Russian River area resort cut off by washed-out road

A broken section of roadway has left the Wildwood Retreat Center outside Guerneville without a means for guests to reach it.

“The washout is the only way in or out,” resort general manager Martin Meier said Wednesday, a day after a 100-foot-long section of Old Cazadero Road slid down a steep hillside.

It’s uncertain how long it will take to repair the road or provide an alternate route for guests and workers to get to and from the retreat center. County officials are weighing repair options, Meier said, some of which might take at least three months to complete.

In the meantime, about 10 employees are unable to drive away from the retreat center, located about six miles from the center of Guerneville.

The retreat center is operated by the nonprofit Wildwood Conservation Foundation, a sanctuary created and sustained by gay men, according to its website. It caters mainly to groups seeking a retreat venue. Meier said the center is booked nearly every weekend from now to Thanksgiving.

He already has canceled this weekend’s booking.

The slide was first noticed Tuesday morning when a staff member’s car became stuck in a spot where the road had started to break up. The staff member and a coworker went for help, but when they returned they found “the whole hill had slid away,” leaving the vehicle precariously perched on a small patch of road.

A tow truck operator nonetheless was able to safely retrieve the vehicle Wednesday using pulleys attached to trees and cables, Meier said.

You can reach Staff Writer Robert Digitale at 521-5285 or robert.digitale@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @rdigit