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Foist
Sultan of Sweat



Joined: 08 May 2006
Posts: 3974 | TRs | Pics
Location: Back!
Foist
Sultan of Sweat
PostSun May 21, 2006 11:44 pm 
I was thinking of doing a backpack Sunday-Monday and try out a new tent (Tarptent Rainbow, very cool), but the lousy forecast for tonight and Monday deterred me. I made it a day instead. Downey Creek seemed like a good option -- low elevation, no snow, out of the way along a closed road so no crowds, and nicely deep wilderness. It did indeed turn out to provide the solitude; in fact, it was one of the lonesomest weekend hikes I have ever experienced. I ran into one large party of dads and sons, and a couple of intrepid dudes who had gone to the top of Downey mtn. ridge. As most people reading this probably already know, but Downey Creek itself destroyed a bridge along the Suiattle River road. The trailhead is on the other side of the bridge. To get to this hike right now you drive to where the Suiattle River is closed off, which is actually about a hundred yards before the bridge, walk to the bridge, climb the ladder to the half of the bridge that's still there to cross the (raging!) creek, and almost immediately you'll find the Downey Cr. trailhead. The first few miles were in great condition, and passed through some jaw-dropping groves of majestic trees. I love the cedars especially. Then the trail gives you better views of the impressive Downey "Creek" (now a mighty river), but the blowdowns, some VERY annoying, become more frequent. The work party Slugman was concerned about had been around on Saturday but was not there on this particular day. A lot of wooden beams and half-finished puncheon lying around. There was just one finished bit of puncheon, it was lovely (see below). Parts of the trail further in were also extremely muddy (at one point my boot went just about all the way in), but the work party is taking care of that. The streams were all of course quite high, only one was a bit tricky to cross, you had to go downstream a bit. I heard from one of the dads that Bachelor Cr. is very dicey, but I didn't quite make it that far. I had enough about 6 miles in -- it was my first hike of the season so my feet were aching a bit, and it started to sprinkle. Fortunately, it stopped and that was pretty much it for the rain until I was done with the hike. And just in time, because it started to pour as I pulled out of Darrington. I added a few photos from an x-country ski trip up Mt. Ammabalis as a bonus (to compensate Quark for making her wait).
What are these? They seemed new to me.
What are these? They seemed new to me.
What are these? I thought it was so odd they curled up like that.
What are these? I thought it was so odd they curled up like that.
Ah, love that "new puncheon smell"
Ah, love that "new puncheon smell"
Work in progress.
Work in progress.
Downey Creek
Downey Creek
Decimated Bridge
Decimated Bridge
Grove of incredible western red cedars.
Grove of incredible western red cedars.
Mt. Rainier
Mt. Rainier
Creek where I turned around.
Creek where I turned around.

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Quark
Niece of Alvy Moore



Joined: 15 May 2003
Posts: 14152 | TRs | Pics
Quark
Niece of Alvy Moore
PostMon May 22, 2006 9:20 am 
OK, it's "later," where are the pics? crutches.gif

"...Other than that, the post was more or less accurate." Bernardo, NW Hikers' Bureau Chief of Reporting
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Foist
Sultan of Sweat



Joined: 08 May 2006
Posts: 3974 | TRs | Pics
Location: Back!
Foist
Sultan of Sweat
PostMon May 22, 2006 11:12 am 
Patience, my friend. I don't have a digital camera, I have to get them put on CD. I should have them posted by the end of the day.

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Quark
Niece of Alvy Moore



Joined: 15 May 2003
Posts: 14152 | TRs | Pics
Quark
Niece of Alvy Moore
PostMon May 22, 2006 8:16 pm 
Jeezus, you scared the hell outta me with those Mt R pics in the Downey Creek trip report. I didn't notice the "I added some from Amabilis" notation you added on your original post. Don't ever do that again; I about had a heart attack. Anyway - the first photo are baby devil's club, and the second are the fiddleheads on baby ferns. The devils club on Downey rivals any old growth cedar anywhere on the N American continent. It gets so big, it develops a thick bark - I once had to use a bowsaw on a few to cut them away from the trail. Downey is famous for old growth logs fallen across the trail; it's professionally logged out every few years as budget allows - by gonzo cross-cutters that can clear a 6 miles stretch of trail with 50-60 logs down in just a few days. Climbers coming off Dome Pk or off the Ptarmigan Ptraverse joke that climbing over/under the logs on Downey is the hardest part of the trip. Is the puncheon waaaay back there - where the trail runs alongside the creek?

"...Other than that, the post was more or less accurate." Bernardo, NW Hikers' Bureau Chief of Reporting
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Foist
Sultan of Sweat



Joined: 08 May 2006
Posts: 3974 | TRs | Pics
Location: Back!
Foist
Sultan of Sweat
PostMon May 22, 2006 8:41 pm 
Yeah, all of the work is on the upper half of the trail where it gets closer to the river and, hence, muddier. The Ammabalis pics were on the same roll of film (I haven't been to the mountains in a while), and I thought they were so good I had to add them as well. Sorry for the scare. wink.gif

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