St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

This forum is used to share your experiences out on the trails.
User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Chip Down » September 19th, 2018, 8:04 pm

Chazz mentioned McKenzie spring, and that seemed the obvious comparison for me too. Based on my memory of visits as a child, I think McKenzie has more volume, but Kalama spreads to an impressive width (briefly).

Regarding map location, I've seen it placed right up against the road (close enough to be easily visible from the road), and another odd placement that I can't remember at the moment. And Google is a train wreck, makes no sense at all. Possible everything is just shifted (i.e. road placement is off) but I think it's more than that.

Don, congrats on finding that structure. You seem to have a knack for that. Also, your discovery of that trail confirms that I took a bad route from spring to car, but that's okay, I had more fun finding my own way.

User avatar
K.Wagner
Posts: 652
Joined: June 2nd, 2013, 1:25 pm
Location: Vancouver, WA

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by K.Wagner » September 20th, 2018, 11:22 am

This is all very interesting! We tried to look for the springs a few years back, but were told by a ranger that they got covered over by one of the mud flows, and it was just marsh now. Now we have to follow Don's lead and forge onwards!
Kelly
There is no shortcut to anyplace worth going to.

PM me about the soon to be released:
Skamania 231
"How to really get off the beaten path in Skamania County"

User avatar
Don Nelsen
Posts: 4377
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm
Location: Vancouver, WA

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Don Nelsen » September 20th, 2018, 6:16 pm

K.Wagner wrote:
September 20th, 2018, 11:22 am
This is all very interesting! We tried to look for the springs a few years back, but were told by a ranger that they got covered over by one of the mud flows, and it was just marsh now. Now we have to follow Don's lead and forge onwards!
Naw, not Don's lead - Chip gets all the credit - I wouldn't have even known about this without Chip's TR.

As for what the ranger said: The spring may have indeed been covered but with a few years of water flow, everything washed away and it's now as good as new.

dn
"Everything works in the planning stage" - Kelly

"If you don't do it this year, you will be one year older when you do" - Warren Miller

User avatar
K.Wagner
Posts: 652
Joined: June 2nd, 2013, 1:25 pm
Location: Vancouver, WA

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by K.Wagner » September 21st, 2018, 7:06 pm

Don,
As I read Chip's TR, he sort of accidentally stumbled onto the springs, whereas you were like a yellow jacket smelling the fried chicken....😂
Kelly
There is no shortcut to anyplace worth going to.

PM me about the soon to be released:
Skamania 231
"How to really get off the beaten path in Skamania County"

User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Chip Down » September 22nd, 2018, 12:58 pm

K.Wagner wrote:
September 21st, 2018, 7:06 pm
Don,
As I read Chip's TR, he sort of accidentally stumbled onto the springs, whereas you were like a yellow jacket smelling the fried chicken....😂
Ha! :D
It's always a surprising honor when I can stumble into something that's new to the more venerable senior explorers, e.g. Don.

User avatar
retired jerry
Posts: 14398
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by retired jerry » September 22nd, 2018, 3:06 pm

you're calling Don senior? :)

User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Chip Down » November 21st, 2021, 5:56 pm

37 months later, I returned to finish Cinnamon Ridge, this time from the closer Kalama Horse Camp end.

Anticipating a labyrinth of unmarked/unmapped roads and trails around the camp, I arrived a little later than is my wont, to take advantage of light. My timing was perfect; I started out as it was just getting light. Those in the know call this a "later than Chip, earlier than Don" start.

A bit of pre-hike research suggested I could legally bring my bike, so I did.

I had downloaded the Field Guide page for a Cinnamon Ridge loop, but fortunately, I soon realized it was CW, and I wanted CCW, so went back to the last junction and headed up Cinnamon Ridge.

As expected, the further I got from camp, the less I had to ponder route variations, and the trail became clear.

Around 2900' I encountered new snow. It rained a bit on the drive, and I didn't even think about that translating to fresh snow on my hike. That was also where my trail ended, and suddenly became a road.

As I got closer to Cinnamon ridgecrest, there was a fecundity of old roads, most of them dead ends. It was fun to explore, and some of them made for loop opportunities. I was surprised to see tracks in the old hard snow I encountered higher, evidence that there's an ungated road somewhere down there.

I continued on Cinnamon Ridge until I knew I had overlapped my previous hike from the other end, although I was never able to identify the exact point where I had turned back before.

On the way back, I took a road down towards Kalama River, hoping it would take me across to a road/trail I could follow back to my car. When I hit the river, I was overjoyed to find my road granted an easy crossing of the river. On the other side, I realized I had been here before! Had I reviewed my earlier TR above, I probably would have realized that would happen.

It was still early, so I followed roads and trails up to the Blue Lake TH, arriving maybe slightly after sunset.

Back at my car, I was still restless and full of energy, and needed to burn off a bunch of eggnog calories, so randomly explored various roads and trails, and part way up fossil trail, until I was finally tired enough to call it a day.

Other parties: Other than drivers, didn't see a single animal all day, except a bug that got into my eggnog.
Attachments
1.jpg
Getting my bike over this was tricky.
2.jpg
Where Cinnamon trail became a road. Looks like a quary ahead, but it's...
3.jpg
... a deep roadcut
4.jpg
Later, I realized that's Goat Mountain.
5.jpg
This seems excessive.
6.jpg
Too early?

Limey
Posts: 706
Joined: December 19th, 2012, 2:34 pm

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Limey » November 21st, 2021, 6:50 pm

Not too early for eggnog. Get it over with in November then in Dec. switch to hot buttered rum.

Webfoot
Posts: 1759
Joined: November 25th, 2015, 11:06 am
Location: Troutdale

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Webfoot » November 25th, 2021, 8:40 am

Chip, did you edit out Darigold on the egg nog label? Why?

Image

User avatar
Chip Down
Posts: 3037
Joined: November 8th, 2014, 8:41 pm

Re: St Helens: McBride Lake vicinity

Post by Chip Down » November 25th, 2021, 5:33 pm

I was maliciously fired by Darigold in 2014. My rancor has faded enough that I can stomach buying/consuming their products on occasion, but I can't bring myself to admit it publicly.

Post Reply