Discussion Topic |
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Original Post - May 29, 2006 - 08:16pm PT
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Another major slide occured yesterday morning. Was talking to a friend who works for the NPS last night, he was off duty and went down there to check it out when the slide happened (he got it on tape, I'm hoping to see it next weekend). Said it was one of the worst slides yet and he was talking to the engineers who were down there and they have no clue how to go about stabilizing the hillside. It keeps coming down and there's no solution they can come up with to get it to stabilize so they can start repairs. The slide earlier this month was the one that took out that million dollar stabilization fence so that thing is gone.
They're thinking the closure is going to go a minimum of three months, some of the engineers were thinking far far longer than that.
And the rumor they were going to build a tunnel is false. That's not going to happen.
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JuanDeFuca
Big Wall climber
Stoney Point
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May 29, 2006 - 10:29pm PT
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Is that the Tioga Pass Road?
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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May 29, 2006 - 10:55pm PT
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Hwy 140 goes from Merced to Yosemite Via Mariposa. This is really going to hurt employees who live in Mariposa and Midpines who commute to Yosemite every day. Now they'll have to drive around to Oakhurst>Wawona>Valley, an extra 1 and a half or more.
Peace
Karl
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - May 29, 2006 - 10:58pm PT
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It's also causing all the traffic that would come in that way to divert onto the Southern Yos hwy (41) and the Northern Yos hwy (120). So it makes the 2 remaining entrances busier.
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - May 29, 2006 - 11:20pm PT
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Mathers is the only one who might have been around during your time. I didn't realize it was that long ago you were there. I think most of the guys I know were there after your time there (more late 90's til now).
Did you know Spiers out of WeHo? He might have been there during your time. He's out of HQ now though.
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WBraun
climber
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May 29, 2006 - 11:40pm PT
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What's with this closing for a long time?
Push the rubble to the side, open the road to traffic.
Next time it slides, close road one day, push rubble to the side again and open road.
Keep repeating as needed.
This won't work?
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Mr_T
Trad climber
Somewhere, CA
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May 30, 2006 - 01:18am PT
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Can't push rubble - river.
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k-man
Gym climber
SCruz
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May 30, 2006 - 04:03pm PT
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Any updates on 140?? I heard a Nasty rumor about the slide ...
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Melissa
Gym climber
berkeley, ca
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May 30, 2006 - 04:08pm PT
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It's a lot of rubble to push to the side. I saw the rubble, not the slide...You'd think the wall would have moved over enough to let the road run where the wall used to be. I feel bad for the Mariposans who work in the park.
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Blowboarder
Boulder climber
Back in the mix
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May 30, 2006 - 04:16pm PT
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Which side of El Portal is the slide, Valley or Mariposa?
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Holdplease2
Big Wall climber
Yosemite area
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May 30, 2006 - 04:32pm PT
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I saw pics of the slide over at the mariposa police station today.
The slide basically goes from the edge of the river, straight up a slope to about 600 feet high. The policeman said that the cop who took the pics said it is 300 feet wide. It buried the 'jersey barrier' that divided the road when they had one lane open.
The problems they are facing now is that additional slide material now overshoots the road (as it just goes down the giant dirt ramp) and lands in the river, with the potential for flooding if the river gets blocked.
Additionally, there is a power pole that is starting to slide which is part of the only power line for both El Portal and the Valley floor. They want to stabilize it, but it is too dangerous to get near it.
They said 6 months to a year to open the road, and material is still sliding down.
Its pretty shocking to see. I only saw the pics, about 10 of them.
-Kate.
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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May 30, 2006 - 05:05pm PT
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Wow, Pretty serious stuff. Poor Mariposa.
This is one of those things that the implications don't dawn on us right away.
I wonder if they'll have to build a couple bridges and put the road on the other side of the river. That would take forever.
Peace
Karl
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Holdplease2
Big Wall climber
Yosemite area
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May 30, 2006 - 06:46pm PT
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Based on the local paper, they are looking at declaring an 'economic emergency' or something in Mariposa. The local restaurants are empty and the lack of bus trafic is seriously impacting the restaurants (where the tour busses stop to 'feed') and the convenience stores where folks stock up for their day-trips.
There is hope that they are going to get some sort of government aid for the local businesses.
Oakhurst is benefiting, to say the least. There are a lot of us who are making an effort to go to Mariposa for dinner and to pick up groceries just to try to help the economy there. However, with such high gas prices, this probably won't be an option for a lot of folks.
The cop dude said that traffic was backed up past fish camp at the Oakhurst entrance last weekend.
-Kate.
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pyro
Trad climber
Ventura
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May 30, 2006 - 06:48pm PT
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hey Dave! your right, but people have to visit the valley.
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Melissa
Gym climber
berkeley, ca
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May 30, 2006 - 06:59pm PT
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I've been missing stopping at the Bug and was wondering how bad they're hurting without Yosemite access.
It's nice that you're taking on the effort/expense to support the folks in Mariposa, Kate.
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Inner City
Trad climber
East Bay
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May 30, 2006 - 07:53pm PT
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Can some one say where on 140 the slide happened?
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - May 30, 2006 - 07:57pm PT
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"The cop dude said that traffic was backed up past fish camp at the Oakhurst entrance last weekend.
-Kate."
Heard the same kind of thing on the 120 entrance too. A friend left Strawberry a few hours ahead of us and around 3pm she said it took her 45 minutes to get through the gate, traffic was backed up to practically the Evergreen/Hardin area to get into the park.
Waited out the worst of the storm in Evergreen and came in later when it was still stormy and there were only about 10 cars ahead of us and tons of traffic fleeing the park instead (at least the storm got rid of some of the crowds). But yeah, this 140 closure is definitely impacting the other entrances.
This is what we drove in during...full on graupel blasting. Gotta love Memorial Day weekend weather:
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Blowboarder
Boulder climber
Back in the mix
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May 30, 2006 - 08:04pm PT
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I heard, second hand, that it was just downriver from Savage's trading post.
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k-man
Gym climber
SCruz
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May 30, 2006 - 08:35pm PT
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Right, downriver from the Trading Post (junction of S. Fork of Merced w/ Merced).
The _rumor_ I heard told the story of two power "poles." Also the possibility of the slide damming the river. With that, they might enduce the slide in a "controlled" manner. This would mean cutting the power (El Portal, Yosemite Valley, YoWest, Foresta) for a week minimum. Just a rumor though.
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - May 30, 2006 - 08:48pm PT
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"The _rumor_ I heard told the story of two power "poles." Also the possibility of the slide damming the river."
k-man, that last part isn't rumor but is a definite possibility according to the guy I was talking to who's been watching the situation. He said there's so much rock/dirt up there that's still unstable and likely to come down that more falls could eventually damn up the Merced River there. He said it was more volume than what came down in that La Conchita landslide down in SoCal in winter '05. That says a lot.
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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May 30, 2006 - 08:50pm PT
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The rock slide is about one mile downstream from Savage's Trading Post where the wire mesh was installed on the hill side after a previous incident several years ago. I walked down there today on the other side of the river and ended up spending four hours watching it. It was so cool! Material was coming down constantly and I saw several bigger rock falls splashing into the river. I took about 150 photos of the rock dust plumes and boulders bouncing into the river. The slide covers close to 300 yards of roadway. There is still a tremendous amount of debris that has yet to fall above the slide area. All in all it was one of the most entertaining days that I have ever had. I highly recommend the three mile walk down Incline Road to watch Mother Nature in action. I don't think this stretch of road will be open for a long, long time. If someone would like to post some of my pictures send me an e-mail and I'll send some to you.
Ken
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Lineman
Trad climber
Mariposa Ca
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May 30, 2006 - 10:57pm PT
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As a long time Mariposa resident I am glad to see all the support for our little town.
I am the PG&E crew foreman here and climb from time to time in the Valley, Weather and time permitting.
Its a drag to have drive all the way around to serve our customers on the other side of the slide.But we will do whats necessary to keep the lights on.We dont have alot of information to go with yet but hopefully we can keep the service interuption to a minimum.
Mark
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WBraun
climber
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May 30, 2006 - 11:05pm PT
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PG&E crew foreman, that climbs, whoa.
So cool ...........
Thanks for the info, Lineman
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - May 31, 2006 - 12:35am PT
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Ken, thanks for the post. You pretty much described exactly what my friend said, thanks for the first hand account. I hope to get time to go out there, I heard it's really quite a sight to see.
Lineman - good job man, I'm sure your efforts are appreciated.
Kate - I'm sure the good folks of Mariposa appreciate your efforts. That's really cool for the other outer-valley towns to be helping each other out.
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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May 31, 2006 - 01:09am PT
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Fluoride, You won't regret it. Werner you should go out there too it will be like the large trout we saw frozen in Yosemite Creek during the winter of 1976-1977, a once in a lifetime opportunity, something we may not ever see again.
Hey Lineman did you do the Nose about three years ago with Scott right after the heavy rains quit? It was either you or one of your work partners.
Ken
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WBraun
climber
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May 31, 2006 - 01:13am PT
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Hahaha Kenny
I thought I was losing it.
The frozen trout was real, and I asked Gramicci about it and he couldn't remember.
Thanks man ........
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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May 31, 2006 - 01:29am PT
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It was real Werner and I will never forget that memory ever.We could have eaten for free all winter long. And another thing I will not forget is you showing me around the boulder problems during that cold, cold winter. I met you bouldering when I first moved up here when I was seventeen years old and we both lived in Camp IV.If it wasn't for you I would still not be able to climb anything around here,it's all really difficult. It does not seem like it was that long ago since we met. I also have another memory from around that time, and that is of Yabo with an actual haircut and he was climbing trees in Camp IV parking lot with crampons and ice axe free solo and muttering about wanting to do some climbing.
You can tell Gramicci that you didn't lose your mind only your sanity.
Ken
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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May 31, 2006 - 01:37am PT
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Jody advocating redistribution of wealth? That's like a frozen trout.
But I think the idea of trying to patronize Mariposa when possible is great. Folks coming from the Bay Area to Bass Lake and Wawona can go via Mariposa then 49 to Oakhurst. Maybe stop in Mariposa for dinner and groceries.
Let's try to spread the word around to keep Mariposa in mind that way.
Peace
Karl
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Lineman
Trad climber
Mariposa Ca
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May 31, 2006 - 09:08am PT
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Ken
Yes it was me that did the Nose with Scott and spent the night with you on sickle ledge
It was cool for you to let us pass that morning
Thanks again
mark
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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May 31, 2006 - 09:39am PT
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Maybe the towns with increased business could put a percentage of their increased income into a fund to help the hurting businesses in Mariposa.
Freakin' commie.
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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May 31, 2006 - 07:45pm PT
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Here is the photo from Ken "Chicken Skinner" Yager (in my opinion, the greatest partner on a climb a guy could have)
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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May 31, 2006 - 08:05pm PT
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Thanks, Jody. I was trying to post the url as the .htm, not the .jpg.
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Forest
Trad climber
Tucson, AZ
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May 31, 2006 - 08:17pm PT
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Gary, Karl, the difference between me and you communists is that what I am suggesting is VOLUNTARY ONLY and the GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT GET INVOLVED IN THIS REDISTRIBUTION.
Umm. Isn't a town govt still a govt?
Cool pic. Thanks for posting it.
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - May 31, 2006 - 08:44pm PT
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That pic - holy crap!!! It's kinda what I pictured it looking like...only far worse. Thanks for posting it David/thanks for taking it Ken.
I bet the 140 doesn't open this year. There's no way they're going to be able to stabilize that thing enough so that traffic can get through. Then once winter rains come along it'll just make things worse.
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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May 31, 2006 - 09:29pm PT
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Jody: Gary, Karl, the difference between me and you communists is that what I am suggesting is VOLUNTARY ONLY and the GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT GET INVOLVED IN THIS REDISTRIBUTION.
Jody, THAT IS COMMUNISM! HAVEN'T YOU READ MARX?
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Gary
climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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As President Reagan said, "There you go."
You can't intelligently argue against something, when you don't even know what it is.
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Matt
Trad climber
places you shouldn't talk about in polite company
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what?
don't go trying to tell a fundamentalist that he can't argue over things he doesn't understand, what the hell do you think a fundamentalist is?
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Blowboarder
Boulder climber
Back in the mix
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birkabirkabirkajihad, bishes!!!
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 1, 2006 - 01:30am PT
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"So, are you commies for the businesses in Oakhurst sharing with Mariposa or not?"
I don't think any business owner is going to be giving away additional profits in times like these. While I'm sure they feel very sorry for Mariposa businesses, I don't think it's realistic.
But it would be cool if places like Groveland/Evergreen and Oakhurst hosted some little festival or a concert to benefit Mariposa businesses. There's enough artists and musicians that live in the area who could lend their talents to that kind of venture and the money raised could go to help the Mariposa businesses impacted by the 140 slide. That would be a good karma kind of thing.
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Matt
Trad climber
places you shouldn't talk about in polite company
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don't fret judy, jesus was a pinko commie too...
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Talk about a rockslide, check this one out in Switzerland on Wednesday. Darn rock is much bigger than the car it smashed, causing it to explode and killing two people in the car.
http://tinyurl.com/qxhmd
http://tinyurl.com/q7rd5
Oh my gawd, Jody is turning into a socialist. Capitalism with a heart? A conscious?
Flouride, a festival or concert to raise funds is not a bad idea, but why Oakhurst or Groveland? Why not in Mariposa itself, if it wouldn't interfere with the road clearing or such.
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ThomasKeefer
Trad climber
Monterey, CA
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I am curious which store is Savages. Is it that little one just past the gas station out El Portal? I cant picture any other stores. Are all those rafting outfits still in use or are they also cut off from Mariposa?
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nb3000
Gym climber
Oakland, CA.
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From the SFGate article :
"Some 250 to 300 tons of rock and debris have cascaded down a nearly vertical slope 10 miles east of Mariposa and 12 miles from the park since May 29, completely covering Highway 140, according to emergency workers.
The slide, which is 600 feet long, 600 feet wide and 300 feet deep, is between two towers carrying 72,000 volts of electricity to the park and to the town of El Portal, Mariposa County Fire Chief Blaine Shultz said."
Sounds like an awful lot to just push to the side.
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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Guys, let's leave the flame wars alone and enjoy some rock falling! These are all from Ken "Chicken Skinner" Yager, of the Yosemite Mountaineering School. He posted above his comments about how much fun it was to watch Nature and erosion in action.
Here is Ken:
Long live the Yosemite Climbing Museum! (Ken is head and instigator)
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 1, 2006 - 10:07pm PT
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Damn!!! Geology's fury in all it's glory. Thanks for posting the pics.
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Melissa
Gym climber
berkeley, ca
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The picture of nature laughing at our wire mesh....Thanks for posting David and Ken.
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 1, 2006 - 10:45pm PT
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Good lord, I just realized that was a closeup of the ROAD!
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Hello,
I went down again today and it looks so different. I took about another 140 pictures, how appropiate. This slide is going to be active for a long time. Thank you David for posting the pictures for me. If you want to see more let me know. I saw a nice climbable pillar fall today and almost ran for my life. So cool!
Ken
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Hey Jody,
I would love to have the job of watching this thing, it is anything but tedious. I would do it for free but don't tell them that. Easy with the word dirtbag it hits close to home.
Ken
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 1, 2006 - 11:35pm PT
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Keep posting pics Ken. You're getting me motivated enough I think I'm going to make that hike in to see it in person. I'm fascinated by nature's wrath.
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neuroshock
climber
Chicago, IL
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for a sense of scale for those who don't know... those white barriers bordering 140, is that 2 lanes w/ no shoulder in-between?
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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Ken Yager is sending more photos, so stay tuned.
The tower is starting to fall to the right, in the first picture, it is top left. These photos were taken June 1.
This is a mag view of the above, and I think the tower is in the center (I am awaiting confirmation from Ken)
The next sequence of shots I am sending is the triangular tower in this picture falling over.
I am going to start putting some of these up bigger. They look better and it is getting exciting, so sorry if I am slowing down your computer!
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Thanks for posting the pictures David. I took them yesterday on June 1. In the first picture on the top left side of the gully is a tower that is starting to fall to the right. The other photos are the tower disintegrating as it is falling to the river. The second photo is upside down. I'll go out tomorrow and take some more photos.
Ken
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billygoat
climber
3hrs to El Cap Meadow, 1.25hrs Pinns, 42min Castle
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this is like sex, drugs, and rock and roll for climbers, except without the sex or the drugs. Well, actually it kinda gets me high, and now I'm getting off... woa..
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k-man
Gym climber
SCruz
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The 4th slide in the sequence above (140_rock_slide_2_097_small.jpg) is wayWild.
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Lambone
Ice climber
Ashland, Or
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fyi-the little bivi pullout near Cedar lodge is now full of debris...bummer
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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David,
The tower you magnified is the one that fell. The debris in the gully below fell off the right side of the tower and I took the picture as it started to fall. The tower can be seen in the top center of the photo below the closeup of the road barricades with debris.
Ken
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Lineman
Trad climber
Mariposa Ca
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Just a update from the PG&E side.
We are going to reroute our lines to the other side of the river,
The permit and right of way issuses were sped up by the appropriate agencies. The new lines are going to be supported on wood poles
Two crews from Fresno are inroute this weekend.
As to completion date, there are to many variables yet.(Rock ,access and soil conditions)
Mark
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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Thanks for the update Mark and thanks for taking care of us/them.
Let's keep the town of Mariposa in mind. If anybody has ideas about how to keep their economy from flailing too hard while the road is closed, please share them.
One Idea: connect the Chamber of Oakhurst, Mariposa, Sonora and other Highway 49 towns to coordinate a package of Hotel/Dining combos so folks could spend a different night in series catching the scenic points in each foothill city. Good for the gateway communities and might keep some tourists from overimpacting Yosemite as badly.
Another idea: Hold your companies business meeting/retreat in Mariposa. Once they figure out how bad it is, you can probably get a much better than usual rate. I don't mean to take advantage of their situation but rather work out Win-Win situations that keep the place out of the red zone.
Peace
Karl
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pyro
Trad climber
Ventura
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wow!
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Fluoride
Trad climber
on a rock or mountain out west
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 3, 2006 - 01:15am PT
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Karl wrote "Let's keep the town of Mariposa in mind. If anybody has ideas about how to keep their economy from flailing too hard while the road is closed, please share them."
Even though it would be a one-time thing, some sort of benefit concert/art fest would work. Fundraisers like that really aren't hard to put together. Schedule it on a weekend and put the word out. Find local printers who would donate their services for making posters/fliers about it. Find a venue in Oakhurst or Evergreen (or one of the accessible towns) to donate the facility for a day, have artists/photographers donate a piece of artwork for sale or auctions, get gear companies to donate some gear for silent auctions, get local food vendors/restaurants to set up booths to feed the masses and have them donate a portion of sales, get some of the many local talented musicians/bands to perform (at no charge) at a benefit concert. Take all the proceeds from concert ticket sales, art/craft sales and gear auction money and donate the big lump sum to the Mariposa Chamber of Commerce to help out those who need it most.
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Mr_T
Trad climber
Somewhere, CA
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Can that stretch be bypassed with a dirt bike? Climb/descend ridge before/after slide?
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Lineman
Trad climber
Mariposa Ca
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Mr T
No you cant by pass that section on a dirtbike.The sides of the canyon in that area are real steep and covered in brush.
A way around is hwy 49 south then chowchilla mtn rd to wawona
You will need a dirtbike for that route or a high clearance
4x4 vehicle.Its only 13 miles to wawona from hwy 49s But a word of caution,There are many forks and people do get lost this way
The park had the gate closed at the wawona side last weekend to keep people from trying this route.I was able to get by on my 650 duelsport no problem.The ruts in the road are two feet deep in places! Bring a topo map if you have not gone this way before.It is easy to take the wrong turn and wind up somewhere you dont want to be!
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Karl Baba
Trad climber
Yosemite, Ca
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Nice Idea Fluoride
A benefit concert would best be held at the Mariposa fairgrounds so the local businesses would directly benefit.
Peace
Karl
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Blowboarder
Boulder climber
Back in the mix
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Any evidence of the river flowing faster thru the area, as a result of a restricted flow area from so much debris filling the channel?
In short, is Lake El Portal in the future?
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Yes,
The rapids have changed and there is the possibility of the river being dammed up. I don't think it would back up all the way to El Portal but it could to Savages, perhaps it could be called Savage Lake. I am going down there right now and will take some more pictures. It is changing daily.
Ken
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susan peplow
climber
Winner of Diet Challenge!!!
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FYI - the travel section of the LA Times mentioned the closure of Hwy 140 in today's paper. According to CalTrans is could be as long as 6 months before the road re-opens.
-S
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Fluoride
Trad climber
California somewhere
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 5, 2006 - 10:57pm PT
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6 months is probably generous...it'll probably be a year.
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Went there yesterday and took more photos until the local sheriff kicked everybody out of there. So the show is over. There appeared to be dust plumes shooting out of the fracture, well behind the upper headwall of the slide. The hill side dropped 17 feet in four days and the experts are worried that it may release everything at once and damm the river(pun intended). It will be a LONG time before the road opens.
Ken
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WBraun
climber
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I don't think so Jody. I believe the river will just flow to the right. Like in this picture. What do you think?
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Bobbyg
Social climber
Fresno
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somebody shoud be pro-active and put some large pipe conduits in the river just in case it does slide and dam the river.
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Roger Breedlove
Trad climber
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
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Hey Ken,
Do you know where the dirt road on the other side of the river ends up?
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David Nelson
climber
San Francisco
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Ken Yager is still out there photographing, and the hillside is still coming down. Notice how little of the road is visible:
Here is another, with a long part of the road entirely under the slide. It is still moving, so it is too dangerous for the road crews to start:
More fun with mountains and gravity. The width of the slide seems to be increasing and another tower may be threatened:
Here is a closeup of that tower. Note the (scared I am sure!) linemen scoping out the damage:
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WBraun
climber
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"bring in the Seabees ...."
Now, someone is thinking, where are those guys.
What's with these people?
It's action time, not yaking for months about what to do.
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Fluoride
Trad climber
California somewhere
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 7, 2006 - 01:21am PT
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I hope those poor linemen are getting some awesome hazard pay for being up there. That's some crazy stuff.
Thanks for posting the pics DN. Man, just seems it gets worse and worse by the day.
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Blowboarder
Boulder climber
Back in the mix
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This may be old news by now but I got this email yesterday from the infamous Hawkman who is in El Portal visiting his family:
"I'll send more pictures later. They stopped letting people go down and
look at the rock slide. They did some measurements, and the mass has
slipped 25 meters from the main hillside. They figure when it goes it
will be major (dust and shock wave) and will create a dam that will
flood all the way back to the El Portal Warehouse. xxx and xxxx are
high enough on the hill to be OK, but everyone down in the canyon are on
24 hour evacuation orders. It's really amazing!"
Names turned into porno grades to protect the innocent from association with blowboarder.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Bobbyg, not a bad idea about the pipe conduits but placing them might be a problem unless done with a helicopter.
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TradIsGood
Trad climber
Gunks end of country
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Patrick
You might want to look at the jersey barrier in the picture above. Then think about the problem of keeping the pipe sections hooked together. LOL.
Wait until the end of the summer, when river is at lowest. Blow the hillside into a dam. Cut a diversion around it, build sluices in the dam, then fill the cut?
Really an interesting problem. First, you have to decide how good a solution you want.
FEMA? Some of them must be done with the Big Easy.
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Chicken Skinner
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Roger,
The dirt road is the old railroad bed that ends up at Briceburg. Parts of it are washed out.
Because the river is designated Wild and Scenic they are not allowed to alter anything. If they blast the hillside they have to remove the debris. They are not allowed to put pipes in the river, it wouldn't work anyway, because they would get crushed and displaced. The experts are saying there is roughly 3 million cubic yards of material yet to come down and a worst case scenario is a 300 foot dam when it does. We are not allowed to get anywhere near it now so there will be no more pictures from me. I did get over 350 photos. Mariposa County is now in a state of emergency.
PG&E re-routed the electrical during the last 2 days and fried two generators when they bypassed the electric. We just got our power back at 5:00 am.
Ken
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Yeah Chicken Skinner and TradIsGood, I suppose you are both right. Engineering was never my strong point, nor physics.
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k-man
Gym climber
SCruz
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The Yosemite West Proporties and Homeowners web site posts updates as they are issued by Lee Stetson, the Mariposa County Supervisor for District 1. You can read the latest here:
http://www.yosemitewest.org/news.htm
Man that thing is Krazy. How much is 3 million cubic yards anyway?
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TradIsGood
Trad climber
Gunks end of country
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300 yards by 100 yards by 100 yards = 3 million cubic yards.
60 football fields 30 feet high.
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Hello, I am new to this page. I have studied the topography of the slide area. The Merced River is at 1400', Savages Trading Post is at 1450', and El Portal headquarters is at 1919'. El Portal is aproximately 10 miles up river. El Portal is 509' higher than the river is at the slide. Unless the slide is greater than 510' El Portal is not in any danger what so ever. In addition, the South Fork of the Merced River branches off at Savages, above the slide, and it is a good 10 miles up river in that canyon before the river reaches 1900'. Any volume of uncompacted slide debris will fail to hold enough water for a significant back up. It is the potential catastrophic failure of the dammed up river and subsequent flash flood below that is the real issue. Also, the shear displacement of water if the slide comes down in MASS is likely to create a tidal wave like effect in the river. Savages could be effected by this and the shock wave of air. So could bystanders! Another good web site for photos is http://www.mariposacounty.org/sheriff/Rock%20Slide%20May%2029%202006.htm
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Fluoride
Trad climber
California somewhere
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 8, 2006 - 01:19am PT
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Thanks for the details Barbara. How are you guys faring there in Mariposa? Would be interesting to hear how this is impacting you from a local standpoint.
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Many busineses are struggling. Particularly the hotels. Last Weekend was good for some because Merced and other valley folks came up to spend money as a gesture. This is GREAT but I am sure the sentiment will fade before the road opens. It is the park employees who are suffering with the insane drive to work. The El Portal employees especially. Most have a 2 1/2 hour commute one way. Some have a 3 hour commute one way. Our county has only one comprehensive highschool and one comprehensive middle school so many students who live in El Portal or Yosemite Valley have a HUGE commute every day, 5 hours on a school bus on mountain roads. Some have moved in with friends in town to finish the school year. School is out next Wednesday so that issue will be releaved, until August when school begins again.
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Fluoride
Trad climber
California somewhere
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 8, 2006 - 08:20pm PT
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Those poor schoolkids, I hadn't even thought about the families up there. Thanks for the firsthand account. Sounds like life is really throwing you guys some curve balls right now up in Mariposa. A lot of us are pulling for you guys....just wish we could do more to help.
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nature
climber
Flagstaff, AZ
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YES! my wrath is at play here! Nature WILL win!
Awesome photos - many thanks for the updates.
I'm wondering about the "experts" on scene. In grad school I took a Hillslope and Fluvial Processes course from Andre Lehre - I'm wondering if he's by chance one of the experts on scene. I'm sure he's getting a kick out of Nature's (MY!) wrath!
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TradIsGood
Trad climber
Gunks end of country
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Make lemonade.
You've got a new natural attraction!
Movie rights?
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Lineman
Trad climber
Mariposa Ca
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We finnaly finished up rerouting the line this week and are now trying to figure out what to do if the canyon floods.
Our planned outage for the valley did not go as hoped,Optimistic management does not make digging in rock on a slope easier!
Our generators did not hold up as planned,Failed voltage regulators, fuel filters and and alot of load and heat took there toll.The 4 transmission crews did a fantastic job in bad conditions.The stories they tell of the earth moving as they stood next to the tower by the slide will make your hair stand up.Stringing wire while dangling 200 ft below a helicopter made up for that though,they get a kick out of it!They flew in the final span with two birds, heli marker balls and all!
Ill try to keep up with events in the canyon.Im of to the next project in coasegold.
Mark
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Mark, do you have any pictures of the line stringing? WOW!
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TradIsGood
Trad climber
Gunks end of country
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Pictures?!
How many photographers visit Yosemite each year to take pictures of things that never really see much change except for the lighting. (OK, waterfall volume changes, but...)
I bet a lot of photographers could find some good stuff here. And they might even drink lemonade. :)
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Lineman
Trad climber
Mariposa Ca
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I will try to get some,I was not there for that part of the opperation,Access is very limited during air opps.
posting pics is beyond my skill with a "puter" though.
Mark
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rockermike
Mountain climber
Berkeley
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sounds like a good time for a traffic free bike ride up 140. Hey locals, any chance there is a "work around" (or walk around) to get past the slide with a bike on one's shoulder? Any bridges up/and or down river? How are people getting those photos?
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'Pass the Pitons' Pete
Big Wall climber
like Oakville, Ontario, Canada, eh?
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Jun 10, 2006 - 01:27am PT
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I can be at the Pizza Deck tomorrow [Saturday] night if anyone wants to get together for beers.
Cheers,
Pete
P.S. Great photos! Glad I'm on this side of the rockfall. Apparently the power was out in Yosemite for some time, which explained why my cell phone didn't work on the wall.
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'Pass the Pitons' Pete
Big Wall climber
like Oakville, Ontario, Canada, eh?
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Jun 10, 2006 - 02:03am PT
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Like, they sell beer at lunchtime, eh? [HINT]
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'Pass the Pitons' Pete
Big Wall climber
like Oakville, Ontario, Canada, eh?
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Jun 10, 2006 - 02:16am PT
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Ooops. Sorry, mate. I'm in Yosemite on the other side of the slide. Catch you next time, eh?
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Jun 10, 2006 - 02:42am PT
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Jody, you'll have to eat at either Take and Bake (my recommendation)or Pizza Plus because Pizza Factory (my favorite) was closed a couple of months ago due to a collapse of the historic Trabucco Wherehouse. They shared an unstable wall and it is possible the wall could fall in on customers. We thought life was bad when that happened. Now it is much tougher. Oddly, a week or two before Trabucco fell there was a big (we thought at the time)slide on the dirt road from the Briceburg bridge down river. It cut off access to all the river campgrounds. Now other businesses are closing due to the economy. A lot of collapses. It is too odd. Thanks for visiting our town. We need it!!!
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Robb
Social climber
Flathead Valley, Montana
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Jun 10, 2006 - 02:25pm PT
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Hey Barb
You don't happen to be the Barbara that worked at the Mountain Shop way back when do you?
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justme
climber
Oakhurst
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Jun 11, 2006 - 11:39am PT
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I don't understand why they can't dynamite the mountain down. I own a business in Fish Camp, and we are making a donation to the Chamber of Commerce so they can begin a "Mariposa is open" type of campagne like they had in 1997 when the floods hit. We will also be donating to the food bank there. It would be great if all the businesses on this side of the mountain would donate a bit of their profits to the other side of the mountain. I don't want to make a profit at the demise of a whole town or even 1 other business like the hostel. I'm also going to be contacting some of the corporations that have franchises there (Chevorn, BP, Choice hotels, etc.) asking them for gift cards to donate. Don't know if it will work, but at least it's worth a try.
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Blowboarder
Boulder climber
Back in the mix
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Jun 11, 2006 - 05:31pm PT
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Barbara wrote:" because Pizza Factory (my favorite) was closed a couple of months ago due to a collapse of the historic Trabucco Wherehouse"
What a bummer. They sponsored my fifth grade baseball team and used to give us free pizza after games, win or lose.
Hope this disaster comes to a resolution faster than the time frames being thrown out here.
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telemama
Trad climber
midpines
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Jun 12, 2006 - 02:50am PT
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"...unless the slide is greater than 510', El Portal is in no danger, whatsoever."
I think it depends on your definition of El Portal and danger.
Also, did you take into account the current peak runoff continuing to flow into the river/possible lake?
I was in El Portal during the '97 flood and I remember seeing the frothy-chocolate water raging above the bank, and saw the damage it did to the hwy. that is my main concern with E.P. If the river does dam, there is going to be extensive hwy. damage, and I imagine this would once again take out Incline Road, and possibly the trailer court (yes, there are still people living there), and any other low land dwelings. It must be an eering feeling wondering what is going to happen and not knowing when. We've had so many "sympathy" calls from friends in E.P. offering a place for us to stay, so our family can be together during my husbands work week. I just hope everything stays okay with their town.
Being cut-off from El Portal and Yosemite is a strange feeling.
Marci
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Jun 12, 2006 - 01:45pm PT
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I agree that the highway near the slide, and for a distance up canyon, would probably be damaged. It is on average 30' above the river. It would be under water in a damming scenario. The bridge at Savages would probably suffer too as would Incline Road in that immediate area. But I am certain that the water can NOT back up to EP. The only conceivable possibility requires the dam to be over 510' and so firmly compacted that it can hold back the shear force of the huge volume of water. The physics of this is sooooooo unlikely as to be a mute point.
It is when the dam gives way that the destruction will be greatest.
My friend proposes an interesting couple of scenarios. He suggests that "they" set water proof blasting charges in the river in anticipation of a potential dam. If it happens "they" can detonate the charges and prevent a significant build up of water. He even suggests that they set the river charges then blast down the mountain THEN blow the dam open. Cool concept! I don't know a thing about the specific behavior of blasting materials and I know blasting won't make the volume of rock dissapear so it might not be feasible at all. I bet it would work in Hollywood !
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Irisharehere
Trad climber
Gunks
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Jun 12, 2006 - 03:22pm PT
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Blow the mountain down into the river, then have the USAF come in and open up the river with a bunch of laser-guided 10,000lb bombs.
Sell tickets, make it an occasion.
All proceeds going to the buisnesses in town...........
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nature
climber
Flagstaff, AZ
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Jun 12, 2006 - 03:56pm PT
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I wonder if AAArnold is going to petition the Feds to lift the wilderness area designation applied to that river (or maybe just part of it). All these ideas of how to combat a potential damning or speed up the mass wasting processes are great... except well... except that it's completely illegal under the Wilderness Act designation.
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smidogg
Trad climber
berkeley
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Jun 12, 2006 - 07:22pm PT
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Jody are you talking about the Yosemite Bug Hostel?
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Chaz
Trad climber
So. Cal.
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Jun 12, 2006 - 07:32pm PT
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Let's hope a family of Perigrine Falcons doesn't decide to set up house-keeping on the slide face or 140 might be closed for good.
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telemama
Trad climber
midpines
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Jun 12, 2006 - 08:29pm PT
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Barbara,
It's all very interesting. Do you have a computer model at the discovery center? maybe I'll stop in this week to see. I'm still concerned about the hwy., because things things upstream can be affected by what happens downstream. and the shock wave could do some major damage to the course of the river as well.
Marci
Oh, Jody,
The Yosemite Bug Hostel is located in Midpines off hwy. 140, a few miles East of the Midpines Post Office. It's a cool place for dinner, you should definitely check it out. Although, most of the appeal is the Euro feel from all the foreigners...oh, well, still a cool spot. (It's also close to some swimming holes and the North Fork of the Merced River/Briceberg)
another great place to eat in Mariposa is the River Rock Inn. they serve a variety of gourmet sandwiches and will be having music and bbq on Wed. and Fri. night starting the first day of summmer.
For a more of a dining experience try Savourys. I love the Panne Cotta (sp.?).
thanks for visiting Mariposa
m
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Jun 13, 2006 - 02:11am PT
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Marci,
You asked, "Do you have a computer model at the discovery center?" No unfortunately I don't. I did a brute study of topo maps on the USGS web site. Soon I hope to have GIS maps of the river canyon that show habitat and endangered species that will be effected.
We (a collaborative) are applying for a grant to purchase new computers for the Discovery Center that will be able to handle ESRI GIS. Then anyone can model a variety of interesting scenarios. Maybe next Fall I could model such things.
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Lambone
Ice climber
Ashland, Or
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Jun 13, 2006 - 02:27am PT
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I studied GIS in college, this would have been the perfect capstone project. I'd contact the nearest University Geography department and ask if there are any students interested in a project.
The software liscense for ESRI is much more expensive then the hardware needed to run it, but ESRI is pretty good about donating to non-profits, you should go to them directly.
Regards,
Matt
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Barbara Milazzo
climber
Mariposa
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Jun 13, 2006 - 09:41am PT
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Matt,
I took GIS in college and I loved the class. I see the relevance to many career opportunities, even recreational climbing. We have a number of software packages and fortunately it turns out that we(school district) already own the licenses too. I know ESRI is pricey, they are the best. The Discovery Center has been offered data from various sources too. We just don't have a computer powerful enough to handle it yet. If we get the grant we are good to go. Well, after I brush up on my skills that is. Then students and the public can learn to query and model too. We will have classes in due time.
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pony girl
climber
Mariposa, Ca
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Jun 14, 2006 - 10:15pm PT
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For those of you who have been involved in the threads regarding Mariposa and our "economic troubles" due to the landslide on 140 and have talked of helping here is your chance. At the last Merchants meeting the prospect of bringing our Farmers Market down from the park and into the downtown area came up. It has progressed over the past few weeks and is coming to fruition next week, along with a weekly "Street Fair" every Wednesday night from 5 to 8. I'm sure it will have a growing process but we have to start somewhere, right? The Market will be on the corner of Seventh and Bullion with street vendors set up along Seventh, between 140 and Bullion. If you are a vendor and would like to rent a space (We Need You!) it is $10 per space and you can contact Dell Knell at 209-742-5522. Tell her I sent you. Our Board of Supervisors has given us a generous check and it will be used for advertising in the Fresno area as well as the Merced side. There is talk of getting some local car clubs out there to display their automobiles in the future as well as some other fun stuff. We'll have music in the Art Park on Wednesdays and I myself am trying to hook up with a local musician to play on my deck outside for a couple hours on Wednesdays, too. I am on the corner of 7th and 140. My shop, The Pony Expresso, will be open late with music going, River Rock Cafe will have a BBQ dinner going as well as other activities. We need a varity of vendors and we need people to stick with it and not give up after 2 weeks. I know it is a haul to come over here for some and gas prices are high but if you are local and want to help this is where we need it. Also, if you are not a vendor/artist or interested in selling just come up and wander around for the evening. Maybe do your organic shopping and then have a dinner out over here? My husband and I have agreed to go out to dinner once a week for the summer just to help our community. That may not be a big deal for some but we NEVER go out, lol, so for us it is ;0) Hope you can come!
Thanks,
Amy Eaton
The Pony Expresso
209-966-5053
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justme
climber
Oakhurst
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Jun 15, 2006 - 12:48pm PT
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I went to Mariposa on Tuesday, dropped off checks and hugs of support at the Chamber and at Manna House, filled up my tank and tummy, visited the museums, did some shopping and had a great time. We went to the Bug for lunch, but parking lot was busy, so we went back to Mariposa and had lunch at the Red Fox, which was quiet. Lovely day but town was quiet. I'll be visiting the Farmer's Markets when able.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Mar 21, 2009 - 02:55am PT
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Flouride, any chance we can see the tape of the slide in action?
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luggi
Trad climber
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Mar 21, 2009 - 10:49am PT
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Ah dang it.....that is bad
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Dr.Sprock
Boulder climber
Sprocketville
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Mar 21, 2009 - 12:09pm PT
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Luggi, Munger did a Dredge Job, look at the date, 2006.
Scared the sh#t out of me, I have a trip on the Merced this weekend.
Anybody need a ride to El Portal?
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