As promised, I located some pics of the creek crossings I had taken to send to an engineer friend of mind. The South Orchard crossing is now eroded to a point where we can no long drive the UTV across as the shoulders are cut vertical and the channel in the bottom is very narrow. We have a plan to cut that creek bed wider, back from the road, about 100 yards to reduce the power of the flow. We will also add corner reinforcement to the fence. The fence was in place and poorly designed around the creek on our arrival.
Our other option, with more serious consideration for the south crossing, is move farther away from the road, after widening the channel,and install a large bore culvert, 6' perhaps. Then fill around with rip rap and gravel, then pack with clay and soil until the crossing is level or even proud above either side of the crossing. Then pack the upstream side with rip rap to protect the culvert..
This is the South Orchard Crossing....
- 01 south orchard 1.JPG (975.37 KiB) Viewed 835 times
This is the same South Orchard Crossing during ONE of the Two floods we have had here. The flood waters actually got high enough that they reached the middle of the orchard on the far side of the creek, and crossed over the road. The pressure of the water flow over the last three years has damaged the culvert under that roadway and turned it 20 degrees clockwise.
- fence damage.jpg (1.38 MiB) Viewed 835 times
This is the West Orchard Crossing.... the UTV is sitting at the top of the high side, it's about 8' over the bottom of the creek bed.
- 03 west orchard 1.JPG (814.33 KiB) Viewed 835 times
Here is a view of the approach to the West Orchard crossing from the North pasture, into the Orchard.
- 04 west orchard 2.JPG (904.97 KiB) Viewed 835 times
Here you are standing in the dry creek bed, looking west down the creek bed, you cannot see either side of the tops of the bank. The creek banks at this point are about two feet over your head.
- 05 west orchard 3.JPG (807.92 KiB) Viewed 835 times
I'd like to eventually put a bridge over both of these locations, but failing that and the crossings eventually becoming unusable, we'd have to go out the gates, onto the road, and into the far gate. THAT is a pain every time you need to check on the Orchard Section. With seasonal flow in the creeks, we have to ford the creek to reach the old barn, and the north pasture. Luckily that is a shallow flow even with the rest of the area full.