So I did take SH9 along the NorthFkCoeur d'Alene River, very
picturesque but in deep shadow that Monday evening Aug 12 after
sending off my last "blog" email at the CdA library, getting to
Thompson Pass after dark, driving about a mile up one of the dirt
roads from the pass heading south which I guessed might be the ICT
trail, to overnight at its end. The next morning I realized I was on
the west side of a ridge from where the ICT was shown on the map; the
trailhead to Lk Revett. But I felt like having a morning warmup walk,
so I took it, along a mostly wooded path but with one craggy opening
with good views west, getting to the Lake in about an hour. I had a
swim in mind, but the lake had a lot of submerged logs and a foamy
film, and maybe I wasn't warm enough yet for a dip. On my return I
met a family with several dogs and kids; I guess the accessibility
makes it popular.
Drove back to the pass and found a trail just slightly left of the
dirt road (still no signs., and a closer look at my maps showed the
ICT TH beginning about a half-mile east of the pass.) Took the trail
anyway, and in about a half-mile it came to a signed junction with a
trail leading back to an "equestrian" trailhead. Good. Hiking on,
trending up the ridge for much longer than I expected, then eventually
down, to Lower Blossom Lake, which was a very picturesque typical
cirque lake with steep cliffs up against the opposite shore. There
were campsites at the lake, one occupied. I moved on to Pear Lake,
passing a junction signed "upper Blossom Lake", that I thought I might
visit on my way back.
Peak Lake was indeed pear-shaped (unlike the "misnamed" heart lake I
had encountered earlier.) It was rather shallow, not appealing for a
swim. It too had a steep cliff rising from its opposite shore; I
would soon be looking down from its top edge. The climb involved a
dozen switchbacks to another unsigned trail junction, the left branch
going down easterly, I chose the right branch which climbed up to the
spine of the ridge, traversing increasingly slabby tallis slope,
staying just below the ridge crest. I climbed off-trail to the crest
in several places, getting rewarded with spectacular views down upon
the lakes I passed on the way up. I was expecting eventually to
recognize the place I had turned around on my last hike on this ridge,
from Glidden Pass (reached from the road through Burke, that abandoned
mining town with all its tailings contaminating Canyon Creek emptying
into Coeur d'Alene River at Wallace.) But I eventually realized I was
on a supposedly trail-less section of the State Line ridge, and that
the trail I needed to take to meet up with my last turnaround there
was the left branch at the junction at the top of the switchbacks.
Returning to that junction, I took the left branch a bit down to a
saddle, but the views were mediocre and decided It was getting too
late to climb the ridge beyond the saddle to my last turn around
point, which was near the top of that ridge where it began going
steeply down. I could see from my tracklog traces that the gap was
about a mile. I would rather try to get to Upper Blossom Lake, maybe
get in a swim there.
Returning down the switchbacks past Peak Lake I thought I saw a
"shortcut" spur trail to the trail going to Upper Blossom Lk, took it,
but somehow missed the expected 2nd junction with that trail, was
uncertain for a while which trail I was on, getting worried that the
Upper Blossom Trail was much longer and farther down than I had
assumed, and that I might have a long way back to the main trail, so I
stopped to look at my track log, finding that I was indeed still on
the main trail, about to reach lower Blosson Lk. (As seems to happen a
lot, the basemaps that I thought I had downloaded to my gps app failed
to download, so I was just seeing the trace of my tracklog.) At lower
Blossom Lk, several of the campsites were occupied, and I decided to
pass on finding a place for a swim.
Back at the car some kids at the paved parking area asked me if I
wanted to play baseball - I said I wasn't very good at baseball, and
decided I'd explore the trail on the opposite side of the pass. This I
assumed would be the "pedestrian" ICT heading north, again, no signs.
I took it up and found one of the "pipes" with a cap labeled NV-ID
state line. Nice to know. Back at the car again, I decided to drive
it back to the trailhead for Revett Lk, for a bit more privacy than at
the paved parking lot on paved State Hwy 9 at Thompson Pass. Next
morning I returned to the paved lot, and took the trail north, which
just made a beeline (traversing the west slope of a wooded ridge up at
a steady grade, for miles, passing a few decommissioned logging roads,
eventually getting to an outcrop with a view west, and then to a
saddle with a view east. From the map, I was at about my intended
destination, midway to the next possible car access point north of
here, although that was uncertain, depending on actual condition of
the road, labeled "not maintained for passenger cars" (but my Zomberoo
is a quasi SUV, so it may depend on how far I abuse its limits.)
Back at the car, it was still early afternoon, clouds were beginning
to gather for a forecast rain, and I decided not to try at this time
to find the next access north, which might have been more
gas-efficient, just taking a right a few miles down Prichard Creek
from the pass onto FR152 at Eagle, which quickly "Y's" into left
FR805, the road to the Settler's Ancient Cedars Grove (that I also
wanted to visit,) and right into FR2349 to the State Line Ridge, that
being the road mentioned above might be not suitable for passenger
cars. Also while in the Coeur d'Alene River watershed there, I could
subsequently have taken a right (north) at Prichard onto FR208 then
several branches with State Line ridge access, although there happens
to be an "access-gap" on the ridge above Settlers Cedar Grove, which
might require a backpack hike to cover. Also then along this same
branch of road I could access the final portion of state line ridge
which would be a road drive north down into Clark Fork. So I should
instead, now, try to finish the two remaining hikes south of here that
I've skipped, the climb from the Fish Hatchery in Mullan north to
Cooper Pass, and the climb to Stevens Peak south of Mullan.
Instead, I took the "cut-off" road from SH9 near Pritchard, FR456,
into Wallace, and did the mine tour there that afternoon. It was
interesting, though rather pricey even with the sr discount. I though
I would overnight near Moon Pass, but decided it was still too early
to just sit there and drove on down into the St Joe River drainage,
driving a portion of the "Route of the Hiawatha" through numerous
tunnels along the NFk St Joe River (FR456) then SH50 west along the
main St Joe River passing through St Maries just at sunset, continuing
on to my usial rest stop on hwy50 in Coeur d'Alene. The next day in
town, decided to take a proper shower with soap at a truckstop a bit
further west, and a few more chores, spending the rest of the time
back at the library trying to process picts, and again overnighting at
the hwy rest stop.
Friday morning the forecast called for continued shower chances over
the mountains, but I decided to slowly make my way back there anyway,
poked around the Cataldo Mission Flats a bit, marshland that I though
might help "filter" the mine waste runoff before it entered the main
Cd'A lake, running into one of the "repositories" set up for the
Superfund project, then driving on to the Lookout Pass Ski Area,
getting some info on the Hiawatha bike tunnel concession and driving
around to find the St Regis trailhead which was one possible way back
up the Stevens Peak ridge that I had failed to reach from nearby
Bullion Pass. (In reviewing my track logs and my "probes" down two of
the possible trails that had me confused from the knob on the state
line ridge just south of the Ski Area, I saw that I had actually
reached the St Regis trail to the St Regis Lakes, that being the
"wrong" trail. I had only gone about half as far down the "right"
trail - had I gone just a buit further on that trail past the turn to
the southeast, it would have switched back around to the west and the
saddle that I now call the "St Regis Gap" that I was seeking.)
Leaving Lookout Pass back into Mullan, I stopped for a nice view from
above of the giant tailings pond near the Fish Hatchery which is the
ICT trailhead north from Mullan to Cooper Pass. I would be taking that
trail later today. But first I stopped at the Mullan Mining Museum,
had an interesting talk with the retired miner that tended the museum.
Lots of interesting tidbits I'm tempted to share here, but will save
for maybe some later conversation.
After the Mullan museum I drove the rough road from the Fish Hatchery
past the mine tailings pond to a rougher road signed "trail". Parked
my car there and started up what I assumed was the ICT. I eventually
came to a branch one going west down to a camping turnaround near a
creek, the other a steep "logging road" up the ridge to the east.
Inbetween was a trail that switchbacked up the ridge to the north.
Took this several hours to the top of that ridge. I think I recognized
the ridge to the west of there as where I had turned around from my
Cooper Pass hike up the ridge above Glidden Lake. The "official" ICT
would be in the gap between the ridge I was on and that ridge above
Glidden lake. There was a branch in the trail near the top, one branch
went to the top of my ridge and ended at the peak, the otehr seemed to
go southwest into the gap between the two ridges. But it was
beginning to drizzle and late in the afternoon, so I turned around
there.
Back at the car, I got some groceries in Wallace then drove up to Moon
Pass and to a ridgetop vantagepoint on FR389 south of the Pass with
expansive views of the NFk St Joe river valley and all of the ridge
north across from Moon Pass including Stevens Peak and Gold Hill, that
I planned to backpack the next 2 or 3 days (Sat-Mon.) Forecast called
cloudy in the morning, partly cloudy in the afternoon, and sunny the
next few days. I woke up Saturday morning to a heavy rain. Forecast
now acknowledged isolated rain showers in the mountains. Killed some
time by driving down to Wallace fetching a few items of groceries I'd
forgotten and gas. Back up on Moon Pass, with wet foliage, and cloudy
I decided I'd go for it.
Library is closing. Think I'll send this now and follow with snd msg
some time later. I may be hiking again tomorrow, so could be several
days later.
No comments:
Post a Comment