Highway 20, west of Williams Lake is closed until at least this weekend due to a major washout. There is a long and dusty detour in effect over some old logging roads. Certainly doable in an RV as long as you drive slow and share the road.For those who are not familiar, Highway 20 goes from Williams Lake BC to Bella Coola on the central Pacific coast. Beautiful area and this washout could not have happened at a worst time with summer tourist season ramping up.

Central BC has had a very wet spring and a fast thaw and a lot of snow coming out fast. The campground we stayed in at Cache Creek was nearly washed away 3 weeks prior to us arriving.

Tom/Barb wrote:Central BC has had a very wet spring and a fast thaw and a lot of snow coming out fast. The campground we stayed in at Cache Creek was nearly washed away 3 weeks prior to us arriving.This washout was not caused by weather. Some reports this morning mentioned that a irrigation pipe burst and eroded the ground underneath the highway.

Damagecertainly doesn't look like a irrigation pipe could do that ..

Google maps doesn't show any farm land at the 12 mile point on #20 west of Williams Lake. mostly forest and one ravine after another. There is 1 big circle farm much farther west. operating off its own wellhead. awesome washout tho.165 yards of road bed gone. Ill bet the guy who got washed away had to have clean draws when they got him out.

Tom/Barb wrote:Google maps doesn't show any farm land at the 12 mile point on #20 west of Williams Lake. mostly forest and one ravine after another.There is 1 big circle farm much farther west. operating off its own wellhead.The washout is about 25 kms (15 miles from the Highway 97 junction.) As you cross the Sheep Creek bridge at the Fraser River, the road rises then curves to the right. This image I took in 2013, is from the east side of the bridge looking west. The sliver of highway in the top left is where the washout occurred. And yes, there is farmland up and to the right of the highway there. Here is a good image of the area.(Not my image.)I'll be up there in a couple of weeks and the highway should be all repaired by then.

Highway 20, BC - Closed | Good Sam Community

paulj
Explorer II
Jun 21, 2017
From google maps, I think the washout is a km up from the bridge:

https://goo.gl/maps/RRwSEBnQ33n

streeview is available. At this point the highway has climbed onto the first bench above the river.

Culvert plus fill can fail completely if the culvert get's clogged, the water ponds and then finds its own way through the fill.

Years ago, on the way back from Bella Coola I turned off of 20 before this grade (Riske Ck), and drove south to Gang Ranch and across the Churn Creek suspension bridge. That was long 90 mile gravel and dirt short cut. And this was a cute-ute, not a big RV.

The Williams Lake Tribune has drone footage of the washout. The embankment just downstream from the road is still sloughing. I

http://www.wltribune.com/
http://www.wltribune.com/news/overnight-highway-20-washout-closes-highway-sends-one-to-hospital/

It's interesting that there's little displacement or erosion among the trees and brush above road. The washout is entirely within the road fill and ravine sides downstream from there.

Last year there was a washout and sinkhole on us101 in Brookings OR. It was caused by a damaged culvert. It affected 101, a parkinglot and frontage road.

https://youtu.be/TR8FrGqx2kQ
BC_Explorer
Explorer
Jun 21, 2017
paulj wrote:

The Williams Lake Tribune has drone footage of the washout. The embankment just downstream from the road is still sloughing.

That drone footage is from the same morning the washout occurred on.

As the work progresses, it now looks completely different. Official word is the highway is still on track to be re-opened this weekend.

Image is from about 4 hours ago.
paulj
Explorer II
Jun 23, 2017
BC Flickr photostream

That repair photo and others is on the the BC Transportation Flicker photostream.
BC_Explorer
Explorer
Jun 24, 2017
The road opening has been pushed back to late next week. Change of travel plans for me...
EEWally
Explorer
Jun 24, 2017
When did the washout happen? It looks pretty dry now. How is a spring-time flood turned off so fast?
paulj
Explorer II
Jun 27, 2017
Latest repair video (see side bar for earlier ones)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9Q0XH4fZyI

Also more pictures on the Flicker photostream. The captions talk about putting in drains, so ground water accumulation was a big concern. In contrast to the washout on Hwy 1 near Revelstoke (good photos on Flickr), this was not caused by a flash flood or mud flow from further up the valley. The upstream edge of the fill was barely disturbed, and the culvert doesn't seem to have been exposed.
closeup video before repair work
paulj
Explorer II
Jun 30, 2017
It's open to horse and wagon traffic!

Chilcotin Riders Mount Up and Roll Out!

Friday - open with gravel through the construction zone.

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Highway 20, BC - Closed

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