Kelly Butte — Saturday, Sep. 20, 1997

Mount Rainier Area > Chinook Pass - Hwy 410

Transfer of national forest land in the Kelly Butte roadless area to Plum Creek Timber Company is bound to be one of the most controversial issues in the proposed I-90 land exchange. We decided to check out the area and were told that Lester Creek is the best part of the area. Take I-90 to Exit 62 (Stampede Pass). From there follow Road 54 up over the pass and down into the Green River valley to a gate across the road about a mile and a half above the now-abandoned town of Lester. Walk the road almost to the townsite; just before you get there, you'll find an old parking area on the left side of the road. Right now there are state game management unit signs all around. Follow an old river dike about 100 yards to a railroad track right where it crosses the Green River. Cross the river and continue east about 200 feet beyond the bridge. There you'll find some almost hidden ribbon. Scramble down the bank; from there the trail has recently been brushed out and flagged all 5.5 miles to the top of Kelly Butte. Otherwise it hasn't been maintain in years! It's a 3800 foot gradual climb to the top. The old bridge across Lester Creek is long gone, but the creek can easily be crossed. Despite the lack of maintenance, the trail is in good shape most of the way, that is until you get about a mile from the summit. Then it becomes AN ABSOLUTE MESS!!! It is a total jungle of vine maple, sliding alder and berry bushes of various species. We were amazed the trail brushers could find their way through. They did lose the trail at times. This goes on till you come to the open pumice like area about 300 feet below the summit. This is truly a job for WTA! The view from the summit is spectacular. It ranges from an ""in your face"" look at Mt. Rainier to Mt. Baker barely peeking above the horizon. And of course there is a great view of all the clearcuts in this part of the Cascades. But we also noticed at least three thinnings or selective cuts, one of which was on the east side of Lester Creek. We hadn't even noticed up going up, but did see it on our way back down. The old lookout cabin on top is boarded up but the door was open and there was food inside. So is Lester Creek and the rest of the roadless area too important to be exchanged away. From our perspective, probably not, at least in and of itself. On the other hand, it does have a lot of small douglas fir that could become old growth a lot sooner than the clearcut areas. And it may be needed to provide habitat since the rest of the Green River area has been so heavily logged. This is one of the aspects that will have to be addressed during the exchange process.