A rockslide on Aug.13 temporarily closed Power Creek Road.
Triggered by two days of heavy rainfall, a massive boulder and surrounding cliffside came tumbling down across out the historic gravel road that winds along the eastern edge of Eyak Lake.
Not surprisingly, Facebook blew up with news of the event. Cordovans clearly treasure their roads and make it a hobby of traveling their limited paths. Any stretch of road that is impacted draws immediate attention, and there was considerable traffic driving out to see the slide in person.
Power Creek Road is famous for the uniquely local pastime of “running” dogs, in which pet owners putt along in their vehicle while their hounds chase nearby with tongues hanging out.
The scenic byway is also especially popular for joggers, bikers, sight seekers, berry pickers and those hoping to see a bear.
However, as veteran walkers Wayne and Diann Smith pointed out, one is far more likely to see bears in town, where there seems to be an abundance of delicacies much more tasty than berries.
Fortunately, the bears of brown hue seem to zero in at the salmon spawning area near the end of the road, and one does not have to be a biologist to tell the bear “sign” toward town is definitely from black bear.
The pioneer road was originally built in hopes of developing hydro power, which not until recently was successful.
During railroad days (1911-1938) there were few automobile roads available, and naturally the road attracted those seeking to get out of town as well as those looking for land to develop.
An impressive American Legion log cabin was built across the river near the end of the road in the 1920s and became a popular place for community gatherings.
Also in the 1920s, the spawning area at 6 mile was the site of several failed attempts to develop hatcheries by the Territory of Alaska. Care of the facilities was then transferred to the U.S. Forest Service in 1927.
In 1938 these buildings became the Bethany Home for Children for several years.
The State Department of Highways maintains the road. By late on Aug.13 a large state font-end loader had cleared the rock and debris. It was piled on the corner of a broad turnout just beyond the slide.
Meanwhile, Facebook posts tried to identify the location of the slide. A common choice referred to the “watering hole”, located a few hundred yards before the slide, where locals often stop to fill their jerry jugs with mountain fresh water from a waterfall.
Ironically, the description was close to historically correct, for just beyond the slide is a wide turnout that once boasted a state road sign that said “WATERHOLE.”
The designation came from the Cordova Elks Lodge B.P.O. 1483. Following Memorial Services at their Lodge its members would head out to this spot with Seagram’s finest to hail toasts to their departed brothers, telling tales that reflected their tribute that “The faults of our brothers we write upon the sands, their virtues upon the tablets of love and memory.”
By late in the day, the large state font-end loader unknowingly created quite a pile of rock on the location of the true waterhole.
Alas, several years ago the local Elks Lodge closed, and its historic “waterhole” is now buried in tablets of memory.
