Repairs taking place on Bee Canyon Road
Gus Bahena, Region 05/San Bernardino National Forest
November 7th, 2024
Repairs and upgrades are being conducted on a forest road that has been closed due to erosion damage on the San Jacinto Ranger District of the San Bernardino National Forest.
A large metal culvert (metal pipe at center bottom) was buried under the roadbed and plastic geo grid layers were added to the roadbed slope to stabilize the dirt.
Photo Credit: Gus Bahena, Forest ServiceA large metal culvert (metal pipe at center bottom) was buried under the roadbed and plastic geo grid layers were added to the roadbed slope to stabilize the dirt.
The very popular Bee Canyon Road (Forest Service Road 5S07) is being repaired by a contractor, who has installed new culverts, refilled the roadbed and is preparing the surface of the dirt road.
The road is currently closed per Forest Order 05-12-00-24-04 from June 3, 2024 to May 31, 2025. However, the road has been closed since March 2023, when it was heavily damaged by water flow that carved the surface and undermined the roadbed. Sections of the road washed away and culverts were damaged.
Bee Canyon Road has been traditionally and extensively used by the public for off-highway vehicle recreation and recreational target shooting. The road is easily accessible from State Route 74 and is in proximity to the communities of Hemet and San Jacinto, Calif. It connects to other Forest Service roads, providing extensive opportunities for off-highway excursions.
Road Engineer Bo Zhang and Transportation Engineer Chris Soohoo, both with the forest, were walking off the project after inspecting the work, Oct. 31.
Photo Credit: Gus Bahena, Forest ServiceChris Soohoo, Forest Transportation Engineer, explained that in March 2023 water began to erode the roadbed, creating sinkholes, and damaged the original culvert that is a large-diameter metal pipe under the surface. The pipe’s purpose it to allow water to flow from the west side slopes of the road to the east and downhill into a natural drainage area.
The contractor, Apex Contracting and Consulting out of Fallbrook, Calif., used heavy equipment to excavate the damaged roadbed. On Oct. 31, Claude Boehm, owner and CEO of the company, used a bulldozer to move dirt onto the surface as his employee Robert Tinajero wet the soil with a hose connected to a water truck. Boehm pointed to plastic geo grid visible on the downslope of the road and explained that several layers of the grid were installed at various intervals as the roadbed was reconstructed.
The contractor, Apex Contracting and Consulting, installed an open culvert on the east slope of Bee Canyon Road that will divert surface water to a natural drainage below.
Photo Credit: Gus Bahena, Forest ServiceBo Zhang, Road Engineer with the forest, explained that the geo grid provides stability to the dirt, which does not have aggregate. It will help limit erosion.
Boehm’s company installed a new culvert under the road surface from the west to the east, with a length of approximately 80 feet. A second, opened culvert was installed on the east side of the road to drain surface water runoff into the drainage.
The contractor used large excavators to remove dirt to access the bottom portion of the roadbed to install a culvert and plastic geo grid.
Photo Credit: Gus Bahena, Forest ServiceThe repairs have been made possible by funding that includes restitution money from the Cranston Fire, regular appropriated road maintenance funding and a grant from the California State OHV program.
As of Nov. 8, 2024 Bee Canyon Road has been reopened by the San Jacinto Ranger District.
The video clip shows the contractor, Apex Contracting and Consulting, using a bulldozer to add and level dirt on the surface of Bee Canyon Road, Oct. 31.