems.Jim did say that he was very aware of the Clear Creek/DTown user group from the 04 letter campaign, and that they understood the importance of continued access. I did let him know that the interest is high, and that we (climbers) would offer to assist in any appropriate volunteer effort that would help to defray the substantial cost expected. Guess we'll have to see what shakes out... Honda Trail 90 repair program to commence this w/e MH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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