US-95 closed in ID - July 4

[dfandrews]

I just heard from a friend in Idaho: US-95 is closed due to
a large rock slide 6 miles south of Riggins. Detours: XXX
https://www.kxly.com/large-rock-slid...our-available/

[salmo7000]

I live about 45 minutes north of the slide, and it's no rumor! So far there is no estimate on when it might be open, even to 1 lane travel. Idaho Transportation Dept. is saying there is not a way to get around it, in other words no detour, but there is for the intrepid traveler who doesn't mind spending a few extra hours on dirt roads, seeing some beautiful country. It is also possible to get around it by going through eastern Oregon.

Anyone who is stuck and might be interested in the dirt road option, PM me!!

[UncleTim]

If it's South of Riggins 5 miles, then it is stopping all South bound traffic of the Salmon on 95. There is a fair bit of traffic on US 95 between Riggins and McCall.

Sawtooths to the East, Snake River canyon to the West! It looks like those folks are gonna be there awhile. Backtracking North is a long stretch. I-84 means going back North to Lewiston. Wow!

[Mike G]

I hope no forum members needed to get through there anytime soon. That's quite a pile.

Idaho is really letting things slide lately. Oh well, that's the way the boulder bounces.

[Mike G]

They should try to avoid that rock-n-roll.

[Iowa Dave]

That is for sure some very nice country. I’ve driven that stretch several times. If I were
In Lewiston and headed south a long ways I would go down to Orofino, then Kamiah, Kooskia and then East up US 12 to Lolo over the Lolo Pass. Then south on Montana 1. However it would take me about 2 weeks because I’d have to stop and camp on the Clearwater, the Selway and the Lochsa just to get up to the pass. Then about a week of camping all the way south to Dillon along the Bitteroots. Man that is some nice country with a lot of fine, friendly people.
But Alas, we are not in the area this year so our best to everyone who encounters this inconvenience.
Iowa Dave

[salmo7000]

Originally Posted by Iowa Dave

That is for sure some very nice country. I’ve driven that stretch several times. If I were
In Lewiston and headed south a long ways I would go down to Orofino, then Kamiah, Kooskia and then East up US 12 to Lolo over the Lolo Pass. Then south on Montana 1. However it would take me about 2 weeks because I’d have to stop and camp on the Clearwater, the Selway and the Lochsa just to get up to the pass. Then about a week of camping all the way south to Dillon along the Bitteroots. Man that is some nice country with a lot of fine, friendly people.
But Alas, we are not in the area this year so our best to everyone who encounters this inconvenience.
Iowa Dave

You know it Dave!! I camped at Wilderness Gateway along the Lochsa last week, and it was sublime. I scored one of the primo riverside campsites, and there weren't a lot of people there. I think there are a heck of a lot of worse places to be stuck than north central Idaho, but I guess that should be obvious as this is where I have chosen to live

ITD was planning to get a temporary by-pass around the slide open so folks could travel north to south and south to north on today's very busy travel day, but apparently they decided against it as rocks are continuing to fall.

Also the drive-around I alluded to in my previous post is not recommended for trailers, and evidently a lot of people not experienced driving narrow, mountain roads ended up off the road, so please disregard! And don't take the advice of Google Maps either, the road has not been maintained this year and is not safe. If you must get south in the foreseeable future, do as Dave suggests, or drive back north to Lewiston and try to get to I-84 from there.

Yep, the "problem" with north central Idaho is there are mountains, wilderness, and river canyons that prevent construction of highways. And gravity can always get things moving, especially along the Little Salmon River, which is where this slide happened. It has a long history of slides and floods.

If anyone is stuck and needs a place to set up temporarily, send me a PM. I have room for a couple more Escapes at my place. I'm north of the slide between Riggins and Grangeville, off US95 about 8 miles. There are also some very nice BLM and Forest Service campgrounds in this area as well, and I'm happy to help anyone find a place to hang out for awhile, if need be!

[UncleTim]

This does not surprise me at all. We run the Main fork of the Salmon as many years in a row as possible. That is the way home after we float. There are really very few options as Salmo7000 correctly stated.

One year the Middle Fork flashed rather badly and sent hundreds of trees down to the confluence with the Main, clogged up the entire river way and blew out the river. There was no car or boat travel at all and the government flew in MRE's (I heard there is Spam in those) and everybody stayed put for several days.

Either way you go, you are looking at a sizable detour. I would go in the directions of the nearest hot springs. Have a good soak and think things over.

[Iowa Dave]

We’ve not been on the backroads that would get you around the slide Since 1990. They are mostly logging roads or forest access roads that get minimal grading, will shake your trailer apart, get you forced into the ditch and generally make for a very long day. Elk City, Sheep hill, the American River, all great places to visit but not with a trailer or a nice new tow vehicle.

The road from Kooskia, up the Tahoe ridge road, past Lookout Butte, Goddard creek with native Cutthroat, and on down to Elk City. That’s quite a drive. I drove that one night in 1970. I could hear my right front tire start to hiss. So I stopped in a level spot and got the jack under the front suspension. I had to raise the truck a few inches to get the tire off and the spare on. I was using an old mechanical screw jack. No emergency brake and a manual transmission so Rita had the window down for communication and her foot firmly on the brake. I chokked a couple wheels with rocks. So on my back, I was twisting away on the jack handle. Squeak, squeak, squeak. After a couple minutes I sensed something nearby watching me. I rolled to my left slightly so I could see. About 15 feet away stood a coyote. He had heard the squeaking and had come in for a meal. He just did not know what to do next because he had never seen a 200 lb. rabbit before. I yelled at him and he disappeared into the night and I finished the tire changing job.

Great memories of that country, every day a new adventure for us. 50 years ago about right now. Have a great day and make some memories.

Iowa Dave

[salmo7000]

LOL Dave! They don't call me the Flat Tire Queen for nothing. I get them ALL the time. I swear no one can change a flat as fast as I can, I've had an endless amount of practice on multiple different types of vehicles. So far I'm happy to say not one on my truck yet, but I upgraded the stock tires as soon as they had 20,000 miles on them. I better knock on wood though, and quick...

Ah yes, so many wonderful, backcountry drives around here on crappy, tire-eating dirt roads! The best one is the Magruder Road from Elk City/Red River over to Darby, Montana. Incredible drive! But bring a good spare and leave your Escape at home, for sure!

[Iowa Dave]

Originally Posted by salmo7000

LOL Dave! They don't call me the Flat Tire Queen for nothing. I get them ALL the time. I swear no one can change a flat as fast as I can, I've had an endless amount of practice on multiple different types of vehicles. So far I'm happy to say not one on my truck yet, but I upgraded the stock tires as soon as they had 20,000 miles on them. I better knock on wood though, and quick...

Ah yes, so many wonderful, backcountry drives around here on crappy, tire-eating dirt roads! The best one is the Magruder Road from Elk City/Red River over to Darby, Montana. Incredible drive! But bring a good spare and leave your Escape at home, for sure!

When we lived in that country, they used a lot of basalt rock on the roads. It could be sharp like glass as an igneous rock and cut a lot of tires. Not to mention big splinters off of cut logs, nails, and junk.
Iowa Dave