Chuckanut Drive rockslide repairs could last until July, official says

Drivers hoping to take the scenic route along Chuckanut Drive in Skagit County may have to wait until July for crews to finish clearing debris and repairing damage caused by a rockslide there last month.

The section of the road between the Oyster Dome trailhead and Chuckanut Manor Seafood & Grill had “settled” by Wednesday, over two weeks after the April 22 rockslide, and crews are slated to start working to clear the debris and repair the road by this weekend, said RB McKeon, Washington State Department of Transportation spokesperson.

The transportation department signed a declaration of emergency Monday allowing it to hire contractors for the project without completing a competitive bidding process first. Those crews will work six days per week on the road, which is expected to remain closed through the end of June, McKeon said. 

“We want to give people the opportunity to plan,” McKeon said. “It could be done earlier, it just depends on how things go, and we want to make sure we’re setting what we feel are realistic expectations.”

State transportation officials closed a section of Chuckanut Drive after the rockslide left 5,000 cubic yards of debris on the roadway, including boulders piled 20 to 30 feet high and measuring up to 15 feet in diameter, according to McKeon and the State Patrol.

Crews will start by breaking down and hauling away some of the largest boulders on the road, then knocking down rocks that are coming loose from the rock face. Cracked sections of the rock face will be anchored in place with bolts. Crews will finish by clearing the remaining debris, repairing damages to the road and fixing the damaged guardrail, McKeon said.

Chuckanut Drive, also named Highway 11, ends near the Fairhaven district of Bellingham and is popular for its views of Puget Sound, seafood restaurants and hikes and beaches in places like Larrabee State Park.