Five Plus Three
   Equals Eighty

Friday - August 8, 1986 page 5

The trails crossed at the top of the ridge where a sign had been posted, Cispus Pass elevation 6840. The first view of western Cispus Basin showed that it was greener. It was still dry and there was as much rock, but it had more meadows and streams. The trail wandered along the edge of the western basin, which was not as steep sided as the eastern side. It even passed a large patch of snow, bu the riders, although excited about the snow, were too tired to play in it.

At one point, the trail rose slightly then cut back sharply around a ridge to the right. If the trail had gone straight, it would have dropped off a cliff into a stream about a hundred feet below. The riders were all tired and hot, so this sudden view into nothingness woke them up fast. Debie at the back of the group, could hear each of the riders ahead of her as they reached that point of the trail. Each exclaimed, (some, "Oh, shit") then disappeared behind the ridge.

There was a beautiful waterfall that came down and formed a small pool right next to the trail. The overflow then crossed the trail and made another waterfall.

Past the basin, the trail moved into heavier forest, allowing for more shade. There was one place that the trail crossed over a rock slide and someone had cleared the trail by piling the rocks to make a simulated brick wall or fence to hold the other rocks back.

As the trail entered the meadows below the actual bluffs of the Goat Rocks Wilderness, what appeared to be the trail down to Berry Patch was closed due to construction; there was occasional blasting that could be heard in the distance. Dena, who had ridden the trail up from Berry Patch before, insisted that the closed trails were not the same trails that she had been on.

The landscape was mostly meadows, the trail was not difficult to recognize as it was a dry path cut into the fae of th meadows; there were occasionally markers supported by stacked rocks. The meadows looked kind of scrubby (barren), and the name "Snowgrass Flats" must have come from the flatness of the meadows and the species of grass that had a little white tuft on the top, which looked like white snow from great distances. After more climbing, they finally found the trail that Dena recognied and she lead them down the hill towards a lunch stop that she remembered.

The area of Snowgrass Flats itself was closed to camping and especially to grazing. It was easy to see that the area was being over used. The trail that split off of the PCNST was just as good as the trails that they had been traveling on; but as it led down the hill, there were between three and five trails all side-by-side.

     

     

• 
• Cover Page
• Table of
  Contents
• Preface
• Introduction
• Aug 3, 1986
• Aug 4, 1986
• Aug 5, 1986
• Aug 6, 1986
• Aug 7, 1986
• Aug 8, 1986
• page 2
• page 3
• page 4
• page 5
• page 6
• page 7
• page 8
• page 9
• page 10
• page 11
• page 12
• page 13
• page 14
• page 15
• page 16
• page 17
• page 18
• page 19
• Aug 8 Map #1
• Aug 8 Map #2
• Weekend
• Where Are
  They Now
•