A portion of the Sooke Hills Wilderness Trail has been closed due to a mudslide in the area. (File photo)

A portion of the Sooke Hills Wilderness Trail has been closed due to a mudslide in the area. (File photo)

UPDATE: Sooke Hills Wilderness Trail remains closed after mudslide

Public is asked to avoid the area for now

  • Jan. 7, 2019 12:00 a.m.

A portion of Sooke Hills Wilderness Trail remained closed Monday after a mudslide on Friday afternoon.

“We need two to four days of dry weather in order for crews to get into the area and safely begin to work on the trail,” said Jeff Leahy, the manager of regional parks for the Capital Regional District. “Right now that work can’t be done safely as the soil is still saturated and you never really know if there isn’t more that could come down.”

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The closure extends from the Humpback Reservoir to the suspension bridge across the Goldstream River.

The north section of trail from the Goldstream River to Goldstream Heights remains open and crews are assessing conditions on the trail.

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Leahy said with the number of severe rain and wind events, anyone taking the trails in the regional parks should be aware that they may run into water and debris on the trails and that the danger of further slides will continue to exist.

The mudslide on the Sooke Hills Wilderness Trail is comprised of about 200 cubic meters of mud that stretches for about 17 metres and is about six metres wide. At the deepest point, Leahy estimated that it would be about waist high.

He added that CRD staff regularly patrol the trails and will be closing down other areas as required.


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