The Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council Winter 2015
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THE WILD CASCADES THE JOURNAL OF THE NORTH CASCADES CONSERVATION COUNCIL WINTER 2015 visit www.northcascades.org • ncascadesconservation.blogspot.com THE WILD CASCADES • Winter 2015 1 THE NOrtH CASCADES CONSERVATION COUncIL was THE WILD CASCADES Winter 2015 formed in 1957 “To protect and 3 President’s report — Karl Forsgaard preserve the North Cascades’ scenic, 4 Index-Galena road fix price escalates — Rick McGuire scientific, recreational, educational, and wilderness values.” Continuing Thinning proposed at Deception Pass and Dugualla State Parks — Dave Fluharty this mission, NCCC keeps government officials, environmental organiza- 5 Sustainable roads — the next steps — Ed Henderson tions, and the general public informed 6 NCCC Actions, July 2014 – February 2015 about issues affecting the Greater 8 Yakima Plan update — Karl Forsgaard North Cascades Ecosystem. Action is pursued through administrative, legal, 9 Public can’t afford to subsidize new water projects — John Osborn and Ken Hammond, The Spokane Spokesman-Review and public participation channels to protect the lands, waters, plants and 10 Pratt River Valley and environs now in Alpine Lakes Wilderness — Rick McGuire wildlife. 12 The original “starfish” Over the past half century NCCC has led or participated in campaigns 13 A rough winter for glaciers — Tom Hammond to create the North Cascades National 14 Mother Nature, not the National Park Service, closed the Stehekin Road Park Complex, Glacier Peak Wilder- — Dave Fluharty and Carolyn McConnell ness, and other units of the National 15 Driving to Stehekin — Ed Henderson Wilderness System from the W.O. 16 New dams and diversions — Rachel Paschal Osborn Douglas Wilderness north to the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, the Henry M. 18 Okanogan-Wenatchee Travel Management update — Karl Forsgaard Jackson Wilderness, the Chelan-Saw- North Cascades grizzly bear EIS process launched tooth Wilderness, the Wild Sky Wil- 19 Morning Star additions and Reiter connections — Mike Town derness and others. Among its most 20 The Corvid’s eye dramatic victories has been working with British Columbia allies to block 21 Board members, Park managers discuss helicopters near Cascade Pass the raising of Ross Dam, which would Polly Dyer birthday have drowned Big Beaver Valley. 22 Holden Mine remediation to continue at least one more summer NCCC is supported by member dues 23 Membership application and private donations. These contri- butions support the full range of the COVER: Looking east up Middle Fork Snoqualmie valley from possible new trail Council’s activities, including publica- viewpoint on lower Quartz Mountain near Middle Fork campground. Stegosau- tion of The Wild Cascades. As a 501(c) rus Butte at center right. —KEVIN GERAGHTY PHOTO (3) organization, all contributions are fully tax deductible to the extent The Wild Cascades allowed by law. Membership dues for one year are: Living Lightly/Student Journal of the North Cascades Conservation Council $10; Individual $30; Family $50; Sus- EDITOR: Anne Basye taining $100. EDITOR EMERITUS: Betty Manning North Cascades EDITORIAL BOARD: Philip Fenner, Anders Forsgaard, Conservation Council and Rick McGuire P.O. Box 95980 Printing by Abracadabra Printing | Pat Hutson, Designer University Station The Wild Cascades is published three times a year (Winter, Spring, Summer/Fall). Seattle, WA 98145-2980 Letters, comments, and articles are invited, subject to editorial review. NCCC Website The Wild Cascades Editor www.northcascades.org [email protected] North Cascades Conservation Council PO Box 95980, University Station, Seattle, WA 98145-2980 The Wild Cascades is printed on recycled paper. 2 THE WILD CASCADES • Winter 2015 NCCC Board Officers PRESIDENT Karl Forsgaard VICE PRESIDENT Founded in 1957 Tom Hammond SEATTLE, WASHINGTON TREASURER Tom Brucker THE PRESIDENT’S REPORT WINTER 2015 SECRETARY Marc Bardsley This issue of The Wild Cascades illustrates significant accomplishments that you, as NCCC members, helped to bring about through your support of NCCC. It is also full of reminders of what is left to be done. Other Directors It’s exciting to see the new Wallace Falls bridge connecting the State Park’s popular trail system with the new trails across the river in Reiter Forest. I re- Bruce Barnbaum member hiking up to the bridge site from the Reiter side five years ago, starting from the Reiter Road gravel pit and using downed trees to cross May Creek. Polly Dyer Soon you will be able to get to Wallace Falls with a shorter hike from the new County trailhead on May Creek Road, as well as from the State Park trailhead. Philip Fenner On the Reiter Forest side of Wallace Falls, there’s more work to be done to pro- tect the new trail corridor from logging. There’s also the opportunity to protect Dave Fluharty forest just upstream from the bridge as a future expansion of Morning Star Natu- Anders Forsgaard ral Resource Conservation Area. The new additions to Alpine Lakes Wilderness resulted from a long campaign Ed Henderson in which NCCC was always engaged. My own memories include looking down the upper Pratt River valley from the summit of Pratt Mountain, as well as reach- Dave LeBlanc ing the lower end of the Pratt River by wading the Middle Fork in early autumn’s low flow, before the new trail from the Gateway bridge was built (the remnants Carolyn McConnell of the prior trail were a slower route, but not too hard to follow). I personally Rick McGuire thanked Congressman Reichert for his Wilderness expansion bill when he first introduced it, and had to wrassle with some of its early opponents. Thom Peters The same defense bill that gave us the Alpine Lakes additions also gave us a setback on the Stehekin River. I’ve enjoyed hiking and biking the length of the Thom Schroeder river from Cascade Pass to Lake Chelan on several trips, and I can see why the National Park Service wants to let nature take back the upper valley beyond the inevitable recurring washouts of the road. We need to continue educating every- Advisors one about why the road should not be relocated and rebuilt in the upper valley. Charles Ehlert In our advocacy against the worst parts of the Yakima Plan, NCCC succeeded in getting the State Legislature to require a benefit-cost study, and in December Kevin Geraghty the study results were released, showing that the proposed Bumping and Wymer dams do not make economic sense. We need to continue educating elected of- Fayette Krause ficials and the public about the benefit-cost study results, as well as the environ- mental damage entailed in these projects. Betty Manning Last but not least of our future work assignments, off-road vehicle impacts on hiker-horse trails of Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest just moved into a new Laura Zalesky stage. With the status quo as a baseline, future changes to designated routes (in- cluding whether motorcycles are allowed on a particular trail) will be addressed by the Districts within the Forest. For starters, there are some large ATV loops being proposed on Forest roads between Highway 2 and Canada. We need on- the-ground advocacy in each watershed and in each District. Thanks everyone for your support of NCCC, helping to accomplish this prog- ress, and helping with all the work that remains to be done. Karl F. Forsgaard visit www.northcascades.org • ncascadesconservation.blogspot.com THE WILD CASCADES • Winter 2015 3 Index-Galena road fix price tag escalates By Rick McGuire The price of keeping roads together upper North Fork. Either would be a major dependent on precarious road access. $27 in the Cascades continues to spiral ever change from FHWA, which is famous for million might buy as much as 500 miles of higher. It now appears that the cost to re- its rigidity. Complicating matters is the new trails. Don’t hold your breath, though. place a mile of the North Fork Skykomish fact that the North Fork river is pointed The “access” lobby has the Forest Service road (aka Index-Galena road) where it was straight at the road a mile or so below the paralyzed with fear. The ever-shrinking washed out in 2006 about six miles above existing big washout, and it seems to be budgets are guaranteed to go toward he- Index, has reached $27 million dollars. only a question of when, not if, it will take roic, and doomed, attempts to keep almost Yes, you read that right, $27 million for away the road there. Could it be that even every road open. a mile of road. It’s hard to say just what FHWA understands that spending $27 mil- And in trying to keep them all open, lion right above the next place to go might is causing such runaway price inflation. they will end up with close to none of not be a wise investment? Might Snohom- Partly it is because the engineer/bureau- them open. For many years now, the ish County finally realize that spending crats at Federal Highways Administration cheaply built roads of the Cascades have such a huge sum for the convenience of know only one way to build a road: vastly been falling apart one by one. As the wood overengineered. The plan for this road is a couple dozen cabin owners might not and organic debris they were built on rots a 40-mile-per-hour design speed. Just why make sense when roads are falling apart away, the failure rate is accelerating. As it has to be built this way has never been all over the county? they disappear, the crowding in the still- explained. The Beckler River also looks poised to accessible places gets worse and worse. An Apparently FHWA is looking at other take out the Beckler road not far above entirely new approach is needed, but it ap- alternatives, such as (God forbid!) build- the Highway 2 turnoff.