Canyon Creek road closure

A boulder (circled) hanging over Canyon Creek Road has prompted the closure of a section of the route into the mountains south of Highway 20, the U.S. Forest Service announced last week. The “large and unstable rock cliff” above milepost 5.1 to 5.2 on Forest Road 2022 “will break off and fall in the next five years,” according to a geotechnical report filed with the Willamette National Forest. Sweet Home District Ranger Cindy Glick had the gate at milepost 5.1 locked, saying she’d read the report, and “while I regret the temporary loss of access, I must temporarily close this portion of the road to protect public safety.” Forest visitors can use several other forest roads to access the area above milepost 5.3. No campgrounds or trail heads are blocked by the closed road, the USFS said. The boulder is actually on land managed by Cascade Timber Consulting, and Glick said the USFS and CTC will work together on a plan to remove it later this year.