The Wild Cascades The Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council summer/Fall 2010

visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  1 The North Cascades Conservation Council was THE WILD CASCADES  Summer/Fall 2010 formed in 1957 “To protect and preserve the North Cascades’ scenic, In This Issue scientific, recreational, educational, and wilderness values.” Continuing this mission, NCCC keeps government 3 President’s Report — Marc Bardsley officials, environmental organizations, 4 A special contribution to the NCCC would help and the general public informed about Saving the Cascades with social media — Philip Fenner issues affecting the Greater North 5 Forest Service proposes Illabot road decommissioning — Rick Cascades Ecosystem. Action is pursued McGuire through legislative, legal, and public participation channels to protect the Viewpoint: Into the wilds with iceaxe, cellphone and GPS — John S. Edwards lands, waters, plants and wildlife. 6 american Alps Biodiversity Report released — Jim Davis Over the past half century the NCCC 7 Researching biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics in our Ameri- has led or participated in campaigns can Alps — Phillip Zalesky to create the North Cascades National Park Complex, Glacier Peak Wilder- 8 More news from Reiter Forest — Karl Forsgaard ness, and other units of the National 10 Finney AMA Plan disappoints — Rick McGuire Wilderness System from the W.O. 12 Margaret Miller returns to Cascade Pass — Tom Hammond Douglas Wilderness north to the 14 Joe Miller — American Hero — Tom Hammond Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, the Chelan-Saw- 15 suggested Revegetation Practices — Margaret M. Miller and Joseph tooth Wilderness, the Wild Sky Wil- W. Miller, prepared for the National Park Service June, 1977 derness and others. Among its most 18 Bumping Lake ancient forest — One of a kind — Brock Evans dramatic victories has been working 19 North Cascades Glacier Climate Project — Tom Hammond with British Columbia allies to block 20 stehekin road tour with Senator Cantwell — Jim Davis the raising of Ross Dam, which would have drowned Big Beaver Valley. 21 PCT border crossing warning — Richard M. Graham, Jr., U.S. Border Patrol The NCCC is supported by member 22 Books and video available dues and private donations. These 23 NCCC membership application contributions support the full range of the Council’s activities, including publication of The Wild Cascades. As Cover: Polly Dyer, left, and Margaret Miller prior to their historic hike to Cas- a 501(c)(3) organization, all contribu- cade Pass. — Tom Hammond photo tions are fully tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Membership dues for one year are: Living Lightly/ The Wild Cascades Student $10; Individual $30; Family $50; Sustaining $100; Other, $______. Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council

Editor: Betty Manning North Cascades Editorial Board: John Edwards, Philip Fenner, Tom Hammond, Conservation Council and Rick McGuire P.O. Box 95980 University Station Printing by EcoGraphics Seattle, WA 98145-2980 The Wild Cascades is published three times a year (Spring, Summer/Fall, Winter). Executive Director, Jim Davis Letters, comments, and articles are invited, subject to editorial review. 1-360-296-5159 The Wild Cascades Editor North Cascades Conservation Council NCCC Website University Station, Seattle, WA 98145-2980 www.northcascades.org

The Wild Cascades is printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink.

2  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 NCCC Board president Marc Bardsley board chairman Founded in 1957 Patrick Goldsworthy SEATTLE, WASHINGTON vice president Charles Ehlert treasurer The President’s Report Summer/Fall 2010 Tom Brucker This summer as many of us were enjoying our wilderness areas secretary Phil Zalesky and national parks, I hope we all took some time to reflect on how they came to be and who helped make it happen. As president of executive director North Cascades Conservation Council, I often get caught up with Jim Davis efforts to convert roadless areas into park and wilderness and how difficult it sometimes becomes. Thinking back, I wonder how it Bruce Barnbaum must have been for those early pioneers who blazed the trail to create our first protected areas. Their skill and perseverance seem Polly Dyer astonishing.

John Edwards Who were they? Of course there was John Muir, clearly the most influential citizen activist in the last few hundred years. The per- Philip Fenner sons (and my heroes) that made the most difference in the North-

Dave Fluharty west have to include Dave Brower, Polly Dyer, Patrick Goldsworthy, Harvey Manning, and Phil and Laura Zalesky. These folks, all board Anders Forsgaard members of the NCCC, were instrumental in creating the new North Cascades National Park, the Glacier Peak Wilderness and sev- Karl Forsgaard eral other important protected areas we all know and love. Kevin Geraghty It is always difficult to point out a few leaders and not mention others who were also instrumental in achieving so many of our suc- Tom Hammond cesses. A few of these other important people must include Grant Betty Manning McConnell, a Stehekin stalwart, Joe and Margaret Miller — our alpine native plant specialists, Dave Fluharty, who led the fight to Carolyn McConnell stop high Ross Dam, Brock Evans, and others.

Rick McGuire While we should not be continually dwelling on the past, it is good to occasionally reflect on how these folks led the way and Thom Peters worked out many of the methods we are still using today to protect additional land for the public good. Mike Town

Ken Wilcox

Laura Zalesky

visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  3 A special contribution to NCCC would help

volunteers • NCCC has played a leadership role in We urge you to support our conserva- and staff have promoting scientific management of our tion efforts. Without NCCC, the bad guys NCCC public lands and wildlife in the North would already have prevailed on many of been very engaged and productive Cascades. Our participation in the Ross these issues. Without NCCC and partner in 2010. It is time for you to con- Lake National Recreation Area Manage- organizations like the Mountaineers, there ment Plan review has provided guidance would be no effort to fulfill the conserva- sider a special end-of-year contribu- for NRA management for the next de- tion vision for the North Cascades by com- tion to NCCC. Have we met your cade. Comments on the Stehekin River pleting the North Cascades National Park. expectations? Have we protected Corridor Implementation Plan have We need your support more than ever in supported a scientific approach to river this tough fund-raising environment. the North Cascades as you expect- management and helped thwart heavy- ed? Below are some of the high- handed engineering fixes to flooding. Visit the NCCC website (www.northcas- cades.org) to make a special contribution lights from 2010 that you can read • NCCC has worked with other conserva- to NCCC. Use the membership/donation about in this and recent editions of tion groups to promote new wilderness form in this edition of to mail in your and wild and scenic rivers in western The Wild Cascades. contribution. NCCC is a non-profit, 501(c)3 Washington. We have insisted that the organization. Your contributions will be Washington State Wolf Conservation and tax deductible. • The American Alps Legacy Project Management Plan be based on popula- We also strongly encourage you to has made major strides in educating tion biology science and not crippling consider a bequest to NCCC in your will. Washington residents on the benefits of compromises with ranchers. We have Your bequest will help assure that NCCC is completing the North Cascades National led the charge in protecting Reiter State around in future decades to continue the Park. Special reports on the economic Forest from off-road vehicle damage and fight against hydropower development, and biodiversity benefits of park expan- Blanchard State Forest from chainsaws. mining, logging, motorized recreation, sion have been published and circulated And, we have continued efforts to and many other major threats to the North widely. The initiative has gotten the protect Lake Chelan from Holden Mine Cascades. attention of our elected officials. Suc- runoff. cessful visits to Washington, DC and on- • We have honored the contributions of the-ground tours of the American Alps one of NCCC’s founding members, with have provided the information needed a big 90th birthday party for Polly Dyer. for our elected officials to take action.

Saving the Cascades with Social Media

That title may sound a bit overly http://americanalps.blogspot.com also on FB will see our posts added to ambitious, and indeed it may be. But The most recent story appears at the their “news feed” by becoming a “fan” with a little effort, the new ways of com- top. Scroll down for older stories, and of ours. If you’re on Facebook, type municating on the web may go a long there’s a table of contents in the right col- “American Alps” in the search box at way toward bringing new interest and umn, along with a “search” box. the top, then when our page appears, involvement our way. I’d also like to offer any NCCC member click the “Like” button to become a I launched a blog and a Facebook authorship — just email me for info: fan. Once you’re a fan, click the “Sug- page for NCCC and our American Alps [email protected]. The more authors gest to Friends” link and help our fan project recently. It’s been easier than the better, and your voice can be heard! base grow. These fans could make the I anticipated, and quite rewarding to difference when it comes time to start The most recent blog stories also now writing letters to elected officials. We see the response. The hardest part appear in the main NCCC website page, at sometimes is to “regulate” the flow of have about 120 fans now after just a few www.northcascades.org — which makes months of operation. content, which rarely flows in a linear this content visible to all NCCC site visi- fashion. But perhaps that’s part of the tors. So next time you’re surfing the web, appeal of these new methods. take a look at our growing social media Indications are that about 100 people The blog is simply a series of short presence. And for advanced users who a week visit our blog from all over the are using an aggregator to read blogs, articles, often including images and world, many reaching it from Google links, about the issues we’re involved in. you can subscribe to our RSS feed from searches. Who knows who may discover the blog. Many mobile devices also let From original trip reports to referrals and join NCCC by finding us this way. to news stories, anyone can read the you subscribe to RSS feeds, so you can Our Facebook page is a bit more com- blog for free, no registration or login take the latest NCCC info with you. plicated. It works like any other FB page, required, at: Pass it along! with its own list of posts, and all others —Philip Fenner

4  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Forest Service proposes Illabot road decommissioning

In an unexpected and welcome move, 1960s, and on a national forest with thou- commissioned. Sedimentation into Illabot the Mount Baker district of the Mount Bak- sands of miles of pointless roads, that is Creek will be greatly reduced, and taxpay- er-Snoqualmie National Forest (MBS) has saying a lot. The road penetrates deeply er dollars will no longer go to maintain a released a proposal to decommission most into an otherwise roadless extent of coun- pointless road traversing very difficult and of the Illabot Creek road. Illabot Creek try off the northwest corner of the Glacier unstable terrain. While a number of short flows into the Skagit from the southeast, a Peak Wilderness, and like countless others spur roads have been decommissioned on few miles east of the Skagit-Sauk conflu- it served only to allow cutting of poor the MBS, decommissioning of the Illabot ence, and is an important salmon spawn- quality high-elevation silver fir forest sold road would be a rare instance of the For- ing stream in its lower reaches. A bill to at a great loss to taxpayers. The Illabot val- est Service taking out a “mainstem” road. designate the upper parts of it as Wild & ley might have been added to the wilder- NCCC supports and applauds the Mount Scenic recently passed the U.S. House. ness were it not for this road. Baker district of the MBS for its willing- The Illabot Creek road is among the It is encouraging to see the Forest Service ness to propose such a sensible project. most egregious examples on the Mount proposing such a significant amount of —Rick McGuire Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest of a decommissioning as they are here. If they pointless road built deep into otherwise go ahead with their proposed action, 14.5 wild country during the overbudgeted miles of the upper Illabot road will be de-

VIEWPOINT: Into the wilds with iceaxe, cellphone and GPS

John S. Edwards

Is technology making fools of us? Have Park visitors have been known to set out portents; in short to be self-reliant. Of cell phones and GPS changed our rela- to hike with their GPS but without map course things can go seriously wrong — a tionship to wild country? Judging by the or compass, let alone the other essentials. fall, a sprain, a broken limb can happen to examples of stupidity reported by Leslie Some GPS devices can send an emergency the best of backcountry travellers. Perhaps Kaufman recently in the New York Times, signal but lack two-way communication that is an argument for adding radio to the technology is adding new dimensions and this can create pseudo-emergencies. Ten Essentials. But one wonders whether to the forms of idiocy manifested in the For example, hikers in Grand Canyon Na- it is possible that marginal decision could national parks. Petting bears and teasing tional Park sent an emergency signal that be affected by the knowledge that rescue bison are familiar examples of stupidity in led to a helicopter search. The responding is so easily summoned. the parks; they are egregious but usually crew located the hikers but the party de- Should search and rescue crews put only menace the perpetrator. Misuse of clined to board the helicopter, saying that their lives in danger simply because they radio communications is more reprehen- they used the emergency call because they can be so easily called out? Perhaps it is sible to the extent that it can endanger were simply short of water. time to adopt the European system where rangers and search and rescue crews. Calls These are extreme examples of the mis- rescue service is based on insurance. No to rangers from mountaintops to request use of technology that would be laughable policy, no rescue. refreshments or guides, a lost hiker calling if they were not expensive and danger- It is intriguing to ponder what the he- in for hot chocolate are the least of the ous for rescue crews. But they do raise a roic explorers of pre-radio days, Amund- cases. Hikers in the Grand Canyon called deeper question: might the judgment of sen, Nansen, Scott, or Lewis and Clark, for in rescue helicopters by pressing the emer- competent and experienced backcountry example, would make of modern com- gency button on their satellite location travellers be affected by the knowledge munication and rescue. GPS and satellite device simply because their water tasted that rescue is so easily summoned? At least phones may save lives but perhaps, by salty. Calls from benighted hikers asked part of the challenge of travel in wilder- comparison, they also serve to trivialize for an escort to safety where an overnight ness is the exercise of skills and experi- modern ventures into the unknown. bivouac would have been a salutary lesson ence to navigate, to assess topography and in judgment. snow conditions, to be aware of weather

visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  5 American Alps Biodiversity Report Released By Jim Davis

the park will be particularly im- portant for colonizing wolf packs that are struggling to survive. Grizzly bears will be better pro- tected from accidental shooting and other human caused mortal- ity. Wolverines will be able to roam more freely across contigu- ous and unfragmented blocks of habitat. Several human activities that severely impact biodiversity will be limited or banned under NPS management. National park status will protect low elevation forests from a return to logging and forest road building, provid- ing a boost to the recovery of spotted owl, marbled murrelet, salmon, and bull trout popula- tions. Including pristine rivers and streams in the park will re- strict small hydropower develop- ment, limit construction of water storage dams, and discourage new mining claims. NPS will also have substantially greater policy authority and enforcement capac- Bobcat —Jim Davis photo ity to protect sensitive habitats from off-road vehicle damage. he North Cascades Conserva- the major threats to biodiversity in the The American Alps Legacy Proposal is tion Council has released a American Alps and lays out clearly why focused on the long-term integrity of the report on biodiversity conser- NPS is the better land management agency North Cascades ecosystem. It emphasizes vation in the American Alps. for long-term biodiversity conservation. the paramount importance of wildlife and The report highlights why the NPS has a strong mandate for biodi- fish biodiversity in the North Cascades. It TAmerican Alps proposal to expand the versity conservation in national parks. bequeaths a legacy to future generations North Cascades National Park is important NPS policy states, “The Park Service will that will treasure this truly magnificent for biodiversity conservation. You can successfully maintain native plants and wild area in Washington’s North Cascades. access the report on the American Alps animals by preserving and restoring the Now is the time to take action to preserve website at www.americanalps.org. natural abundances, diversities, dynam- and restore wildlife and fish biodiversity in The American Alps Legacy Proposal ics, distributions, habitats, and behaviors the North Cascades. will convert to national park more than of native plant and animal populations 300,000 acres of national forest and na- and the communities and ecosystems in tional recreation area lands. Conversion which they occur; restoring native plant to national park will provide congres- and animal populations in parks when sionally mandated permanent protection they have been extirpated by past human- for these lands. The National Park Service caused actions; and minimizing human (NPS) will focus management efforts on impacts on native plants, animals, popula- biodiversity conservation and recreation, tions, communities, and ecosystems, and as opposed to the broader multiple-use the processes that sustain them” (National mandates for national forest and national Park Service Management Policies, 2006. recreation area lands. Natural Resource Section 4.4.1). The American Alps Biodiversity Report Conversion of American Alps lands to examines important habitats in the Ameri- national park will significantly increase can Alps area that are in need of protec- the size of core protected areas for at risk tion. It focuses on multiple at-risk species species in the North Cascades. Mountain and explains how they will be benefited by goats will receive increased protection Park expansion. The report also identifies from hunting. An increase in the size of

6  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Researching Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics in Our American Alps Phil Zalesky

ecently when going through One facet of the present day diversity contrast, felt the full impact of the advanc- my Audubon magazine for relates back to the great glaciation of the ing ice, so we would not expect to find July-August 2010, I came last Ice Age that did not quite reach the great diversity. But we don’t know until we across an article, “The Mother Great Smoky Mountains. Species that were look. Lode,” that piqued my inter- driven south by the advancing ice found As we understand the river corridors Rest. It’s about exploring biodiversity in refugia in the Great Smoky Mountains. today, dead carcasses of salmon and other Great Smoky National Park. My thoughts There they have stayed in reproductive fish provide the nutrients of the biological then roamed to see if a parallel plan could isolation and have evolved over time. energy to the ecosystem. As many as 20 be used within our American Alps project. The American Alps in to 25 mammals feed from these carcasses including bears, river otters, racoons, and Great Smoky National Park North Cascade National Park coyotes. These are the heavier mammals The article featured a search for bio- Would it be possible for the North Cas- that drag the carcasses into the riparian diversity in Great Smoky National Park cades National Park to replicate the Great areas. Smaller animals such as numerous during the past decade. About a thousand Smoky program? Obviously the National birds, mink, skunk, deer mice and shrews professional and amateur scientists were Park Service has not the staff to undertake then feed from the carcasses left in the involved. I write my thoughts on this this. It too would require a foundation riparian areas. Those not eaten decay, not as a biologist, nor an entomologist, to finance it and assemble such a jigsaw providing nutrients for plants and insects. taxonomist, or botanist. I’m not even an puzzle as the All Taxa Biological Inventory. From there many microbial species then “ologist.,” but I am fascinated and curious Twelve other of the national parks have feed on the carcasses, destroying the find. about science. So I will attempt to tell you been undertaking such species invento- All living things, birds, beetles worms, about their research and ask how Ameri- ries, so why not North Cascades National algae are all part of this functioning eco- can Alps could have a comparable study. Park? system. They established an All Taxa Biological We have an ideal topography for it. Of all the species described from the Inventory. National Park scientists alone Much of what I write here was stimulated Great Smokys, the most fascinating for me could not have undertaken such a large- by Arthur Kruckeberg’s book Geology and were the water mites. Mites are species scale effort. Discover Life, a nonprofit Plant Life. The Cascade Range of Washing- that we hardly notice but they play deci- organization, paid to make it happen. At ton increases in ruggedness going north sive roles in the river system; they are the this point in their research they have dis- from the Columbia River. The closer we carnivores that can restrain the population covered 907 species previously unknown get to the Canadian border with its geo- of insects. This one example shows the to science as well as 600 rare species not logical jumble of unusual ruggedness, the value of developing an All Taxa Inventory previously known from the area. more likely would be found rare and local in building an appreciation of ecosystem Among the new finds were freshwater plants. It could be a place of reproductive dynamics. And the North Cascades is crayfish, arachnids both terrestrial and isolation. surely a good place to embark on such a aquatic, such as spiders and water mites, The American Alps Legacy Project may project. many beetles, 74 species of moths and possibly be an ideal area for botanists butterflies, 23 new species of bees, and searching for new species of rare but also 78 algal species. Fungus-like slime molds previously unidentified plants. Few new occur in the Smokies with three-fourths plants would be found in this rugged and of the known genera worldwide occurring jagged terrain of the Golden Horn area. here. They “can be found in moist settings, The Continental Glacier 100,000 years where they eat bacteria that engineer ago forced the disappearance of most decay, helping nutrients cycle through the resident species, except for areas such as ecosystem.” the Golden Horn that were ice-free and Great Smoky National Park has a formed refugia, where the ancient plants topography that rises from 870 to 6,643 survived. feet. Some areas were heavily logged and Insects, spiders and other invertebrates farmed, yet even in these damaged areas would have been subjected to the climatic the biodiversity rebounded. “So why have events of the last glaciation and a close so many species new to science and the examination of the area could well reveal park been discovered in a landscape that refugial species. What seemed to make white settlers moved into in the 18th cen- the Great Smokys so productive biologi- tury and that was heavily logged deep into cally was that the ice shield did not reach the 20th century? The species are both the region and seemed to force ancient longtime residents that have symbiotic biological species to move in front of the rolls as well as relative newcomers that ice sheet with a resting place at the end in have disrupted the ecosystem.” these mountains. The North Cascades, in visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  7 More news from Reiter Forest by Karl Forsgaard

Wild Sky peaks Gunn, Merchant, and Baring from upper end of Mainline road, Reiter Forest. —Karl Forsgaard

e previously reported on damaged by past ORV recreation. They at- nity then urged DNR to not reopen Reiter, the historic closure of tended many DNR meetings and field trips reversing their prior demands to reopen it Reiter Forest to motor- to help DNR design a new system of ORV as soon as possible. ized use (see The Wild routes in the newly designated ORV area The reason for this reversal is that the Cascades, Winter 2009- (1,100 acres of the 10,000-acre forest). ORV community saw the risk that un- 2010). It was expected that It will take DNR a lot of time, including cooperative ORV riders would refuse to WashingtonW State Department of Natural design work, funding and environmental stay on the roads, trespass onto the old Resources (DNR) would reopen Reiter to review, to designate and construct new user-created ORV routes (which are being motorized use by the summer of 2010, but ORV routes with appropriate protections, decommissioned), and create new damage that did not happen, and the reasons were such as bridges over streams. in the forest before the new ORV routes significant. The temporary closure is still In early June 2010, DNR proposed to are built. In a letter to the media and in a in effect, almost a year later. reopen the ORV area to motorized use on DNR blog and press release, representa- Throughout the winter of 2009-2010, June 20, with the motorized use initially tives of the Northwest Motorcycle Asso- the off-road vehicle (ORV) community limited to the mainline logging road (a ciation, Washington Off Highway Vehicle demanded that DNR reopen Reiter as soon wide gravel road used by logging trucks), Alliance, PNW4WD and Wheelers Of as possible. To speed up the reopening, also known as the Deer Flats road, which Washington told DNR that “opening just the ORV community and groups such as leads to a spectacular viewpoint overlook- the [mainline] forest roads would encour- Reiter Trail Watch donated volunteer labor ing the Wild Sky peaks and the upper Sky- age and facilitate illegal use of the area on DNR-led work parties to restore sites komish Valley. However, the ORV commu- Continued on page 9

8  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Reiter Forest Continued from page 8 and compromise the entire project. We they were not allowed to behave like this This is relevant to proposals for introduc- would like DNR to focus their resources in Oregon. ing non-street-legal ORV use to 350 miles on completing the restoration work and DNR is now preparing request legisla- of “mixed use” roads on national forest getting the trail systems developed before tion for the 2011 session of the state legis- lands. reopening the area.” lature, including proposals for increased In August 2010, the Everett Herald This shows that even in a high-priority enforcement resources. Enforcement and reported that Snohomish County has area like Reiter, and with a worthy desti- restoration are important because unman- dropped a plan to allow ORVs on paved nation for the proposed reopening, the aged motorized recreation can damage county roads near Reiter, including Reiter ORV community recognized that its own trees, soils and water quality, causing Road between Gold Bar and Index. “The “self-policing” volunteers would not be Clean Water Act violations and jeopar- idea was supposed to boost tourism and able to fully patrol the Reiter mainline dizing the state’s Habitat Conservation economic development” by allowing ORVs road if it reopened. They also recognized Plan for these lands. Damage to the trees “better access” to Reiter forest. Concerns that the numerous “bad apples” in their also damages the revenue stream for our from neighbors and law enforcement community could do enough new damage schools and other trust beneficiaries of the caused the County Council to reconsider, to “compromise the entire project.” state trust lands. and the proposed county ordinance was This underscores the importance of DNR’s duty to protect these resources is withdrawn. “The biggest complaint was securing adequate dedicated enforcement not optional, it is mandatory. We need to that if you opened up the roads to ORV resources before opening up any area to keep our water clean and protect wildlife (off-road-vehicle) traffic, we don’t have motorized recreation. habitat, and we need to restore areas that the law enforcement capacity out here to The entire Reiter forest was temporar- have been damaged by motorized recre- make sure it’s obeyed,” Gold Bar Mayor ily closed to motorized use in November ation. Joe Beavers said. Index Mayor Bruce 2009 because ORVs had done so much ex- The Reiter story is relevant on federal Albert also warned it would compromise treme damage to the trees and the soil and lands as well. In its travel management public safety on a narrow road with blind the streams. The 4x4 “tube buggies” going scoping, the Okanogan-Wenatchee Na- corners. “The idea isn’t dead, just dor- cross-country through the forest, squeez- tional Forest proposed to introduce non- mant,” said Ted Jackson, who lives in the ing between trees and stripping the bark street-legal ORV use to 350 miles of “mixed area and has been involved in trail issues. off hundreds of trees, were killing them. use” roads. At Reiter, the ORV community After the public meeting, Jackson said sev- Sediment delivery into streams threatened admitted that ORV riders would likely not eral people in the area told him they didn’t the salmon and steelhead runs down- stay on the designated “mixed-use” road think it was such a bad idea. It’s something stream. DNR observed “tube buggies” at Reiter and would trespass onto non- they’re likely to revisit, he said, once the coming to Reiter from Oregon – because designated trails and cross-country routes. state moves the project further along.

Phelps Basin, Glacier Peak Wilderness.— Philip Fenner photo visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  9 Finney AMA Plan Disappoints

Rick McGuire

he Mount Baker Snoqual- of horizontal strata at its top, Higgins is Roads climb steep slopes almost to the mie National Forest (MBS) prominent from Highway 530 west of Dar- sky on private land south of the lower has released a management rington, and visible from around Arlington Skagit River, with remnant Finney plan calling for “restora- south to Everett and beyond to those who Block old growth on ridgetops to tion” logging in the Finney know where to look. Other views of the right. Adaptive Management Area. Finney block tend toward the forgettable. —Tom Hammond photo TThe Finney AMA consists of about 100,000 As seen from the Skagit it’s little more than acres in the northern end of the MBS, nondescript, heavily logged hills, albeit tizations of the desirable lowlands in the an “island” of public national forest land with a few small pockets of old growth Skagit-Stillaguamish area over a century south of the lower Skagit, north of the still surviving here and there, notably in ago. These high-elevation forests weren’t North Fork Stillaguamish and west of the the steep valleys in and around the Pres- worth bothering with, and thus became lower Sauk. sentin Creek area. part of the then-Mt. Baker National Forest. The Finney block, as it is usually called, The Finney was hit harder by the 1950- Poor quality timber didn’t stop roads is a little known, seldom visited, mostly 1990 orgy of subsidized national forest from being pushed into virtually every forgotten corner of the MBS. Probably its logging than just about any other part of corner of the Finney in the last half of the most visible landmark is the south face of the MBS. Other than a few thousand acres twentieth century. This was taxpayer sub- Mount Higgins, rising in a moderately dra- at lower elevations on its edges, very little sidized logging at its worst. Congress ap- matic sweep of mature forest north of the of the Finney is prime timberland. Most of propriated hundreds of millions of dollars North Fork Stillaguamish River. Featur- it can best be described as high-elevation annually in those years to build roads and ing a rather un-Cascadian looking series leftovers from the timber industry’s priva- pay people to layout timber sales, which

10  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 in the case of the Finney seldom recouped up of a high altitude landscape that would vulnerable to windthrow after the sudden any of the money that went into them. never have been cut in a more economi- removal of their neighbors. Other costs such as damage to streams cally rational world. Much of the inferior Selective logging is entirely unlike and fisheries were never given a thought. wood was barely worth cutting even when anything that occurs in nature — at least Several factors combined to make practically given away. clearcutting simulates the effect of fire the Finney about the worst hammered Hundreds of miles of roads were built in some ways. Quite often the partial landscape to be found on the MBS. It was, at public expense to haul out the wood opening of forest canopies by selective and still is, out of sight and out of mind, cut during those decades. Despite the logging lets in insufficient light to allow a place with few visitors or defenders. money spent on them, these roads were regeneration of pioneer species such as As awareness of the value of old forests not built to last, and their subsequent Douglas fir, but enough increased light to grew during the 1980s it became more decay and collapse has severely damaged stimulate the growth of hemlock thickets. and more difficult for the Forest Service downstream fish habitat. Lower Finney These thickets can number in the hun- to continue business as usual by punching Creek was once one of the most produc- dreds of thousands of small trees per acre, new roads into roadless areas. The agency tive salmon streams in the lower Skagit forming an amazingly dense understory faced strong opposition and much bad watershed. Lower Deer Creek, a tributary that utterly defeats the goal of increased publicity when it tried to cut places with of the North Fork Stillaguamish, was once growth for the leave trees by sucking up defenders. Lowering the hugely unsustain- legendary for its steelhead, celebrated by most of the available water and nutrients. able cut level was of course unthinkable, the famous fishing writer Zane Gray. Both They also form an impenetrable thicket so more and more logging was concen- streams have been seriously degraded by offering absolutely nothing but an obstacle trated in places like the Finney where few upstream logging in the Finney, with Deer for wildlife. The Forest Service takes no would see it. The result was the severely Creek in particular now just a shadow interest in selectively logged areas once a overcut Finney block we see today. of its former self. The Forest Service has timber sale is finished, and these “hemlock Sixty percent of the Finney is, or was, managed to decommission many of these barrens” now blight an increasingly large high-elevation silver fir forest. Twenty roads over the past two decades, reducing part of the MBS. four percent of it is even higher mountain but not eliminating the damage they do. Selective logging, or “thinning,” leaves a hemlock forest. Pacific silver fir produces Much road mileage remains and continues forest that looks, and is, entirely unnatu- low quality “white wood,” lacking strength to decay, almost none of it serving any ral. It doesn’t work, and in many cases is and decay resistance, but the trees are purpose. an unmitigated disaster. But logging is in splendidly adapted for growing where few The recently released Finney AMA plan the Forest Service’s DNA. Simply leaving others can, and for holding mountains starts out well enough by declaring the things alone is unthinkable. The Finney together in areas subject to severe rain on restoration of late successional forest AMA plan has plenty of verbiage about snow events. One of the few interesting as its primary goal. But it’s all downhill research and experiments, but none of highlights to be found in the Finney AMA from there, with selective logging being it really amounts to anything more than plan comes from MBS Forest Ecologist Jan the way this is supposed to happen. The justification for more logging, dressed up Henderson, who has spent decades study- document does not describe any rationale with talk of “restoration.” If past experi- ing the forests of the Cascades and Olym- for this, it simply being accepted Forest ence is any guide, selective logging will be pics. He describes the Finney AMA as: Service dogma that logging is the solu- done not in the “dense, dark plantations” “. . . an environment that is colder and tion to every problem — no explanations of younger trees. It will happen instead in wetter than virtually all forest lands in required. For those unfamiliar with Forest areas of older, mature, naturally regener- the contiguous USA. Forests developed Service orthodoxy, the thinking behind ated second growth forest where the trees under conditions where fire was a rare this runs something along the lines of are larger and more valuable and sales occurrence. When fire occurred, it usually there being too many trees in previously might have better chances of attracting happened only around the warmer or logged areas. Taking some of them out is buyers. But it is an inherently difficult, drier edges or many hundreds of years supposed to reduce the competition and uneconomic way to log, almost never done ago. The Finney AMA is atypical of the “release” those left behind, making them on private lands. remainder of the NW Forest Plan area due grow faster and better than if left alone. It’s disappointing to see the Forest to very infrequent fire and high precipita- Underpinning all this is an unshakable be- Service put out a plan that proposes yet tion. This results in stands reaching ages lief that foresters can always grow forests more logging to solve the problems from much older than in NWFP areas further faster and better than unassisted nature. previous logging. Even as the agency south.” Any and all evidence to the contrary is slowly dwindles away, it still looks upon About 40 per cent of the forest in the studiously ignored. logging as its lifeblood. But there are some Finney has been cut since WWII. Since And there is now abundant evidence af- rays of hope. Trees grow quickly in the the cutting was scattered all across the ter more than two decades of this selective Cascades, and the Finney looks better now landscape, leaving very few intact blocks logging that it does nothing to “restore” than it did two decades ago. The Finney of forest, it looks worse than the numbers forests, but does great harm. Selective AMA plan, if implemented, would reverse might imply. Much of the cutting was logging, obviously, means that some trees that, but the Forest Service has had great concentrated in the lower elevation areas are left behind. Such logging can’t be difficulty selling its selective logging sales where the timber was more valuable, but done with towers and cables, but must be even when housing construction was 37 per cent of the Pacific silver fir zone ground based, meaning lots of heavy ma- booming. It may now be impossible to sell forest was cut, along with an astonishing chinery driving all around, dragging logs, them, particularly sales of silver fir, even 4600 acres (14 per cent) of the uppermost rutting and compacting soils. Removing at giveaway prices. The collapse of the mountain hemlock zone. The combination some of the trees unravels stands where housing market and its demand for wood of cheap oil and an overstaffed, overfund- the trees have grown up mutually protect- may yet be the salvation of the Finney, and ed bureaucracy resulted in the chopping ing each other, making those remaining many other places as well. visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  11 Margaret Miller returns to Cascade Pass

ORTH CASCADES “Margaret is one of the most important through our programs,” Michael Bondi, — Through 33 people to have hiked here over the last the volunteer coordinator for the North switchbacks, thou- century and said ‘By god, this is going Cascades National Park Service Complex sands of biting flies, to be a national park’,” Tom Hammond, said. “I’m deeply honored to have Marga- and crowds of hik- a member of the North Cascade Conser- ret here to see what we’re doing.” ers, Margaret Miller vation Council (NCCC) said. “[Joe and Residents of Bellevue since 1958, the managed to hike the Cascade Pass trail’s Margaret] initiated the concept, and were Miller’s began their re-vegetation efforts N3.7 miles of rocky, steep terrain in about the first to scientifically assess the flora of by growing plants under a lean-to in their six hours. At the age of 88, she is legally the North Cascades.” backyard. Their restoration of the pass blind. According to the National Park Ser- began a year after the park was founded Miller returned to the national park for vice, 6,000 to 8,000 native plants are in 1968. the first time in almost two decades on transplanted to the pass each fall, with “We had all kinds of people saying we Saturday, August 14, for the beginning of over 60,000 plants being transplanted couldn’t do it… bringing trees nurtured the National Park Service’s annual reveg- since 1981. The plants are grown at the at sea level to mountain elevations for etation effort. Miller and her late husband ranger station in Marblemount, Wash., in reforestation,” Miller said laughing. “We’ve Joe were solely responsible for initiating a greenhouse that bears the Millers name. settled that.” the re-vegetation process in the Cascade Volunteers and national park rangers then According to the book Wilderness Alps Pass area, and were one of five couples collect the shrubberies and carry them to by Harvey Manning, Seattle City Light who fought to make the North Cascades the pass. began a project in 1968 to raise the level National Park a reality. “We have graduated hundreds of young of Ross Lake in the North Cascades by people into caring for this specific area

12  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 be able to produce it after the dam expan- sion. “It took them 10 years, but they got their stuff together,” Miller said. Years later, Miller again made her way to Cascade Pass, where event staff and on- lookers met her with applause and cheers. Walking cautiously between two balanc- ing bars, Miller inched towards the scenic overlook with the help of volunteers. Lidija Kamansky, a member of a back- packing group moving through the pass, was moved to tears. “It’s a wonderful story and the commit- ment is extraordinary,” Kamansky said. “It’s absolutely inspirational to be in her presence, and to see not only the work she Dual-pole system is used as the has put in today, but that her labors have Buchanans hike with Margaret to Cascade Pass. Continued on page 14

125 ft. through construction on the lake’s were glad to do what we could do existing dam. and we hoped that our data would The national park turned to the Millers help, which apparently it did.” for help, and the couple spent from 1968 The Millers testified before the to 1971 documenting the ecosystems and Seattle City Council, Washington cedar groves of the lake’s tributary sys- State Ecological Commission, the tems. They studied the Big Beaver, Little Federal Power Commission and Beaver, Baker, Chillicack, and Silver Creek the International Joint Commis- valleys while simultaneously operating sion in order to advocate against the revegetation project on Cascade Pass. the expansion of the dam. Despite Their analysis discovered 240 plants native their study, the Federal Energy to the area, 21 of which were not known Regulatory commission approved to have existed in the park complex. the project in 1977 and the U.S. “The people who were saying [the lake Court of Appeals upheld the proj- tributaries] were like all the places in the ect license in 1980 after further lowlands seemed to have no idea what was legal resistance. in the area,” Miller said. “We came away “The British Columbian govern- thinking it was pretty unique…No place in ment stepped up and helped us the North Cascades would hold a candle after we blew the whistle on the to [the flora] that was there.” whole thing”, Miller said. “[Joe and The study, titled “The Preliminary Eco- I] went up there and did a little logical Survey of Big Beaver Valley, North rabble rousing because the water Cascades National Park Complex,” was was going to be backed up into contrary to the work of Prof. Grant Sharpe Canada.” of the University of Washington College of British Columbia worked to Forest Resources. Sharpe found the eco- block construction in 1983 and a systems to have little unique importance, document was signed the same and advocated the further damming of year between the United States Margaret scatters Joe’s ashes Ross Lake as a power resource despite the and Canada concluding the project. Seattle over a patch of heather at destruction of tributary valleys. City Light agreed to buy energy from Cascade Pass. Canada at a cheaper rate than they would “We had so many projects that our —photos by Basil Tsimoyianis heads were swimming,” Miller said. “We visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  13 Joe Miller — American Hero Tom Hammond

argaret Miller took her him. Joe’s unit cut through tank traps and Do not stand at my grave and weep. husband Joe’s remains to mines, and secured one of the key roads I am not here. I do not sleep. Cascade Pass on August that allowed so many Brits, Canadians I am the thousand winds that blow; 14, 2010. and US to escape the slaughter of those I am the diamond glints on snow. It is difficult for me to beachheads. Joe and his fellow soldiers I am the sunlight on ripened grain; putM into words how honored and humbled literally built the podium on which the I am to have been present for Joe’s mili- generals stood to celebrate the liberation I am the gentle Autumn rain. tary funeral, and a couple years later, his of Paris. Joe secured the road at Bastogne When you awake in the morning’s hush, final return to Cascade Pass. I thank the in the Battle of the Bulge. Joe’s was the I am the swift uplifting rush first unit to enter Leipzig, and later shook Buchanan family — Kitty, who is Marga- Of quiet birds in circled flight. ret and Joe’s goddaughter, together with hands with Russians as the forces linked in I am the soft star that shines at night. her husband Larry and two sons, care for Czechoslovakia. Margaret, now 88. But Joe would be quick to tell you the Do not stand at my grave and cry; I wrote the following shortly after greatest victory of his life was helping I am not here...I did not die. returning from Tahoma National Cem- create North Cascades National Park, and —Mary Elizabeth Frye etery in March, 2008 where part of Joe’s saving Big Beaver Valley from dams and August 14, 2010 remains were interred but Margaret had chainsaws. You see, the reason I was there Margaret Miller was intent, even ada- in mind one final mission for Joe — to lay to pay respects to Joseph W. Miller is that mant that she would carry Joe home — to him to rest at Cascade Pass… above all he believed preserving our glori- lay him to rest at Cascade Pass. The only March 28, 2008 ous wildlands was his primary mission. Joe and Margaret were on the board of problem: even with the long, high road in I went to Tahoma National Cemetery the North Cascades Conservation Council. to the trailhead, the path to Cascade Pass today to pay respects to a true American They worked for years as volunteers with is about four steep, rocky miles. So the Bu- hero: Joseph W. Miller. Joe served in the national park to study the flora and chanans rigged up a dual-pole system, and the 1st Battalion of the 20th Engineer- the damage it had sustained through un- together with head NPS ranger Kelly Bush, ing Combat Regiment that first landed at wise use. They stood before Congress to NCCC board members, who were there Casablanca and directly engaged Rommel testify in support of the North Cascades, for the American Alps Project, also helped at Kasserine Pass in North Africa. Many and were key in securing its protected Margaret. The NCCC members carried of Joe’s mates died clearing mines and status as a wilderness and national park. dozens of native plants to Cascade Pass as building the road that enabled the US and part of a revegetation program initiated by They spent countless hours replanting Brits to achieve victory there. Then the the Millers decades ago. The plants came damaged meadows, notably at Cascade 20th landed on Yellow Beach closely east from the National Park Service greenhouse Pass, and fighting extractive industries. of Licata on Sicily. Joe helped Patton reach in Marblemount named in honor of Marga- Messina before Montgomery. Then it was Fittingly, on this March 28th, it was ret and Joe. snowing heavily; turning those acres of on to Omaha Beach, where a landing craft Polly Dyer was on hand too — so we graves a pristine white. It couldn’t snow directly in front of Joe’s was hit and he had two pioneers of conservation in hard enough to conceal the tears running saw his comrades disintegrate in front of the United States: a 90-year-old and an down my cheeks. 88-year-old ready to tackle Cascade Pass — A true American hero, we all owe a debt to visit the national park they created. to this giant of a man. Margaret scattered Joe’s ashes across the This was read at Joe’s service, it is remi- beautiful plants that grow below the high Margaret Miller niscent of a Native American burial rite: peaks and glaciers of the North Cascades. Continued from page 13 come to fruition. She is the reason I am Check out northcascades.org able to come and enjoy a place like this.” Once at the top, Miller spread her Click on The Wild Cascades. husband’s ashes over a patch of heather, Scroll down to link... spending half an hour enjoying the area at which she spent so many hours in her — The Kaopectate Kid*, link TWC December- past. Her husband was remembered as a January 1969-70. veteran of the European theater during World War II, fighting in the first wave — The fight to save the Big Beaver valley from of D-Day’s Omaha Beach assault and the flooding. Battle of the Bulge. *aka Joe Miller —Ross B. Buchanan

14  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Suggested Revegetation Practices by MARGARET M. MILLER and JOSEPH W. MILLER Belleview, Washington PREPARED FOR THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE JUNE, 1977

Introduction plants that live there with In the past ten years more those on dry sites. Where the and more of us have become light is brightest, notice what increasingly aware of the vegetation occurs and how impact of people on the it differs from that found in backcountry of our wilder- dense shade. Pay attention ness areas and parks. This to down logs and old stumps effect is certainly evident and what grows on them. in the North Cascades, Notice where seedlings and especially in the choice but young plants are growing. scarce alpine and subalpine In a subalpine or alpine meadows. In 1970 we were area notice the wind pat- asked to begin a revegetation terns. Often this is obvious project on Cascade Pass in from the branching habits on the North Cascades National woody vegetation. Look for park. In the past this area the plants that can withstand had been heavily visited and strong wind and those that used for camping by both shelter from the wind. Find backpackers and horse par- the wet spots in the mead- ties. Its beaten down mead- ows and observe the plants ows full of impacted trails, that seem to prefer to grow barren campsites, eroded near snow fields and snow gullies and assorted horrors melt water courses. Some stimulated us to study and plants have definite aspect conduct trials of revegetation preferences (north, south, methods. east, west), especially around Our backgrounds include large rocks. Notice plants years of gardening, degrees that appear to like to grow in biology and a long-time out on a boulder or crowd love of and experience in the around its bottom or grow mountains and wild areas of on rock screes. the West. Recently we have You need not be a gradu- participated in seminars on ate taxonomist to observe wilderness management with carefully how plants live the U.S. Forest Service and National Park Margaret and Joe Miller at Cascade together in communities or note their pre- Service. On numerous occasions we have Pass, from (December-January) 1969- ferred habitats. You can call them by their had discussions with backcountry rang- 1970, The Wild Cascades. common names if Latin names bother you, ers, Youth Conservation Corps groups, or even name them yourself — Plant A, Student Conservation Association groups Plant B etc. — as long as you identify the and other volunteers on the techniques material that will cover the ground and prevent further degradation, then first you same plant consistently. See the list of sug- of replanting worn out campgrounds, old gested readings for helpful books on the shelter sites and subalpine meadows. should spend some time really looking at the neighboring plant communities. identification of plants and how they live It is hoped that this paper will help together. more of you than we will be able to meet If it is a lowland forested area, what are the dominant trees? What shrubs are in All of this is to get you to see what plant personally to be successful in revegetating habitat preferences you can find. . . . . our beautiful mountain areas. We hope the understory? What herbs are found with you will try some of our methods and will these woody plants? In order to under- let us hear, in turn, your suggestions. All stand the relationship of these various Editor’s Note: To read the complete of us working together can help heal the plants with each other, you should exam- article, go to www.northcascades.org, link scars of man’s unthinking overuse of the ine the microclimates and microhabitats. to The Wild Cascades. Go to Articles and mountains and backcountry. Thank you Notice what plants seem to pioneer on Research, click on Suggested Revegetation for your efforts. disturbed soil, where a tree has blown Practices by Margaret and Joseph Miller, If your aim is to try to restore the area over, in an avalanche track or recent rock 1977 — The classic report of NCCC’s mas- to its original condition or merely to plant slide, or what plans creep out onto the ters of meadow rehabilitation, focusing on trail. Find damp areas and compare the Cascade Pass. visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  15 Brock Evans and Chuck Sisco: same tree, flood zone, Bumping Flats, near campitsite—Harry Hosey photo

Chuck Sisco and Harry Hosey*: Ancient Douglas fir near campsite, Bumping Flats, flood zone. —Brock Evans photo

Bumping Lake trail, flood zone. Harry Hosey and Chuck Sisco. —Brock Evans photo *Chuck Sisco and Harry Hosey are personal friends. Chuck was then an Typical old growth forest, Bumping flats trail, employee of the National Audobon Society at its office in Olympia. Harry was flood zone. Harry and Chuck again. from Redmond, a land developer who loved the wilderness. I haven’t seen —Brock Evans photo either for a long time.

16  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Bumping Lake ancient forest — One of a Kind

ucked away in the Central Even as this is written, a “Work Group,” and expensive “Yakima Basin Enhance- Cascades just east of Mount under the aegis of the federal Bureau of ment Project,” consisting of several large Rainier National Park, there Reclamation, and composed of irriga- and very costly dams and related proj- is a precious gem of a place: tion districts, federal and state agencies, ects. One of the proposals currently in a magnificent remnant of country commissioners, a “dam storage the Work Group discussion draft is the the vast stands of ancient alliance” led by former Congressman Sid “Bumping Lake Enlargement (BLE).” Tforest which used to carpet the whole re- Morrison . . . and — rather shockingly to What’s up? How could this be, that some gion. Nearly 3,000 acres, it is almost all old me — only one conservation organization, groups in our community have met, to growth forest — and this is no “ordinary” is meeting to decide whether or not they even consider support for such a destruc- forest: a great many of its individual trees will recommend to Congress a very large tive venture — one so totally contrary to are huge, some enormous everything we have fought (8-10' diameter) by today’s for, in that same region, standards. for the past half century? This spectacular rem- Have they forgotten the nant of what once was long history of previous nearly everywhere in the struggles to save this same Cascades still stands along place? This is all very the shores of Bumping disappointing; but those Lake – a pretty, natural of us who DO love the lake expanded when a wilderness and ancient small (60') dam was built forests of this state may at its natural outlet some have to rally again, and decades ago. Located re-fight that history very just outside the present soon, if the recommenda- William O. Douglas Wil- tion goes forward as some derness, the forest itself in the Work Group are knows no such limit; it is, advocating. has been always, eco- The actual basin ‘en- logically a part of the now- hancement’ proposals protected, and adjacent, vary, depending upon wilderness. This Bumping politics and timing. Some Forest is extra special to View northeast from proposed enlargement — everything in the of its more recent formula- my way of thinking (after middle view would be flooded several dozen feet by the new tions have included not 45-plus years of exploring dam, as well as totally drowning out the site where the picture only the BLE, but also a in and campaigning for was taken. —Brock Evans photo Black Rock Dam on the every part of our state’s lower Yakima, Wymer dam Cascades), because it is on one of its tributaries, not only roadless – and ex- a pipeline between Lakes Kachess and cellent habitat for the endangered spotted Keechelus, and covering over some irriga- owl and bull trout; it is also located almost tion canals. entirely on level ground – now THAT is “Water storage” in Bureauspeak of something really rare in the Cascades! ...it’s time to course means more big dams — just like We fought off one Congressional bill, the Bad Old Days. Expensive too: BLE which would have drowned out this fight back — hard. alone would cost $620 million. awesome place, in the 1970s, but were And this time But as far as I can tell, scarcely any unsuccessful in adding it to the William O. recommendation in any official document Douglas Wilderness in 1984. around, finally for real water conservation by the basin’s Now that nearly all of the other unpro- heavily subsidized farms. For these water tected ancient forests of the Cascades in enshrine this guzzlers, western water law — “first in our state have vanished, this superlative time, first in right” prevails, so no one can Bumping Lake Forest is even more pre- natural masterpiece order irrigators to switch away from pres- cious. ent wasteful water-spreading practices to But we will have to fight to save it. where it truly more efficient methods used in other dry Why, what is the threat this time? It is a climates, such as drip irrigation and rigor- new dam, proposed to enlarge Bumping belongs... ous water metering. Lake six-fold, drowning out and destroying those remaining forests around it — for- ever. Continued on page 18 visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  17 Bumping Lake Continued from page 17

The Sierra Club, which has staunchly bargain away the Bumping is the prospect which would have to endure a difficult opposed the destruction of the Bumping of some “mitigation,” elsewhere. . . in political process. forests, has noted this glaring discrepancy: other words, an agreement to allow the So there’s been a lot of talk in this group “DOE and Bureau of Reclamation [have] destruction of the ancient forests of the about mitigation ratios, equivalent habi- identified numerous possible measures for Bumping (not to mention endangered sage tats, and the like. Led by American Rivers improved water conservation. . . . These grouse habitat in the proposed Wymer and National Wildlife Federation (whose alternatives should be implemented before reservoir) may be acceptable in order to representative recently asserted that the there is any further study of action on new get some kind of commitment to preserve Bumping ancient forests are only a small storage projects…. We believe that. . . ag- other places as “mitigation.” In fact, a rep- area), some seem very enthusiastic to cut a gressive water conservation, adoption of resentative of Conservation Northwest has deal. I have been told that the Work Group water efficiency standards and metering. indicated that they are definitely interested continues to push for such a water “deal” . . are much more cost effective than new in having the Teanaway serve as mitigation consensus before the end of the year. dams. . . .” for the loss of Bumping ancient forest and To which we must say: NO WAY, NO The Endangered Species Coalition and Wymer sage steppe. DEAL! the Gifford Pinchot Task Force also op- The Teanaway? This is a rather dry In the case of the Bumping ancient pose this new dam. GPTF observes “The eastside valley northeast of Cle Elum. It forests, there is simply NO “equivalent Bumping River is a particularly important is largely checkerboard land, its private habitat,” no equivalent anything, that can area when viewed from a climate change sections owned by timber companies for ever be replaced. Pray tell me, where else perspective because of the cold meltwaters about all of the 20th century, thus likely is there – so far south of Stevens Pass — a provided for fish and because of the role mostly heavily logged and roaded. Nowa- wild place like this magnificent west-side the river system plays in. . . connecting the days its timber industry owners consider ecotype lakeshore ancient forest-cathedral large roadless areas which surround it. . many of these ‘checkerboard’ lands to of huge trees of many species, home and . expansion of the reservoir would flood be more valuable as second homes and life-giver to dozens of rare dependent spe- 2,800 acres of important forest habitat. . . . subdivisions. cies, a superb natural connector of all the [and] these older forests are important for “Maybe,” the reasoning goes, “if we area’s habitats and species? carbon storage. Even more important. . . is agree to let go of long-held values and a The answer is – No Place. Nowhere else. the habitat the [ancient] forests provide for much loved place, the ‘other side’ might To me, any talk of such bargaining is old growth dependent species.” agree to help save parts of the Teanaway like saying “Oh, don’t worry about that But a few other groups in our communi- (or other places) from those new houses.’ Mona Lisa painting in the Louvre. It’s just ty* have come, seemingly enthusiastically, It all seems a bit vague, and no guarantees a small piece of canvas with a portrait on to the bargaining table. The inducement to of course – just unenforceable promises, it. We’re going to give it up for destruction, in return for some ‘mitigation,’ perhaps a I am quite certain that these are accurate depictions of what was there, as of June couple dozen other paintings by a bunch 1988. I deliberately took pictures of the places to be flooded out, just as I did when of unknown artists. Maybe not as good I hiked through the cedar forests of the Big Beaver, 22 years before, in 1966. as the Mona Lisa, but look-it at how many more paintings we’ll get.” NO WAY! The Bumping forests are Nature’s Own Masterpiece! They are one of a kind; no “formula ratios” and other “equivalency” talk can ever replace it, once destroyed. I say it’s time to fight back — hard. And this time around, finally enshrine this nat- ural masterpiece where it truly belongs: in the wilderness all around it, protected at last, and safe forever. —Brock Evans

*American Rivers, Conservation North- west, The Nature Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, The Wilderness Soci- ety, Washington Environmental Council. For more info, visit the BuRec link…. www.usbr.gov./pn/programs/yrbwep/ index/index.html or Sierra Club link (to David E. Ortman’s excellent article): www. Phelps Basin, Glacier Peak Wilderness washingtonsierraclub.org/uppercol/bump- —Philip Fenner photo inglake/overview.html

18  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 North Cascades Glacier Climate Project Tom Hammond

and persisted through the night. Morning gave a brief clearing; yes! a good day. We dashed up through the wet vegeta- tion to the glacier, only to find the blue sky had been measurable in minutes not hours. The traverse beneath the large se- racs of the Lower Curtis Glacier terminus was just possible and we were able to go into a small ice cave at the bottom of the seracs. The glacier had retreated 10 meters since last year. The film crew was well positioned for this traverse. Lower Curtis Glacier looked more like the Columbia with modest snowpack. The snowpack around Lake Ann was also unexceptional. It seemed that below 5000 feet snowpack was quite modest again. The avalanche-fed Lower Curtis just did not get its share of avalanches, the main basin of the glacier average only 7.8 feet of snow left. The next field area was off Ptarmigan Ridge. There were no footprints beyond the Chain Lakes trail after three days of rain. We saw a herd of 18 goats en route to camp. The trail out Ptarmigan Ridge had more snow than usual unlike the Lake Lupine growing at the base of Colum- Ann trail. Our usual campsite provided bia Glacier, Henry M. Jackson Wilder- a perfect setting for three days and four ness Area. —Sketch by Jill Pelto nights. The first day we worked on the Lower two-thirds of Rainbow Glacier, mea- suring snowpack, glacier width and glacier he North Cascade Glacier and this year we were hit by our first thun- surface stream velocities. Snowpack was Climate Project for the 27th derstorm. good but not great below 5600 feet. The year examined glaciers across From Blanca Lake we headed north Rainbow Glacier provided one location the North Cascades during to Baker Lake for a quick swim and then where a glacier stream dropped into a the first three weeks in Au- hiked in to the terminus of the Easton moulin, to reappear further down-glacier. Tgust. This year, in addition to our research Glacier in the evening. Our first dry day Our velocities test indicated the flow team (Ben Kane, Mauri Pelto, Ben Pelto, of the field season featured a big push up rate was one-third the speed of adjacent Tom Hammond, Jill Pelto), we had a film the Easton Glacier. Unlike the Columbia surface streams over the same span. From crew (Cory Kelly, Cristina Crane, Chris Glacier, snowpack was good on Easton the end of the Rainbow at 4400 feet, it is a Edmonds, and Max McSimov). We began Glacier; only a few areas of blue ice were long slog back to the portals at 6200 feet the trip under pleasant conditions with an evident. This is not an avalanche-fed gla- then across the Sholes Glacier to camp. evening backpack to Blanca Lake. There cier, and it ends higher than the Columbia The following day we set off early to cross was no snow at Virgin Lake which indi- Glacier begins. We found an average of 3.2 the Sholes, pass through the Portals, de- cates below normal snowpack in the 4000- feet of snow on the lower 5700-foot bench, scend to the Rainbow Glacier and traverse 5000 foot range in the area. The Columbia 7.3 feet on the 6000-foot bench, 10.5 feet up it measuring the very good snowpack Glacier had snowpack very similar to 2007 on the 6,600-foot bench, and 17 feet above from 5600-6600 feet, average depths were and 2009. This is a largely avalanche-fed the central icefall in the 7200-8000-foot 21 feet of snow remaining in this section, glacier and clearly this winter did not range. Above 8000 feet the crevasses were four feet above normal. We spied a moun- feature many good avalanche-inducing still mostly closed. Due to the deep snow tain goat trying to navigate an area where storms. The lake at the terminus continues we were able to probe our way into the a snow finger reaches up to the rock, the to expand and will melt out considerably heart of the central icefall at 7000 feet and area we planned on crossing on our hike during the late summer. We measured then had a fantastic lunch in the sunny out. We navigated past and measured the snowpack depth at 214 locations and whiteout. many large crevasses on our way to the found the average retained snowpack was The next field location was Lower Curtis head of the Rainbow Glacier. Beyond the 7.1 feet, which is 2 feet below the aver- Glacier. The mist let up upon our arrival top of the glacier we descended onto the age and 3.5 feet below what is needed for for a few hours exposing the Lower Curtis Mazama Glacier for lunch, hopping over an equilibrium year. I have spent three Glacier. By nightfall the mist had returned small crevasses like an obstacle course. months at this location in the last 27 years Continued on page 20 visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  19 Stehekin road tour with Senator Cantwell

ebate still swirls around The washout areas were very impressive. Senator Cantwell was exploring the the controversy of build- It was clear that the Stehekin road could Stehekin valley as part of an effort to ing a new section of the never be repaired at these washout sites. determine whether she should sponsor Stehekin road where floods Senator Evans Parlette and the Stehekin Senate legislation that would decommis- completely destroyed the Valley residents on the hike would like the sion wilderness lands along the proposed Droad at several sites between High Bridge National Park Service to move the road up new road corridor and provide funds to and Bridge Creek. On July 8, 2010, Sena- the hill from the washout sites and along the National Park Service for construct- tor Maria Cantwell led a tour of the road an old wagon road corridor that is cur- ing the new portion of Stehekin road. washout and the proposed alternative rently used, in part, for the Pacific Crest Representative Doc Hastings from eastern road site. Participants in the hike were Jim Trail. That seems simple enough, but the Washington sponsored successful House Davis, State Senator Linda Evans Parlette, devil is in the details. The old wagon road legislation earlier in the legislative session selected Stehekin valley residents who corridor passes through a congressionally that would decommission the wilderness supported reopening the road, and repre- designated wilderness area, where road lands and charge the National Park Service sentatives from the National Park Service, construction and motorized vehicles are with reopening the road. Pacific Crest Trail Association, National not allowed. Only Congress can decom- The Stehekin valley residents on the Parks Conservation Association, and The mission wilderness. And, finding a new hike urged Senator Cantwell to reopen Wilderness Society. location for the Pacific Crest Trail will not be an easy task. Continued on page 23

Glacier climate project Continued from page 19 of 9.5 feet. Given the relatively cool condi- had thinned and narrowed and was less tions in September enabled the glacier to steep, but had retreated little in the last retain enough snowpack to have a positive five years. Snowpack was limited on all of balance for the year. the Mount Daniels glaciers. We did not hit At Mount Daniels we realized that we a zone of more than 10 feet of snow until were caught in mosquito-heaven at camp near the head of the glacier at 7400 feet. as they constantly swarmed the instant we The descent of the Daniels is a steep 34 stepped foot outside the tent. We hiked up degrees. We zigzagged, getting additional to Ice Worm Glacier early and found the measurements, finding limited areas of average snow depth on the glacier was 6.9 more than 10 feet of snowpack. The Dan- The Middle Peak of Mt. feet. After a day of measurements, we went iels Glacier will continue to lose area, rap- Daniel rises above the Dan- down to face the swarm. Two new rock is- idly retreating toward the upper slopes of iels Glacier, Alpine Lakes lands had surfaced on Daniels Glacier that the east peak and middle peak of Daniels. Wilderness Area. had not been exposed until last summer. A trip to the Ice Worm in the morning pro- —Sketch by Jill Pelto The lower stagnant terminus zone that vided an opportunity to assess the melting had separated from the main glacier in from our stream flow measurements. The 2003 had melted completely away in 2009. stream was high — indicating the loss of 5 The main entertainment at lunch was The main terminus has now retreated 500 inches of snowpack per day. the 75 to 80 mountain goats on Dobbs meters since 1984. The long lower termi- A week of wet, unstable weather, and a Cleaver. This was the usual herd that is on nus extending north toward Pea Soup Gap week of constant sunshine were appropri- the Sholes but had moved one ridge over. has also retreated 400-500 m across its ate. This was an up-is-down year for the After lunch we descended the Mazama entire width. glaciers. Low elevation glaciers, glaciers Glacier into a seldom-travelled region, to fed by avalanching and glaciers south of the snowline at the top of a large icefall. A We crossed over a small rock ridge onto Glacier Peak did not fare well and will new outcrop of rock with a waterfall had the Lynch Glacier. We then traversed right lose mass this year (Columbia, Daniels, Ice emerged in the midst of the glacier just across to the ridge looking down onto Worm, Lower Curtis and Lynch). Glaciers below a section of this icefall. Our goal Mount Hinman, probing the snow depths that have good accumulation areas above was to see how far up significant thinning and assessing crevasses as we went. A new 6000 feet and are in the northern part extended on Mazama Glacier. The answer: lake had formed at the base of the former of the range did well (Easton, Rainbow, 6300 feet. Above this there is no sign of terminus area of Foss Glacier. Foss Glacier Sholes). At Cascade Pass, Cache Col fell in significant glacier thinning. Sholes Glacier had a tough year in 2009 and is not a sub- the middle with ok snowpack reflecting its was the next focus of our attention. We stantial cohesive glacier area anymore. We mixed situation of relying on avalanching, measured the snowpack on several long descended the Lynch Glacier toward Pea but being higher in elevation. traverses across and up the glacier. The re- Soup Lake reaching the shore of the lake sult was identifying an average snow depth after a steep crampon descent. The glacier

20  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Richard M. Graham Jr., Does this border on the KAFKA-ESQUE? Patrol Agent in Charge PCT Border Crossing Warning U.S. Border Patrol, Oroville Station 1105 Main Street, P.O. Box 99 Pacific Crest Trail and in general cross- To Whom it May Concern Oroville, Washington 98844 ing the international border at other Attached is the letter Border Patrol (509) 476-3622 than a designated Port of Entry. If you is sending out to the Pacific Crest Trail (509) 429-1003 Cell have any questions or concerns please Association and copies to various asso- (509) 476-2525 FAX feel free to contact the Spokane Sector ciations/organizations concerning the Public Information Office at (509) 353- [email protected] 2747.

visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  21 A Film for Hikers, Climbers, Strollers books and Backpackers Wilderness Alps: Conservation and Conflict in Washington’s North Cascades by Harvey Manning and NCCC “You feel like you’re sitting Published by Northwest Wild Books around the campfire or huffing 2007 ISBN-13: 978-0-9793333-0-9 up a steep brushy trail, break- $24.95. Special price ing out into the meadows and to members: $20 surveying the peaks alongside incl. Wash. sales tax. Harvey Manning himself. For 480 pages, with me personally, it’s as close as maps, historic I’ll ever get to listening to the photos, and beauti- John Muir of the Cascades.” ful color images by Pat O’Hara, Dave — Philip Fenner Schiefelbein, Tom Hammond and oth- “We are inundated these days ers. by eco-porn: prettified, com- “ . . . a splendidly moditified, and often garish partisan account of citizens’ fight for wil- scenery in calendars. ‘The derness in the North Cascades.” —Estella Irate Birdwatcher’ in contrast is Leopold sensitive and lyrical to the eye “This book has so much: the characters, and the ear from the from the First Ones of long ago to the mili- inimitable pen of tary explorers, the miners and railroad Harvey Manning.” people, the loggers and grazers, the fools — John S. Edwards and charlatans, the promoters and specu- lators, the dam builders and ubiquitous “The gorgeous wilderness Chambers of Commerce, the politicians — all swaggering and posturing across cinematography in ‘The Irate the stage, sometimes with such forceful Birdwatcher’ provides the North schemes that one wonders how there is Cascades imagery that was still, now, so much left.” —Brock Evans missing from the Ken Burns film on National Parks, and it’s a fitting visual counterpart to 100 Hikes in the North Cascades his film is a beautiful testament the words of wildlands defender National Park Region Harvey Manning.” to the man and his lifework. It by Harvey T — Karl Forsgaard Manning reveals his great wit and charm, 3rd edition, Moun- his thoughts and experiences over “Harvey Manning’s poetic taineers Books, Seattle, Wash., 2000. the years, his deep love for the expression of his love of for the Pacific Northwest wilder- $12 for members; wild and, his hopes and dreams ness puts the listener deep into $15 non-members, the backcountry, while Rob- includes sales tax for the future. Plus there’s a bit and shipping. of him on his usual soapbox. It’s ert Chrestensen’s mountain scenes envelop the senses.” quintessential Harvey. — Mary Lou Krause

to order: Wilderness Alps, $24.95 (incl. sst); mem- bers $20 (incl. sst); mailing $3.95. A must-have for your film library. 100 Hikes Members: $12; non-members One for yourself. One for your child. Another for a true friend. $15 incl. sst and mailing. NCCC $ 95 24 plus tax, shipping and handling Post Office Box 95980 University Station at http://www.crestpictures.com/ Seattle, WA 98145-2980 Crest Pictures Or check out our website, northcascades. P.O. Box 433, Edmonds, WA 98020 org

22  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010 Stehekin road tour Continued from page 20 the road to provide access to high country be besieged by every constituent who re- the North Cascades National Park or on areas (e.g., Horseshoe Basin near Cascade mained disgruntled by some aspect of the national forest lands that have been dev- Pass) where they have recreated for de- wilderness area that had been designated astated in recent years by all too frequent cades. State Senator Linda Evans Parlette near their home. Other hike participants 100-year and 500-year floods. emphasized the importance of the road argued that any move to decommission Senator Cantwell listened carefully to for tourism and the economic well-being wilderness should be accompanied by every argument put forth. In the end, she of Stehekin valley businesses. Proponents major mitigation efforts (e.g., creating indicated that more information would be clearly see Stehekin road construction as substantial new wilderness areas or parks needed before she could make a decision essential for providing access to cherished in the area). Such a precedent would dis- on whether rebuilding the road was the public lands in more remote areas of courage frivolous efforts to decommission right thing to do. At this time, it appears the North Cascades. However, multiple wilderness lands. that there will NOT be a Senate hearing on Stehekin valley residents who did not go Representatives from the Pacific Crest the Stehekin road issue during this legisla- on the hike do not support rebuilding the Trail Association emphasized their con- tive session. Stay tuned. This issue will still Stehekin road. cerns about the feasibility of relocating the be with us in coming years. All of the conservation and recreation trail. They argued that we could not just group representatives on the hike fully assume that an alternative route would be — Jim Davis acknowledged the importance of main- available. They said we should not jump taining access to public lands. However, into legislation without first working out they perceive Stehekin road in a much on-the-ground details about where the different light than local residents. Several trail could be placed. During a later, inten- emphasized that decommissioning wilder- sive, week-long field assessment, they were ness in the Stehekin valley could create a unable to identify any appropriate alterna- very challenging precedent for decommis- tive routes for the Pacific Crest Trail along sioning wilderness lands in other areas this section of the Stehekin river. to meet the needs of local residents. Such And, of course, there was quite a bit of a precedent could quickly snowball into discussion about the cost of reopening a movement to undermine wilderness the Stehekin road. Several conservation designation throughout the country. They and recreation group representatives pointed out that federal elected officials questioned whether funds would be better (including Senator Cantwell) would likely spent restoring access in other areas of

NORTH CASCADES CONSERVATION COUNCIL Be part of the leadership of a vibrant grassroots network of advocates for protection of unique lands, waters, plant life, and wilderness of the North Cascades. Yes! I want to support North Cascades Conservation Council’s efforts working on many fronts to establish new wilderness, defend our forests, support wildlife conservation and keystone species, and promote sound conservation recreational use.

If you love our great North Cascades wilderness as much as we do, Name______support the NCCC with a generous IRS tax-deductible contribution Address______in the amount of: City______State_____ Zip______$10 Living lightly/student $30 $50 $100 Phone______$250 $500 $1000 ___Other Email______I would like to volunteer. Contact me. Send your check or money order and this form to: Please send me occasional action alerts by email. Laura Zalesky, North Cascades Conservation Council, Contributions include membership and subscription to NCCC’s 14905 Bothell Everett Hwy #207, Mill Creek, WA 98012. journal, The Wild Cascades. NCCC is a 501 (c)(3) organization. You may also send in your contribution by internet logging All donations are tax deductible. into an account at www.northcascades.org

visit www.northcascades.org • americanalps.blogspot.com/ The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010  23 The Wild Cascades Non-Profit Organization Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council U.S. POSTAGE Post Office Box 95980 PAID University Station SEATTLE, WA Seattle, Washington 98145-2980 PERMIT No. 8602

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Mountain goats. —Grant Meyers photo 24  The Wild Cascades • Summer/Fall 2010