US 89 to Page is closed....

[outdoor_lover]

http://bit.ly/12Nl2oJ

Hikebot adds http://adotblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/ne ... tails.html

[Jim]

Neat, glad I don't live up there and need to travel that. A lot of the at road is built right on debris strewn slopes.

[PaleoRob]

Figures I'd move away and something interesting would happen.

[Al_HikesAZ]

It's going to be a long detour through Tuba City.

[Jim]

and Red Lake, near Shonto, Inscription House, Kaibeto. Scenic, but long.

[big_load]

Officials initially said the cause was not weather related and may be a "geologic event."

Is that what you call it when the rocks move? I participated a geologic event on a scree slope in Colorado in September.

[Al_HikesAZ]

I participated a geologic event on a scree slope in Colorado in September.

Your event sounds more like a gravitational distortion than a geologic event.

[outdoor_lover]

Some updated pictures from ADOT....

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 651&type=1

[nonot]

Map of detour, I was confused where the closure was:
http://www.azdot.gov/CCPartnerships/New ... 99_Map.pdf

[chumley]

Some updated pictures from ADOT....

I like how they aren't even shy about it. Every single photo includes ADOT workers standing around with their hands in their pockets. It really conveys a sense of urgency in getting it re-opened before, oh, 2014.

[nonot]

2016, this is the government, after all

[Sredfield]

Some updated pictures from ADOT....

I like how they aren't even shy about it. Every single photo includes ADOT workers standing around with their hands in their pockets. It really conveys a sense of urgency in getting it re-opened before, oh, 2014.

Well, it ain't like a truck load of hot mix and a tamper is going to fix this one.

[outdoor_lover]

@Sredfield
Uh, ya......

[chumley]

I'm no geologist or traffic engineer, but this appears to be a "Slate Creek"-type geologic event. AKA, underground water source creating weakness not able to support the roadway. See exact location here: http://hikearizona.com/map.php?QX=2499

It may take years for them to build the necessary retaining walls and drainage systems so the new construction is not undermined. However, much like the Slate Creek mess, a temporary usable roadway can still be built and used while that construction is taking place (with periodic closures required).

And I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night.

[big_load]

Well, it ain't like a truck load of hot mix and a tamper is going to fix this one.

Yeah, that looks like a pretty substantial landslide. I've seen worse, but this will surely eat some time and money.

[nonot]

I'm no geologist or traffic engineer, but this appears to be a "Slate Creek"-type geologic event. AKA, underground water source creating weakness not able to support the roadway. See exact location here: http://hikearizona.com/map.php?QX=2499

It may take years for them to build the necessary retaining walls and drainage systems so the new construction is not undermined. However, much like the Slate Creek mess, a temporary usable roadway can still be built and used while that construction is taking place (with periodic closures required).

And I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night.

I think it's a slump failure, zoom out from your map, observe that a 4000 ft section of the cliff to the east slid down towards where they eventually built the rd. This slump is a baby by comparison to the one that happened hundreds/thousands of years ago. Geology happens!

[kingsnake]

Well done video that shows why engineers are engineers and not bubble-headed bleach blondes on the evening news : http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valley ... nsible.php (Irony Alert: The ADOT motto is "Keep Arizona Moving", except when you know, it isn't. )

[Jim]

pathway to eventually getting it fixed has already begun.

Yes, we've already begun to consider thinking about the potential to begin repairs. 2018 is set to be a big year for us!

Actually, all laughing at Government aside, what caused the road to slide may not be completed, and it is probably not worth rushing in to rebuilt just to have it happen again. I wonder if the road should be rerouted off the soft slope and through a by-pass that is cut into hard rock? Either right next to the existing road, or away from it. One also wonder, why they never built the road from page up the existing dirt road from the Gap, AZ area, instead of up from Bitter Springs? I guess this was cheaper, but it might have been smarter in the long run.

[big_load]

Actually, all laughing at Government aside, what caused the road to slide may not be completed, and it is probably not worth rushing in to rebuilt just to have it happen again. I wonder if the road should be rerouted off the soft slope and through a by-pass that is cut into hard rock?

Excellent points. I don't remember that section of road, but the glimpses of the surrounding area that show up in the video strongly suggest that they won't be able to rebuild anywhere near the current location. The slide is big, the event may not be over, and even if it is, the next slide along the route might come soon enough to warrant relocation.

[PaleoRob]

They might consider paving the route through The Gap and up through Coppermine and Le'Chee.