The Pfieffer Canyon Bridge is repaired, the Mud-creek slide on Highway 1 is nearing, so is the wildfire and rainy season.

A mudslide is just a mountainside getting into a more comfortable position.

All mountains are susceptible to mudslides, even Mount
Shasta as shown here.

The winter of 2016-2017 was a wet one, it followed a 7-year drought that was experienced in the western United States. Dry periods are the norm here, followed by a season of heavy rains, rarely do we experience two wet years in a row. The slopes of the mountains dry out on top of the loose rock, shale, and organic material. The mountain ranges in the west are young compared to those on the east coast, part of the reason we have more mudslides than the East Coast. On account of their young geological age, the bedrock hasn't had enough time to compress and become hard. The harder the rock becomes the more resistant to absorption it becomes, thereby being more stable. Gravity, loose rock, cover soil, and water combine to create a mudslide, dry soil clinging to the side of a mountain slope is not stable, then the rain starts to fall. Creating terrain that takes up the consistency of pudding it collects water from the falling rain until the soil is no longer able to cling to the bedrock. When the slide occurs water, mud, organic material, and rock all move as a single unit careening downhill at breakneck speed, plowing over and burying everything in its path. Waterworks it's way to the layer between the bedrock and the organic material creating a lubrication layer for the muck to ride on. The top layer will begin to move first disrupting the entire stack, once momentum is built up there is nothing that will stop its downward motion. Water is heavy, one gallon weighs 8-1/3 lbs, 5-gallons weighs just over 40 pounds. Thousands of gallons of water are needed to saturate the side of a hill to enable it to move, being an unfathomable amount of weight there isn't much that can stop an almost 50-ton blob of inertia-driven rock, soils, water, and large organic materials (trees).

There isn't much of a chance to stop a mudslide once it's in motion.

During the winter of 1016-2017 several mudslides took place, the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge was destroyed when a mudslide drove into it causing a collapse. Closing highway one on the California coast 45 miles north of the Monterey County line. The bridge closed in February 2017 and was re-opened October 2017, after replacing the entire structure.

(Follow this Link for an update and final report on the repair of the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge.)

The Mud Creek slide is a horse of a different color, closing highway 1, 15 miles north of Big Sur at Palo Colorado in Monterey County, the road remains closed. The slide took place on May 20, 2017. Work is progressing on the $40 million repair answering to the massive landslide that released million cubic yards of rock, dirt, water, and organic material. It buried Highway 1, under debris that is still settling after more than a year. Pushing 15 acres of debris over the road and into the Pacific Ocean, creating more shoreline. The new beach may be compromised by wave action over the years by the storms that are created out at sea near Hawaii. This slide took place in one of the most iconic spots on the west coast, the drive from Monterey to San Simeon is a breathtaking trip to make. It is literally the transition from Northern California to Southern California, entering the road south of Carmel where it is normally cool. Driving south to San Simeon where it is dry and well, southern California. 3,000 vehicles travel the scenic route every day according to the L.A. times it is essential to the businesses on the route for the road to open as soon as possible. Caltrans reports the work has progressed so well that the southern access will reopen at the end of July 2018. Six weeks earlier than originally estimated.

The Mudcreek slide shortly after it took place.

The biggest challenge in repairing the mess is the millions of cubic yards having to be moved. 60 truckloads of rock are being delivered every day from distant Cities, this is, after all, a remote area. Cambria, San Luis Obispo, and Porterville 150 miles distant in the San Joaquin Valley. Building a new road over the top of the debris covering the highway beneath in tons of material. Compaction is critical to stabilizing the 80,000 cubic yards of fill material, just on the southern portion of the reconstruction. On the north end, the construction access road is 20 feet above where the finished highway will be, that material must be removed and leveled before paving can commence. When completed that end will be 236 feet above sea level, and uphill of the southern end by 80 feet.

Drainage pipe will be laid under the new road for rainwater to drain off of the mountain, under the roadway and into the Pacific Ocean. The repair is huge, with a lot of work yet to be performed Caltrans is on a non-stop mission to complete it. Five haul trucks, three loaders, five excavators, four dozers, along with six or seven other pieces of heavy equipment, and 20 workers are on the job every day. The weather co-operated with the project, it is rare to have two rainy years in a row, enabling non-stop work and creating many hours of overtime.

Whats to keep this from burning? Wildfires are the first step towards
Mudslides. 

I look out over the Diablo Range to the west of me about 25 miles and see a lot of dried grass. The wildfires have begun in Colorado so it is probably an indication they will start here soon as well. I drove by one of the foothills this afternoon on my way to a Doctor's appointment. My wife mentioned how dry it is with my reply being "yeh, it's a miracle it hasn't caught on fire yet." We went around the next bend and I swear to you there was a grass fire being extinguished by a fire crew. There is no water in those mountains until San Luis Reservoir 150 miles to the south. After that, I don't know of any, possibly in the Pinnacles National Monument, but I don't remember any there either. Drought, Wildfires, Rain, and Dirt is the formula for a mudslide if any one of those elements is eliminated the chances of a mudslide are greatly reduced. I vote to eliminate Wildfires, we need the rain.

(This Link will lead you to the Big Sur Blog with a current update of the repair work being performed on the Mudcreek Slide of 2017.)

Thank you for reading and sharing my article, there will be more wildfires, more flooding, rain, and mudslides. The drought has started already, it will last for at least a few years, then a heavy rain season. More slides will follow, the cycle continues and most likely has for the past many thousands of years. The good news is the Pfieffer Canyon Bridge is repaired and the Mud Creek Slide will be ready by the end of July.

jacquesandkate emergencykitsplus.com