Highway 1 can’t reopen to Big Sur because stubborn Paul’s Slide continues to move

A stretch of Highway 1 near the Paul’s Slide site in Monterey County will be closed for the foreseeable future, Caltrans said Friday.

The series of winter storms caused the hillside to collapse onto the roadway, and Caltrans is still working on repairs.

“Two miles of Highway 1 between Lucia and Limekiln State Park remain closed due to the repair at Paul’s slide,” the Caltrans news release said. “However, the entire segment of Highway 1 on the Big Sur coast from Cambria to Limekiln, and from Monterey to Lucia, remains open.”

Catrans must complete further geotech investigations before deciding a re-opening date for the two-mile stretch of highway, Caltrans said.

“Geotech teams continue to study drone imagery and other measurements of recent slide activity,” Caltrans said in the release. “The fact that the mountain continues to move makes a possible reopening date a moving target as well.”

Caltrans is also working on repairs to the highway at Dani Creek, which will continue through September, the agency said.

“Crews are focusing on the tunneling operation to install a culvert through the fill below the roadway with drilling work to begin next week,” Caltrans said.