More San Clemente landslides close north half of beach trail

New landslides along oceanfront bluffs in San Clemente have prompted more closures of the town’s beach trails, mostly in the north end of town.

Stairs leading down to the coastal path at Dije Court, El Portal and Lasuen Beach were added to the list of closed access points Wednesday evening due to continuing instability of the area.

The list of pathway closures now includes:

– North Beach to Mariposa

– Linda Lane to Corto Lane

– Boca Del Canon to Lasuen

The trail sections are expected to be closed at least through the weekend, city officials said.

OC Fifth District Supervisor Katrina Foley weighed in on the closures, urging people to avoid the impacted areas along the beach trail as the city continues to assess the damage from the recent rainfall.

“These closures are yet another reminder of our climate reality and the effects climate change and coastal erosion have on our communities,” she said in a statement.

Soil and debris where a landslide occurred more than two weeks ago continued to inch toward the track below, pushing into the rail right-of-way near Mariposa Point, according to an Orange County Transportation Authority update Thursday evening.

Debris had already damaged the bridge at that stretch of the coastal walking path and sections had to be removed.

The track itself remains stable, according to Metrolink, and freight trains were set to run again overnight but passenger service remains halted through the area. The OCTA and Metrolink team will continue to assess movement of the slope and inspect the track, officials said.

The team removed on Thursday most of the plastic tarps covering the landslide that were damaged by the recent rain and wind to get a better look at the condition of the slope – some cracking was observed, OCTA officials said. Some areas were still too muddy.

The California Transportation Commission has finalized authorization of OCTA’s $2 million request for debris removal and other pre-construction services, which will be used to continue cleanup once the storms pass.

OCTA and Metrolink also continue to plan for construction of a barrier wall “to protect the track and work toward determining when at least limited passenger service can safely resume through San Clemente,” the latest update said.

At a city meeting earlier this week, Councilmember Chris Duncan noted that he would like to ensure city staff coordinates with OCTA on the plans for the barrier wall so the pedestrian bridge destroyed in the initial slide on Jan. 24 can be rebuilt.

“If you put it in the wrong place, it would basically interrupt any chance for our beach trail to be rebuilt,” he said.  “That barrier wall might be in the middle of where the bridge was … we don’t want something done that would impede us rebuilding our beach trail.”

San Clemente resident Benny Caday was out for his brisk morning stroll Thursday morning when he learned the northern end of the beach trail was closed. Instead of the usual scenic trail walk he typically does, he planned on lapping the parking lot.

“It seems to be accelerating, as far as the times there are slides and interruptions,” he said. “It’s disappointing, I’m trying to look at some of the other routes and trails – although there’s nothing that beats the scenic beach trail to the pier. It sets me for the day – it’s very serene, you see the ocean waves when you are walking down and you get the sunshine.”