OK, who's gonna bring a ladder up to the boundary bridge on the Suiattle? It's hard to believe that the massive river that so recently was running under there is now in a different channel. I thought it was cool to look over the edge of the missing bridge section and see the raging river underneath. Now it is totally weird to see Quark's pics of dry land where the river once was.
-------------- You must have really hated that moose - Dudley Moore, Arthur
I took a trip up FS-74. To my shock the lower gate was closed. This was the first time 5 years I've seen it closed! As it worked out the guys from the FS were just returning as I got to the gate. They said it was a huge mess. Initially I was just going for a walk. I made it up about 2 miles before nightfall and what I saw was dreadful. The river basin was upwards of a half mile wide. Downed trees were strewn everywhere. The first camp site I visited lost about 100 of shore. Where about a week ago the river past within about 50 yards of the shore it was now about a quarter mile away. I walked out on the recently rearranged terrain to find out that the surface was akin to quicksand. I hastily retreated as the light was falling, making it harder to see. I decided to come back the next day with my bike.
The next day. Wow. The destruction was remarkable. The river had changed channels countless times in countless places. Some places the river had washed out of it's banks gone up 30 hillsides and removed dang near everything in its path. In other areas it eroded the basin by up to 15 Everywhere a newly created channel ranging from .25 to .5 mile wide appeared. About 90 percent of the normal landscape was rearranged. Or gone.
The spot below is about 6 miles back. I carefully made my way across the remaining area. Anyone know if this shoulder remnant can be considered stable? It is solid rock a ways down but I dont know about the erosive effect of the river hitting it. I hate to give up my favorite bike ride....
Updates as of today (sorry if any of this stuff is redundant, I didn't read all 7 pages of this thread):
Olympic:
Park crews continue to make progress in clearing roads and assessing damage from last weeks heavy rains and floods. A road engineer from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) was in the park over the weekend to evaluate damage to park roads and explore options for making repairs and restoring vehicle access. A summary of known damage follows:
Hoh Road The road remains closed at its intersection with Highway 101 while Jefferson County and Olympic National Park continue to make damage assessments. Areas of significant damage have been found in both the county-owned and park-owned sections of road. Significant damage occurred at Twin Creek, where a 65-foot-long and 25-foot-deep section of road has been completely washed away. Options for restoring vehicle access are being explored with FHWA. Park crews are also evaluating damage to the utility systems (water, electric, phone) and planned on examining the remaining five-mile section of the road over this past weekend.
Quinault North Shore Road The east abutment of the Finley Creek Bridge was significantly damaged by floodwaters. Park crews are currently working to stabilize the compromised abutment to prevent further damage. The bridge remains closed to all traffic, as does the road east of the bridge.
Quinault South Shore Road The road has been cleared and is passable. Debris remains along the road shoulders and the road surface is rough, though, so caution is advised.
North Fork Road The road is closed because of erosion in the vicinity of the campground.
Graves Creek Road Crews were working late last week to remove fallen trees and gain access to the highway. Road damage was to be assessed over this past weeken.
Dosewallips, Staircase and Queets Roads These roads remain closed due to previous damage and unsafe conditions. Deer Park Road is closed for the season.
Elwha, Lake Crescent, Sol Duc, Mora, Ozette and Kalaloch areas All of these areas are open.
Rainier:
The park remains closed, except for Highway 410. Park staff have been working long hours to repair damage to the Nisqually Road and the main power and sewer lines. Workers are rebuilding a 200-yard section of road just inside the Nisqually Entrance. Two additional locations must be reinforced before the road is safe to travel. This week, workers will take a bulldozer one mile up the bed of Kautz Creek and dig a channel to force the stream back into its normal bed. Kautz Creek changed course during the flood and is now flowing over the park road. Highway 123 and the Stevens Canyon Road both have multiple washouts. Two miles of the Carbon River Road have been lost, including a half-mile stretch that is now river. The flood destroyed Sunshine Point Campground, and Ipsut Creek Campground is still underwater. Flowing water undermined two buildings, wiped out many backcountry bridges, and took out portions of several trails. With the assistance of the Federal Highway Administration, the park is developing an estimate for the cost of repairs and a time line for reopening the park.
Joined: 30 Jun 2003 Posts: 6874 | TRs | Pics Location: not pugetopolis
Mon Nov 13, 2006 8:02 pm
The warm front is supposed to be short lived and the freezing level is supposed to come back down in a matter of hours. At least, that's what they're saying up here.
Mt. Baker is planning to open ski operations on Thursday.
-------------- "nothing ever came of a life that was a simple one" Flogging Molly, from Devil's Dance Floor
Joined: 01 Aug 2004 Posts: 2277 | TRs | Pics Location: Bellevue, WA
Mon Nov 13, 2006 8:29 pm
GeoHiker wrote:
I was up by Baker Lake yesterday and it doesn't look too bad. The road is washed over by a large creek near Grandy Lake, but has been cleared by a trac hoe. No road damage, but the Road Closed sign is still up.
Everyone was going by the sign and there is a Motorcycles Use Extreme Caution sign coming back the other way, so I assumed the road is open. I went around the sign as did everyone else.
Please, everyone; do not drive past Road Closed signs!!! First, they are regulatory signs and violating one will get you a $400 ticket. Second, the conditions that need to be inspected and verified before a road can be reopened are mostly in the subgrade of the road and are invisible to motorists. After a flood, for instance, it may take a day or two for the water to subside below subgrade level to ensure that subgrade material hasn't been washed out underneath or liquefied by the previous rising waters. So it's possible to see Road Closed signs still up when the waters appear to have receded; but the stability of the road can still be in question.
-------------- Footprints on the sands of time will never be made sitting down.
I got off with a (not so friendly) warning for driving past a road closed sign last week in the North Bend area. The officer told me it was a ~$200 ticket. Maybe he was lowballing me but in any case I was glad to get away with just a reprimand.
Joined: 15 May 2003 Posts: 12260 | TRs | Pics Location: Truth or Consequences, NM
Mon Nov 13, 2006 8:57 pm
Not only is MtnDog correct about the danger, consider what happens when people don't follow the rules these people put in place: if folks start driving around simple barricades that were installed - ones the road crews have laying around the shop, they'll have to put up newer, bigger, costlier ones, then have to police it with costly personnel to issue tickets; then trail park pass dollars/taxes will go up and everyone will bitch and complain, including those who were the ones driving past the barriers - but of course it won't be their fault, it'll be the fault of the people who put up the barricades and hiked up the taxes for absolutely no reason.
Think about it.
-------------- "The next couple of miles smelt like burnt turkey and kept reminding me of thanksgivings with my ex-wife. "
chris-mbhc, NWHiker's Bulwer-Lytton contestant for 2011
I saw on the Baker-Snoqualmie site that the bridge on Tenas Creek road is now washed out. That's one that's not likely to ever get fixed and adds four miles to the approach to Boulder Lake.
You are not kidding about the non-replacement. That is teh suck. Four more miles of crap road to walk. I love those lakes and surrounding peaks.
Slugman wrote:
OK, who's gonna bring a ladder up to the boundary bridge on the Suiattle? It's hard to believe that the massive river that so recently was running under there is now in a different channel. I thought it was cool to look over the edge of the missing bridge section and see the raging river underneath. Now it is totally weird to see Quark's pics of dry land where the river once was.
Justan wrote:
The first camp site I visited lost about 100 of shore. Where about a week ago the river past within about 50 yards of the shore it was now about a quarter mile away. I walked out on the recently rearranged terrain to find out that the surface was akin to quicksand.
I think the Boundary Bridge area will be quicksand-like for quite a while. I am, however, thinking of taking my Batman Crossbolt/Zipline out for a spin. If there is solid gound to be found, I would like to hear about it.
Mtn Dog wrote:
Please, everyone; do not drive past Road Closed signs!!! First, they are regulatory signs and violating one will get you a $400 ticket. Second, the conditions that need to be inspected and verified before a road can be reopened are mostly in the subgrade of the road and are invisible to motorists. After a flood, for instance, it may take a day or two for the water to subside below subgrade level to ensure that subgrade material hasn't been washed out underneath or liquefied by the previous rising waters. So it's possible to see Road Closed signs still up when the waters appear to have receded; but the stability of the road can still be in question.
Joined: 26 Feb 2005 Posts: 3515 | TRs | Pics Location: Off the grid
Mon Nov 13, 2006 10:01 pm
There wasn't a barrier. Only a small sawhorse type sign on the far right side of the road. There was also a water over the road sign prior to that sign with not a sign of any water other than rain on the road. The creek is dry now where the water and debris came from.
There's a small creek that diverted over the road and deposited a great deal of sand and small rock across both lanes. The trac-hoe that was parked on the side of the road had been clearing the road and it was obvious that there was no road damage. I could see tracks by the trac-hoe all over the road, so there was no danger of the road collapsing. There is no bridge in this area.
I would normally not pass a closed sign, so I pulled off the road to check it out. After sitting there for about 5 mins with 8-10 vehicles going by it appeared that the signs had not been removed yet.
I checked the DOT website Sat. morning and there was no mention of Baker Lake Rd being closed. On the way back out I saw a Motorcycles Use Extreme Caution sign about 150 ft. prior to reaching the overflow. The road is a one way road and dead ends past Baker Lake. If the road is closed then why was a sign put up cautioning motorcycles?
Is there a website that has secondary road closures and do these get updated? I've come across Road Closed signs many times on FS roads from logging, fires, road damage, slides etc many weeks after the fact and more times than not someone has forgot to take them down.
I don't advocate going around closed signs, so don't go dumping on me!.... The only one I will admit to going around on a regular basis is the one on the Index road. That's a seasonal closure like on the Mtn Loop Highway at Deer Creek. I've talked with FS personal a number of times and that closure and access is at the discretion of the area manager. If there is no snow then the road is "open" till it's closed. Makes for some confusing choices sometimes........
-------------- If you don't do it this year, you'll be one year older when you do. Warren Miller
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Wow. 
First, they are regulatory signs and violating one will get you a $400 ticket. Second, the conditions that need to be inspected and verified before a road can be reopened are mostly in the subgrade of the road and are invisible to motorists. After a flood, for instance, it may take a day or two for the water to subside below subgrade level to ensure that subgrade material hasn't been washed out underneath or liquefied by the previous rising waters. So it's possible to see Road Closed signs still up when the waters appear to have receded; but the stability of the road can still be in question.
That's one that's not likely to ever get fixed and adds four miles to the approach to Boulder Lake.
The only one I will admit to going around on a regular basis is the one on the Index road. That's a seasonal closure like on the Mtn Loop Highway at Deer Creek. I've talked with FS personal a number of times and that closure and access is at the discretion of the area manager. If there is no snow then the road is "open" till it's closed. Makes for some confusing choices sometimes........ 
