OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK — The Boulder Creek Trail has been closed at the Crystal Creek Bridge because of damage to the bridge.
The trail was closed Wednesday, Olympic National Park announced Friday.
A trail crew examined the bridge the week of April 18 for the first time since winter’s storms and found the damage, said Jared Low, park spokesman.
“One of the handrails is buckled, which indicates that there was some sort of damage to the footings of the bridge,” Low said.
The bridge will remain closed until an evaluation can be performed by an engineer and repairs can be made, he said.
Park officials figure the damage was caused last winter.
The 2.4-mile-long Boulder Creek Trail in the Elwha Valley is the primary access route to the Olympic Hot Springs and Boulder Creek Campground.
The Crystal Creek Bridge is located about 2 miles from the Boulder Creek Trailhead.
Two roads also closed
Two park roads — Olympic Hot Springs Road and Mora Road — also await repairs after they were washed out by rising rivers.
Olympic Hot Springs Road is closed at the park gate at Madison Falls, 1 mile north of a 60-foot washout near the Elwha Campground.
The road and the campground were damaged by high water in the Elwha River in November and December.
The park service has purchased a bridge for a long-term temporary repair of the washed-out section and is awaiting permits to begin installation, said Rainey McKenna, park spokeswoman, last week.
In February, a temporary pedestrian trail was built to bypass the washed-out section of road, allowing hikers and bicyclists to access the Elwha Valley trails, including the Glines Canyon overlook and the Olympic Hot Springs.
Long-term repair will be part of a large-scale rehabilitation of the aging visitor infrastructure of Elwha Valley roads, trails and campgrounds, park officials have said.
Park planners expect to begin taking public comment and complete environmental studies on the project in a year or two.
Mora Road — the only access to Rialto Beach north of La Push — remains open as a one-lane road until repairs can be made.
The eastbound lane was undermined by the Quillayute River during a March storm.
It will remain a one-lane road until engineers and state Fish and Wildlife officials determine how to repair the road with minimal impact to fish in the Quillayute River.
For trail conditions and information on day-hiking opportunities, see www.nps.gov/olym or call 360-565-3100.
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Executive Editor Leah Leach can be reached at 360-417-3530 or at lleach@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Arwyn Rice contributed to this report.
