It’s been more than two years since the closure of Wildcat Canyon Road but it appears that repairs to the landslide-damaged road will finally be completed by the end of the year. Orindans and others will welcome the reopening, which makes access to Tilden Park and its trails much more convenient.
It’s been over two years since a portion of Wildcat Canyon Road was shut down due to a landslide in the area, west of its intersection with San Pablo Dam Road.
Now, work is moving forward on the crumbled westbound roadway and its adjacent embankment, with a push to have the work completed and the road open by the end of the year.
“The timeline for a project like this is complex, because it requires a specific sequence of steps before construction can begin,” said Contra Costa Public Works Senior Civil Engineer and Project Manager Jenna Caldwell.
Surveys of the repair and improvement area were underway by July 2023, about four months post landslide. By that September, funding for the project had been secured through Caltrans.
A year later, environmental studies on the area were completed. A necessary property acquisition process, to ensure the legal rights for the work, was done by this March.
Following a brief bidding process, a construction contract was finalized this June.
That’s welcome news for area hikers like Carl Ludwig, who leads twice-monthly hikes with a group of senior men through the local branch of SIR, which hosts social activities for active seniors.
He says there are times when the group would like to “go over the hill,” and “hike in kind of a cooler climate,” meaning, heading over to Tilden Park.
“We’re all coming from the East Bay and the easiest way for us to get into Tilden is through Wildcat Canyon,” he said. “At least, that was the case until it got washed out.”
The hike from Inspiration Point to Wildcat Peak has been a favorite route for the hiking group across the seasons, said Ludwig, with the paved road making it perfect for a wet weather hike.
But, “To go all the way around, and through the park, is really cumbersome,” he said.
The detour is more difficult when South Park Drive is shut down in the wintertime to allow for the safe migration of newts.
This diversion means taking Grizzly Peak Road, which can be dicey due to foggy conditions and the many bicyclists who also use the route.
“Not having Wildcat is a real imposition,” said Ludwig.
The county has been actively working on the repair since the slide in early 2023, said project manager Caldwell. The project also involves some updates to the site.
“While the road was in place before, the upcoming reconstruction is a more extensive project than simply replacing the original road,” she said.
Additional property rights were necessary before Public Works could begin working on a new retaining wall and upgraded drainage. Rights were also needed to secure temporary access during construction.
Public Works began coordinating with Caltrans on federal environmental requirements for the work in late 2023, receiving clearance last September.
Environmental review is “a critical and mandatory part of every project, regardless of its size or whether it’s new construction or a reconstructed facility,” said Caldwell. “By law, we must evaluate potential impacts to the immediate and surrounding area before we start work.”
The process is comprehensive and considers ecological impacts on local wildlife and effects on traffic, noise and air quality, she said.
In total, the reconstruction is projected to cost just over $2.6 million, originating from Federal Highway Administration’s Emergency Relief Program, set aside to repair qualifying roadways damaged by natural disasters and catastrophic events.
The Wildcat Canyon repairs and upgrades are also funded by the SB 1 Local Gas Tax, also known as the Road Repair and Accountability Act.
The Orinda area section of Wildcat Canyon Road isn’t the only portion of the roadway that needs work. The City of Berkeley also has plans to improve drainage, stabilize the slope and make slide repairs along the entire stretch between its city limits. That work is tentatively slated to begin in September.
Ludwig emphasized that there are multiple Tilden Park hiking spots accessible from Wildcat Canyon, such as the Seaview, Big Springs and Quarry trails, and that it’s not easy to access the different parts of Tilden without the use of Wildcat.
“We’ve probably had fewer hikes in Tilden because of that,” he said.
Despite the road closure creating some pains for hikers, Ludwig also said it has given him the chance to take advantage of the lack of vehicle traffic on the narrow roadway and lead hikes that include walking down Wildcat Canyon.
“We’d never been able to do that and take a look around,” he said. “Had it not been closed.”
