Had an exciting morning today (July 31st). Heading up from San Diego for an excursion over Piute Pass and found 395 closed due to a mudslide. At around 6:30-7:00 a.m. there were about 50-60 cars and bigrigs stopped at Olancha. Last night's downpour had damaged the LA aquaduct and water/mud was pouring over the road about 3 miles south of the trailer park on the southern end of Lone Pine. After an hour wait, a group of us were escorted north. The highway was deluged with a mixture of water/mud/stones/and general desert debris. In my Honda Civic the water came almost half-way up my wheels. On the south bound lanes, which at the flood area are located 20 feet above the northbound lanes, there was big rig being freed from the muck while a boulder was dislodged from underneath its trailer.
Listening to local news informed me that today was going to be another day of torrential rains and the clouds even at that time in the morning varified that. I decided it was a good idea to jettison my plans and head home.
Luckily I turned around at the trailer park because the Highway Patrol was holding southboound traffic at Lee's Market in Lone Pine. I had to wait a few minuted while the big rig was finally freed and was told to follow as closely as possible a CalTrans snow/mud plow clearing the gunk. With that I was flying home.
Humphries Basin will see me in a few days.
What's the word from locals? How bad was the rain last night? I know 90, heading around Owens Lake was damaged in flashfloods, too.
Any word from anyone who was in higher elevations?
