Olympic National Park: Boulder Creek Trail closed at Crystal Creek Bridge due to damage to span

()

()

OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — The Boulder Creek Trail has been closed at the Crystal Creek Bridge because of damage to the bridge.

The trail was closed Wednesday, Olympic National Park announced Friday.

A trail crew examined the bridge the week of April 18 for the first time since winter’s storms and found the damage, said Jared Low, park spokesman.

“One of the handrails is buckled, which indicates that there was some sort of damage to the footings of the bridge,” Low said.

The bridge will remain closed until an evaluation can be performed by an engineer and repairs can be made, he said.

Park officials figure the damage was caused last winter.

The 2.4-mile-long Boulder Creek Trail in the Elwha Valley is the primary access route to the Olympic Hot Springs and Boulder Creek Campground.

The Crystal Creek Bridge is located about 2 miles from the Boulder Creek Trailhead.

Two roads also closed

Two park roads — Olympic Hot Springs Road and Mora Road — also await repairs after they were washed out by rising rivers.

Olympic Hot Springs Road is closed at the park gate at Madison Falls, 1 mile north of a 60-foot washout near the Elwha Campground.

The road and the campground were damaged by high water in the Elwha River in November and December.

The park service has purchased a bridge for a long-term temporary repair of the washed-out section and is awaiting permits to begin installation, said Rainey McKenna, park spokeswoman, last week.

In February, a temporary pedestrian trail was built to bypass the washed-out section of road, allowing hikers and bicyclists to access the Elwha Valley trails, including the Glines Canyon overlook and the Olympic Hot Springs.

Long-term repair will be part of a large-scale rehabilitation of the aging visitor infrastructure of Elwha Valley roads, trails and campgrounds, park officials have said.

Park planners expect to begin taking public comment and complete environmental studies on the project in a year or two.

Mora Road — the only access to Rialto Beach north of La Push — remains open as a one-lane road until repairs can be made.

The eastbound lane was undermined by the Quillayute River during a March storm.

It will remain a one-lane road until engineers and state Fish and Wildlife officials determine how to repair the road with minimal impact to fish in the Quillayute River.

For trail conditions and information on day-hiking opportunities, see www.nps.gov/olym or call 360-565-3100.

________

Executive Editor Leah Leach can be reached at 360-417-3530 or at lleach@peninsuladailynews.com.

Reporter Arwyn Rice contributed to this report.

More in News

Hurricane Ridge day lodge funding held up in Congress

The fate of $80 million in funding to rebuild… Continue reading

Judy Davidson, left, and Kathy Thomas, both of Port Townsend, look over the skin care products offered by Shandi Motsi of Port Townsend, one of the 20 vendors at the second annual Procrastinators Craft Fair at the Palindrome/Eaglemount Cidery on Friday. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
Procrastinators Market

Judy Davidson, left, and Kathy Thomas, both of Port Townsend, look over… Continue reading

Services could be impacted by closure

Essential workers won’t get paid in shutdown

A now-deceased male cougar was confirmed by Panthera and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife staff to have been infected with Avian influenza on the Olympic Peninsula. (Powell Jones/Panthera)
Two cougars infected with bird flu die

Risk of human infection still low, CDC says

D
Readers contribute $58K to Home Fund to date

Donations can be made for community grants this spring

Jefferson Elementary School in Port Angeles designated Thursday dress up like a candy cane day. Back row, from left to right, they are: Wyatt Farman, Ari Ownby, Tayo Murdach, Chloe Brabant, Peyton Underwood, Lola Dixon, River Stella (in wheelchair), Fenja Garling, Tegan Brabant, Odessa Glaude, Eastyn Schmeddinger-Schneder. Front row: Ellie Schneddinger-Schneder, Cypress Crear, Bryn Christiansen and Evelyn Shrout. (Dave Logan/for Peninsula Daily News)
Dress like a candy cane

Jefferson Elementary School in Port Angeles designated Thursday dress up like a… Continue reading

EYE ON THE PENINSULA: Jefferson commissioners to meet on Monday

Meetings across the North Olympic Peninsula

A 40-year-old Quilcene man died and a 7-year-old boy was airlifted to a Seattle hospital after the car in which they were riding collided with the back of a school bus on Center Road on Friday morning. (East Jefferson Fire Rescue)
One dies in two-vehicle collision involving school bus

A 40-year-old Quilcene man died and a 7-year-old boy was… Continue reading

Iris McNerney of from Port Townsend is like a pied piper at the Port Hudson Marina. When she shows up with a bag of wild bird seed, pigeons land and coo at her feet. McNerney has been feeding the pigeons for about a year and they know her car when she parks. Gulls have a habit of showing up too whenever a free meal is available. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
Feeding the birds

Iris McNerney of from Port Townsend is like a pied piper at… Continue reading

Property purchase intended for housing

Port Angeles envisions 18 to 40 residents

Housing, climate top Port Townsend’s state agenda

City also prioritizes transportation, support at Fort Worden

Dennis Bauer gets emotional while testifying at his triple murder trial in January 2022. His conviction was overturned by the state Court of Appeals and remanded back to Clallam County. (Paul Gottlieb/Peninsula Daily News)
Appeals court overturns murder conviction

Three-judge panel rules Bauer did not receive fair trial