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Photos: 1-2 of Mud Creek (PM 8.9) from last Friday, Sept. 15, courtesy of John Madonna showing the north cut/seatrain and the south beach. 3-4 of Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6) from last Wednesday, Sept. 13, showing the slope at Paul’s slide. 5-8 of Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge (PM 45.52) showing the diaphragm reinforcement, the diaphragm pour on Friday, Sept. 15. Photo #8 shows underneath the bridge with the cross beams in between the girders along the temporary support structures to hold up the wood forms for concrete pouring on Monday, Sept. 11—Photos #7, 8 and video link of bridge deck and catwalk (Sept. 14)–courtesy of Kyle Evans.https://youtu.be/RtPZgVOCRZ8

HIGHWAY 1 UPDATE – Monday, Sept. 18:

Highway 1 in Monterey County continues to provide 35 total miles of Hwy. 1 to the public from south of Gorda (PM 10) to just south of Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.5), accessible only via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. State Route 1 remains closed from north of Salmon (just south of the Ranger Station (PM 3) to just south of Gorda (PM 10) due to the Mud Creek event. State Route 1 south of Salmon Creek is accessible via State Route 1 in San Luis Obispo County, past Ragged Pointto Salmon Creek.

REMINDER: Travelers CANNOT travel the entire length of Highway 1 but local businesses are open on both sides of the closure points at Pfeiffer Canyon and Salmon Creek.

Mud Creek (PM 8.9)

Mud Creek had a major slide on Saturday, May 20, 2017, losing 5 million cubic yards of material. Caltrans continues with its plan to realign the existing terrain. The projected timeline to safely open to public traffic is late-summer 2018 at an estimated cost of $40 million.

There is currently no public access through the Mud Creek area since this remains an active construction zone.

Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)

Paul’s Slide is still active but the 24/7 one-way reversing traffic control with flaggers has been replaced by a traffic signal and temporary guardrail (k-rail) in the centerline.

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge [PCB] (PM 45.52)

The bridge construction continues with diaphragm concrete pouring and prep work continues for the bridge deck pour this Friday night, Sept. 22. NOTE: Daytime work will be light on Friday during daytime hours as the concrete pour will take place overnight—there will be noise all night into Saturday, Sept. 23. The opening of the new bridge is scheduled in mid-October.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway work 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 freenumber at 1-831-423-0396 or can visit our website at: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/paffairs/release.htm#mon.

Susana Z. Cruz

Caltrans District 5

Public Information Officer

Portavoz de Relaciones Públicas

para Caltrans en el Distrito 5

805.549.3138

805.549.3326–fax

Follow us on Facebook

We welcome your feedback:https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RNBZG55

pm 8 9 mud creek north cut seatrain 9 15 17

pm 8 9 mud creek south beach 9 15 17

pm 21 6 pauls slide 9 13 17

pm 21 6 pauls slide 2 9 13 17

pm 45 52 pcb diaphragm reinforcement 9 15 17

pm 45 52 pcb diaphragm pour 1 9 15 17

pm 45 52 pcb diaphragm pour 2 9 15 17

pm 45 52 pcb 2 9 11 17

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Get Your Tickets Today!

Tickets are going fast but PLENTY remain for our annual “friendraiser”. Please join us as VWA presents the Wild and Scenic Film Festival. Nine fantastic films about wild things and wild places, AMAZING raffle prizes, guest speakers, and a packed house of fellow wilderness lovers awaits! Get your tickets today, bring a friend and help us kick off the fall field season with a fun and inspiring evening of films and stories. All proceeds benefit VWA’s conservation work in the Big Sur backcountry. EVENT DETAILS: Saturday, September 23: Doors at 6:00 pm, show time 7:00 pm Location Address: 417 Alvarado Street, downtown Monterey Tickets: $20 + fees in advance and $25 + fees at the door (while they last). Tickets available at the Golden State Theatre website. For film stills, trailers, raffle prizes and more information: Visit our Facebook event page.

Amy and Jacqui show off this year’s film festival poster, featuring art by Tom Killion.

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Photos: Mud Creek (PM 8.9 attached) from Saturday, Sept. 9, Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge (PM 45.52 below) removing falsework (left) and placing the deck reinforcement (right) from last week.

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HIGHWAY 1 UPDATE – Monday, Sept. 11:

Highway 1 in Monterey County continues to provide 35 total miles of Hwy. 1 to the public from south of Gorda (PM 10) to just south of Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.5), accessible only via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. State Route 1 remains closed from north of Salmon (just south of the Ranger Station (PM 3) to just south of Gorda (PM 10) due to the Mud Creek event. State Route 1 south of Salmon Creek is accessible via State Route 1 in San Luis Obispo County, past Ragged Point to Salmon Creek.

REMINDER: Travelers CANNOT travel the entire length of Highway 1 but local businesses are open on both sides of the closure points at Pfeiffer Canyon and Salmon Creek.

Mud Creek (PM 8.9)

Mud Creek had a major slide on Saturday, May 20, 2017, losing 5 million cubic yards of material. Caltrans continues with its plan to realign the existing terrain. The projected timeline to safely open to public traffic is late-summer 2018 at an estimated cost of $40 million.

There is currently no public access through the Mud Creek area since this remains an active construction zone.

Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)

Paul’s Slide is still active but the 24/7 one-way reversing traffic control with flaggers will be replaced by a traffic signal and temporary guardrail (k-rail) in the centerline. Installation began last Tuesday, Sept. 1 and work continues this week.

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge [PCB] (PM 45.52)

The bridge girder lowering process is complete and the girders are in their final position. Placement of the deck reinforcement is taking place as well as disassembling the remainder of the temporary falsework and completion of deck forming. The completion and opening of the new bridge is scheduled in mid-October.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway work 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 freenumber at 1-831-423-0396 or can visit our website at: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/paffairs/release.htm#mon.

Susana Z. Cruz

Caltrans District 5

Public Information Officer

Portavoz de Relaciones Públicas

para Caltrans en el Distrito 5

805.549.3138

805.549.3326–fax

Follow us on Facebook

We welcome your feedback: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RNBZG55

2017 hottest summer in California history; Cut-off low may bring widespread thunderstorms

Filed in Uncategorized by Daniel Swain on September 9, 2017 • 1 Comment

Overview of recent all-time record California heat

2017 was the warmest (or near-warmest) summer on record over most of the Western U.S. (NOAA/NCDC)

2017 brought extraordinary summer heat to California. While record-breaking early-season heatwaves largely spared the immediate coastal areas (but brought endless weeks of searing triple-digit heat to interior areas), extreme temperatures extended all the way to the beaches over the past couple of weeks.

The late summer and early autumn months are traditionally warmest of the year in coastal California, as the marine layer tends to become suppressed and offshore winds occasionally allow hotter air to encroach from the east. But the late August and early September heatwave that California just endured was on an entirely different level than those historically experienced–breaking (and, in many cases, shattering) temperature records of all kinds. Countless daily (and monthly) temperature records were set statewide, and this heatwave continued the already record-breaking streak of 100+ degree days across much of the Central Valley. Overnight temperatures stayed well above average daytime highs in many places, and new all-time “warmest minimum” records were set. Quite a few coastal or near-coastal California cities matched or exceeded their all-time temperature records for any month–an impressive list that spans from the North Coast (Eureka) to the central coast (San Luis Obispo) and apparently even includes (amazingly) the Farallon Islands in the midst of California’s cold oceanic upwelling zone. Easily the most amazing statistic during this extraordinary event was the fall of downtown San Francisco’s all-time temperature record, where the observed 106 degrees surged past the previous hottest temperature (103) in 147 years of record keeping.

It might not be a surprise, therefore, that summer 2017 was officially California’s hottest on record (and much of the Labor Day heatwave actually fell out outside of the formal June-August definition of “summer”). In fact, 2017 broke (by a considerable margin) the previous record set…just last year, in 2016. Indeed, this year once again puts an exclamation point on a sustained, long-term warming trend over the past century in California. Increasing frequency and intensity of extreme heatwaves is one of the clearest hallmarks of our warming climate, and it’s likely that “extreme” temperatures like those experienced this summer will become fairly routine in just a few decades.

California has experienced a sustained long-term warming trend in summer, and 2017 was the warmest season on record. (NOAA/NCDC)

Unusually widespread thunderstorm outbreak possible across California

An offshore cut-off low will be in a favorable position to produce relatively widespread thunderstorm activity. (NCEP via tropicaltidbits.com)

A slow-moving cut-off low pressure system is currently setting up shop off the Southern California coast, and has the potential to bring some very active weather to certain parts of the state over the next 5 days. Mountain and desert thunderstorms have already been quite active over the past few days, but beginning on Sunday convective develop is likely much closer to (and perhaps including) the coast. In fact, convective parameters for late tomorrow afternoon for much of Southern California and the Central Coast are quite impressive, with able mid-level instability, sufficient column water vapor, and even some large-scale ascent forced by diffluent flow east of the offshore low.

With all of these ingredients in place, numerous thunderstorms will likely develop over the mountains of Southern California tomorrow afternoon, at least a handful of which will sustain themselves as they move east to west over the coastal plain and even offshore. At least a few of these storms may be quite strong (or even severe), bringing intense downpours along with possible hail and gusty winds. This, tomorrow could be a pretty active weather day even in places that rarely see this kind of vigorous thunderstorm activity.

An offshore jet streak will provide dynamical support for thunderstorms over the SoCal Bight on Sunday. (NCEP via tropicaltidbits.com)

There is at least a modest risk of flash flooding in interior areas hit by strong storms, and some localized issues could even occur outside of the mountains. It’s actually possible that thunderstorms may be more widespread tomorrow across portions of SoCal (including Los Angeles County) than they were during the recent “Lidia” tropical remnant event. (On a related note, if you haven’t checked out this video showing extraordinary webcam footage of the highly localized but quite damaging Santa Barbara microburst last week, you really should. Also, this one.).

On Monday and Tuesday, the thunderstorm threat will shift northward to encompass most of the rest of California–even including the Bay Area and Central Valley.

The GFS is showing fairly widespread precipitation accumulations over most of California over the next 5 days. (NCEP via tropicaltidbits.com)

Scattered thunderstorms may ultimately occur uniformly over much of NorCal as moisture and instability will be present virtually everywhere. This sort of synoptic set-up–with a fairly deep offshore cut-off low and modest amounts of late monsoonal moisture–is reminiscent of the sort of pattern that has historically caused spectacular early autumn lightning displays over parts of California. Hopefully, this event will be associated with enough wetting rainfall to avoid numerous wildfire strikes, but given the time of year and the antecedent heat/dryness, this event will probably pose a significant fire weather threat.

Later next week, the cut-off low will finally move inland and perhaps bring a final round of isolated showers and thunderstorms to a fairly broad area (perhaps even the coast), though coverage and intensity should be less than earlier in the week. After that, quieter weather conditions will likely return.

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Date: Friday, September 8, 2017

District: District 5 (Central Coast)

Contact: Susana Z. Cruz (bilingual)/Jim Shivers or Colin Jones

Phone: (805) 549-3138 or (805) 549-3189

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Caltrans Announces Projected Timeline for Rebuilding Highway 1 at Mud Creek

BIG SUR, MONTEREY COUNTY – Caltrans is aiming to have Highway 1 at Mud Creek open to traffic by late summer, 2018 with an estimated price tag of $40 million. Earlier this summer, Caltrans announced a plan to build over the massive slide that covered Highway 1 earlier this year. The new roadway will traverse over the slide area, using a series of embankments, berms, rocks, netting, culverts and other stabilizing material.

“The landslide at Mud Creek is one of the largest in California’s history. We are working to safely rebuild the road in this complex and unpredictable area,” said Caltrans District 5 Director Tim Gubbins. “We understand how much this road closure has impacted the counties of San Luis Obispo and Monterey, and we appreciate everyone’s patience and support as we work to open the highway. Caltrans is committed to restoring this vital link to and from Big Sur as quickly and safely as possible.”

The timeline for rebuilding is dependent on this winter’s weather conditions. Caltrans will continue working closely with various state, local and federal resource agencies and the Big Sur community until the highway is reopened.

The landslide occurred May 20th and sent more than 5 million cubic yards of rock and dirt onto the roadway and into the ocean, making it the largest slide ever along the Big Sur coast.

–Photos below–

Aerial photo courtesy of John Madonna Construction from May 25, 2017

Aerial photo courtesy of John Madonna Construction from Friday, Sept. 1, 2017

Susana Z. Cruz

Caltrans District 5

Public Information Officer

Portavoz de Relaciones Públicas

para Caltrans en el Distrito 5

805.549.3138

805.549.3326–fax

Follow us on Facebook

We welcome your feedback: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RNBZG55

Based in Monterey, California, Tim has been capturing the natural beauty and varied wildlife of the central coast of California since 2006. Join Tim on location for a living postcard of the Big Sur coastline. You will get a unique look at the social structure of condors and their intimate interactions, while also learning more about their amazing road to recovery.

Come support California Condors! These showings will take the place of Feathers in Flight in Big Sur as our major fundraiser of the year. Your attendance is important not only to celebrate the recovery of condors on the central coast but support our ongoing management efforts.

September 8, 2017
• Carmel at Sunset Center (Carpenter Hall) Located between San Carlos Street and Mission Street.
•6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
• $75 per person
Marvel at the beauty of a Great Horned Owl brought by Faloconer, Antonio Balestreri. Enjoy food and wine while bidding on some original silent auction packages and walk away with lasting memories. For the main event, you will see Tim Huntington’s most talked about short film on California Condors, and close your evening with dessert and coffee.

Click to purchase your tickets today

About Ventana Wildlife Society Founded in 1977, Ventana Wildlife Society is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization committed to conserving native wildlife and their habitats. We successfully recovered a breeding population of Bald Eagles in central California and are in the process of doing the same for California Condors. With our main office in Salinas and our field office down the coast in Big Sur, we are in prime position to manage the central California condor population (with National Park Service), lead amazing outdoor education opportunities for youth in underserved communities, and provide valuable ecological services in a variety of habitats. Our Discovery Center at Andrew Molera State Park in Big Sur is a center for public outreach during the summer and a meeting place for our regular condor tours. We also own two spectacular properties that are now protected in perpetuity as wildlife sanctuaries. Through the course of our work, we have developed an organizational culture that strongly values science, education and collaboration. Our approach positions us well to address tomorrow’s ecosystem management challenges and inspire the next generation of wildlife stewards.

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HIGHWAY 1 UPDATE – Monday, Sept. 5:

Highway 1 in Monterey County continues to provide 35 total miles of Hwy. 1 to the public from south of Gorda (PM 10) to just south of Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.5), accessible only via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. State Route 1 remains closed from north of Salmon (just south of the Ranger Station (PM 3) to just south of Gorda (PM 10) due to the Mud Creek event. State Route 1 south of Salmon Creek is accessible via State Route 1 in San Luis Obispo County, past Ragged Point to Salmon Creek.

REMINDER: Travelers CANNOT travel the entire length of Highway 1 but local businesses are open on both sides of the closure points at Pfeiffer Canyon and Salmon Creek.

Mud Creek (PM 8.9)

Mud Creek had a major slide on Saturday, May 20, 2017, losing 5 million cubic yards of material. Caltrans continues with its plan to realign the existing terrain. Information on the projected cost and timeline will be made available later this week.

There is currently no public access through the Mud Creek area since this is an active construction zone.

Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)

Paul’s Slide is still active but the 24/7 one-way reversing traffic control with flaggers will be replaced by a traffic signal and temporary guardrail (k-rail) in the centerline. Installation will begin today, Tuesday, Sept. 1 and work will continue for approximately one week.

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge [PCB] (PM 45.52)

The bridge girders have begun and continue the lowering process to have the girders in their final position. Rebar for the diaphragms and deck is being delivered and placement of the deck reinforcement will follow as well as disassembling the remainder of the temporary falsework and completion of deck forming this week. A better idea about the completion schedule is hoped to be available next week as work progresses.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway work 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 freenumber at 1-831-423-0396 or can visit our website at: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/paffairs/release.htm#mon

Susana Z. Cruz

Caltrans District 5

Public Information Officer

Portavoz de Relaciones Públicas

para Caltrans en el Distrito 5

805.549.3138

805.549.3326–fax

Follow us on Facebook

We welcome your feedback: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RNBZG55

Mud Creek (PM 8.9) Aerial photo by John Madonna

Mud Creek (PM 8.9) shown from the top, the revetment down below and the seatrain

Mud Creek (PM 8.9) shown from the top, the revetment down below and the seatrain

Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.52) Girders still being lowered, it will require a total of 18 feet before they rest into place. Temporary falsework shown.

Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.52) Girders still being lowered, it will require a total of 18 feet before they rest into place. Temporary falsework shown.

 

You Tube link shows a timelapse video of the bridge being lowered on the north side—courtesy of Kyle Evans: https://youtu.be/70ikEx8nAZI

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CALTRANS

HIGHWAY 1 UPDATE – Monday, August 28:

Highway 1 in Monterey County continues to provide 35 total miles of Hwy. 1 to the public from south of Gorda (PM 10) to just south of Pfeiffer Canyon (PM 45.5), accessible only via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. State Route 1 remains closed from north of Salmon (just south of the Ranger Station (PM 3) to just south of Gorda (PM 10) due to the Mud Creek event. State Route 1 south of Salmon Creek is accessible via State Route 1 in San Luis Obispo County, past Ragged Point to Salmon Creek.

REMINDER: Travelers CANNOT travel the entire length of Highway 1, but local businesses are open on both sides of the closure points at Pfeiffer Canyon and Salmon Creek.

Mud Creek (PM 8.9)

Mud Creek had a major slide on Saturday, May 20, 2017, losing 5 million cubic yards of material. Caltrans continues with its plan to realign the existing terrain. A tentative cost and timeline are targeted to be announced next week. The roadway remains impassable.

There is no public access through the Mud Creek area as this is an active construction zone.

Paul’s Slide (PM 21.6)

Paul’s Slide continues to provide access to the public 24/7, with one-way reversing traffic control with flaggers.

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge [PCB] (PM 45.52)

· The bridge launching over the canyon took place last week. Removal of the tower grillage and construction the cribbage at the abutments is next, in preparation for the lowering of the girders to follow.

Caltrans reminds motorists to move over and slow down when driving through highway work 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 freenumber at 1-831-423-0396 or can visit our website at: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/paffairs/release.htm#mon

Susana Z. Cruz

Caltrans District 5

Public Information Officer

Portavoz de Relaciones Públicas

para Caltrans en el Distrito 5

805.549.3138

805.549.3326–fax

Follow us on Facebook

We welcome your feedback: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RNBZG55

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Launching (PM 45.42) from last week

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Launching (PM 45.42) from last week

Mud Creek (PM 8.9) from last week

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KSBW Caitlin Conrad added 3 new photos.

5 hrs ·

Photographs from Caltrans show the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge girders have reached the south side!

Susana Cruz with Caltrans tells me crews got the steel all the way across the canyon at about 7:30 Thursday night. The girders weigh 900 tons and engineers designed a cable system to pull the bridge across inches at a time. The launch started on Monday and it was a success. This is a FIRST for California, never before has the state pulled a bridge longitudinally into place.

Now crews will dismantle the temporary launch tower in the middle of the canyon and lower the bridge into place on top of the abutments. Engineers expect the bridge will open in October, a bit later than the late September opening they were hoping for when the $24 million project got started in March.

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Construction

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Construction

Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge Construction Completes the span

Big Sur Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 87
Big Sur, CA 93920
(831) 667-2100
http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org
http://www.thebigsurblog.com
http://www.twitter.com/BigSurCC
https://www.facebook.com/BigSurInformation

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 23, 2017

Contact:

Julie Armstrong, Marketing Communications Director

831-625-6226 / Julie

Big Sur Marathon Organization Rebrands

as the Big Sur Marathon Foundation

Carmel, CA –The internationally acclaimed Big Sur International Marathon is a bucket list race for runners from around the world. Established 32 years ago, the race has grown to encompass other distances, and the organization has flourished to start and acquire additional races, now totaling four. To better reflect the full organization which operates as a 501(c)3 non-profit that donates more than $350,00 to charity each year, the Big Sur International Marathon has changed its overall organization name to the Big Sur Marathon Foundation.

The Foundation is the parent organization for the iconic Big Sur International Marathon held on the last Sunday of April. It also directs the 15-year-old Monterey Bay Half Marathon formerly known as the Big Sur Half Marathon on Monterey Bay, the recently-held Salinas Valley Half Marathon, and the summer Run in the Name of Love 5K and 2K. In addition, the national award-winning JUST RUN® youth fitness program, based in Monterey County, is part of the Foundation’s offerings.

“It was very confusing to have our organization called by a race name, so we set out to clarify that the marathon and all of our races are part of an umbrella organization whose charter is to give back to the local community, said Doug Thurston, race director and executive director of the Big Sur Marathon Foundation.

The naming of the organization is part of an overall rebranding project undertaken by the marathon organization in late 2016. A new logo for both the Big Sur International Marathon and the Marathon Foundation have been developed, both using the recognizable Bixby Bridge in the artwork. The rebranding will also include a new logo for the Monterey Bay Half Marathon and a newly-designed website for both the full and Monterey Bay Half marathons to be completed this fall.

With the rebranding comes a tightened mission statement: to create beautiful running events that promote health and benefit our community.

“Many people, including our running audience, don’t know that we are a non-profit,” said Tom Rolander, board chair of the newly-named Big Sur Marathon Foundation and a ‘Grizzled Vet’ who has completed all 32 Big Sur International Marathons. “We work hard to put on beautiful and well-run races so that we can support other local nonprofits and groups in their charitable efforts. To date, we’ve given more than $5 million to organizations and causes in our community.”

Concurrently, the Big Sur Marathon Foundation is updating a five-year strategic plan that calls the organization to be “more than a marathon.” The board is exploring various health and fitness options and partnerships as well as determining future growth of race events.

Assisting in the rebranding efforts is a team from Wasserman, a global agency working with some of the world’s top brands, talent and properties. Staff from their endurance sports division and design group based in Southern California began the process by interviewing dozens of stakeholders including runners, sponsors, and community partners, to gather thoughts and impressions of the various races within the Big Sur portfolio.

“This was a very interesting exercise as there are lots of incredibly passionate people with definite opinions about the race and organization,” said Jason Bump, Vice President at Wasserman. “For both the marathon and the umbrella organization however, all felt that the bridge was the ultimate iconic element to visualize.”

The departure from the marathon’s hand-crafted script logo created for the race in the mid-1980’s will continue to be used in a “classic” line of apparel available through the Foundation’s online store and at the April race.

For more information on the Big Sur Marathon Foundation events and programs, visit www.bsim.org.