Mt Baker Ranger Station
360-856-5700 ( Baker Ranger Station number)
Ask for OTIS.....TOM......or JIM...!!
360-856-5700 ( Baker Ranger Station number)
CANYON CREEK (Bearpaw) UPDATE
- Thread starter SNOBI-WAN-KENOBI
- Start date
You would end up in the Federal court then jail if you did so with out a permit and Engineering, I knew a farmer in Oso that cleaned his ditches in his field out with a excavator, his fellow residents turned him in to Fish and Wildlife, he went to prison like and ax murderer for not having done enviromental impact study and endangering the local streams.
Wish it was as simple as a few guys with and excavator and dump truck, I am sure it would last as long if not longer than and engineers fix and cost a fraction
I don't see why they can't just cut into the woods to the right here !!Ouch! Not good news. I was hoping that there would have been a logging contract or something up there that would have included a road repair.
Here is a pic that was posted last year.
There is no reason it cant be done! Simple fix. Its not even as bad as the picture looks. A full size truck will fit on the road still. A coulvert in the ditch and then covered up would be plenty of room to even get the groomer passed. The reason they don't want to cut into the bank is because they say it would be out of the road corridor and then they would have to do a study. Funny as a club we fixed whistler creek and the wash out before the bridge heading to bear paw and it wasn't that big of deal. Both of these you would think would be more of a concern being around the water. Not sure what happend? You would think they would want us up there since we do alot of the up keep on the road.
I
i'llDooit
Well-known member
thats pretty low
Bad thing is even if the snow level is at the hwy. Jeremy will give you a ticket for going around a road closed sign. The road is closed to all motorized vehicles because it could be a danger passing this point. This is the stance the forest service is taking.Whats the difference if you are riding a bicycle or a sled or walking? The thing I don't get is there are dozen's of places in the state that have roads that are alot more dangerous than this spot. Some of them being various places around here in the mountains. Here is a perfect example that alot of people might know about. The road going to Hearts pass! The road is narrower there and it drops straight off at least 500ft. But the road continues to be open! Makes no sense! Keep calling even if you think it is doing nothing. I know doing nothing you will get these exact results. Nothing!
Which one or both, Jim Mitchell or Tom Otis?
Need a way to come in from the Bald Mtn side.
Its been done. And it sucks. Haul lots of gas because you will be out by the time you get to the upper Y.
Border patrol gets real cranky too. They like to jump out of the bushes in ski masks and give problems.
Bald Mt. is not the way...
There is another.
problem with all the other ways in is it involves x-ing crown pacific land/gates and bPatrol will be waiting with rubber gloves...the washout isn't whats really preventing access either its the FS road closure order which means if your on any part of the road you could be ticketed. The drainage and groundwater issues need to be corrected first or the rest of the road could fail this winter and be much harder to repair. Cost estimate seems realistic for a permanent fix at the current location, most likely going to entail soldier piles with tie-back soil anchors and or geogrid supported import structural fill to replace the missing road shoulder. Moving the road further into the hill may be feasible but cutting the upper slope toe and the currently failing shoulder area would still need to be addressed. This is not a backhoe fix sorry... see you at schriebers.....
Thanks for shedding some light on this...
i called today and spoke to Leah (front desk admin), who put me to Jim Mitchell's voice mail.
i also asked for jims email to confirm. she also told me to speak with the district ranger john vanderheyden as he will have more insight than jim (engineer).
jmitchell@fs.fed.us
jvanderheyden@fs.fed.us
hopefully we can tag team both of them for answers.
leah did say nothing was in the works for "this year", but possible funds for next year to get it fixed - who knows how accurate that is though.
i'll shoot them an email...we'll see what happens.
i sent an email today and within an hour had a response:
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Jim/John,
I was hoping one, or both of you, could assist in providing a response to the progress in repairing the Canyon Creek Road that services the Bear Paw snow park for snowmobilers – See attached photo.
In speaking with Leah (front desk admin), she had indicated there were plans or something in place for repairing for next year? Is this accurate? If not, can you please provide an estimated time for when the repairs will commence, and how long it will take? Also, are the funds in place to cover the engineering, and construction costs?
I had called this afternoon and left a message for Jim Mitchell at your office.
Any help would be appreciated. Feel free to respond via email or call my cell phone directly – see signature.
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Jon Vanderheyden's response:
Time frame is indefinite as we do not have the funds. We are using some of our limited road mntc funds to get a drill test done (Next week) which will help finalize the design which will help determine how what NEPA/planning analysis we will need to do (Can the fix stay within the current road prism or will it have to go into the hill and how much). That will position us to better go after some type of funding. Prices of the above options are $150-$300k.
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having a background in construction it seems as if they're on the right track. depending on how they plan on fixing the road, i wouldnt be suprised if it costs upwards of 200K to fix.
just to get the road stable they'll have to demo the asphalt, drive sheet piles, back fill, possibly use tie-backs to stablize. then re-route/re-work the existing drainage so it doesnt happen again, sub base/compact, and place asphalt. not to mention the logistics of getting up there, confined work spaces, limited area for equipment and turn-around's.
"we" could be without this riding area for at least 3 (more) winters - best guess.
lucky for me, i had the chance to ride it last december (before the wash out)...
it WAS a beautiful day
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Jim/John,
I was hoping one, or both of you, could assist in providing a response to the progress in repairing the Canyon Creek Road that services the Bear Paw snow park for snowmobilers – See attached photo.
In speaking with Leah (front desk admin), she had indicated there were plans or something in place for repairing for next year? Is this accurate? If not, can you please provide an estimated time for when the repairs will commence, and how long it will take? Also, are the funds in place to cover the engineering, and construction costs?
I had called this afternoon and left a message for Jim Mitchell at your office.
Any help would be appreciated. Feel free to respond via email or call my cell phone directly – see signature.
----------------------
Jon Vanderheyden's response:
Time frame is indefinite as we do not have the funds. We are using some of our limited road mntc funds to get a drill test done (Next week) which will help finalize the design which will help determine how what NEPA/planning analysis we will need to do (Can the fix stay within the current road prism or will it have to go into the hill and how much). That will position us to better go after some type of funding. Prices of the above options are $150-$300k.
----------------------------------
having a background in construction it seems as if they're on the right track. depending on how they plan on fixing the road, i wouldnt be suprised if it costs upwards of 200K to fix.
just to get the road stable they'll have to demo the asphalt, drive sheet piles, back fill, possibly use tie-backs to stablize. then re-route/re-work the existing drainage so it doesnt happen again, sub base/compact, and place asphalt. not to mention the logistics of getting up there, confined work spaces, limited area for equipment and turn-around's.
"we" could be without this riding area for at least 3 (more) winters - best guess.
lucky for me, i had the chance to ride it last december (before the wash out)...
it WAS a beautiful day
they want to turn this area into wilderness, so the longer it is closed the easier it will become wilderness. we need to keep calling. dont let this sit on back burner.
