Pearsall Creek

Sunday and Monday, August 18^th and 19^th I made an attempt to get into a couple of small ponds perched at about 5040 feet in elevation and draining to the South Fork of the Sauk River.

I had been looking at these ponds or tarns on a map for a number of years. Any route into them was going to be tough. They are surrounded by steep ground on all sides. A likely route that I had chosen involved going up Pearsall Creek which drains to Elliot Creek on the South Fork of the Sauk River. Elliot Creek drains Goat Lake, site of an old mining camp and hotel and a popular hike off the Mountain Loop Highway.

I was a bit dubious about the route up Pearsall Creek. The USGS 7.5 minute quad indicated that the Pearsall valley would probably be pretty brushy, starting at about 2600 feet. It definitely looked like an overnighter. I had to take care of some other things Saturday so I started out Sunday and took Monday off from work.

I was right about the brush. This wasn’t the worst brush bash I have ever been on but it was pretty bad. I went up the east side of the creek valley where there are almost continuous talus slopes or rock slides interspersed with avalanche chutes.

In the places where the talus was bare, the going was relatively easy although I believe I encountered more large rocks that shifted under my weight than I ever have anywhere else. I probably stepped on four or five rocks that looked solid only to have them roll over in an instant. These rocks were weathered gray and had been in the same position for years, long enough that a thick covering of moss and lichen had grown on them just like the surrounding rocks. It happens occasionally that such large rocks are balanced so well that your weight can shift them but this is usually quite rare. I was lucky not to have a leg pinned or crushed.

In the places where the talus was grown over, the going was pretty miserable. Vine maples were the most common type of brush growing in the avalanche chutes. In my opinion, vine maple is the worst kind of brush to deal with. The way it grows and branches especially after being hammered by avalanches makes a nearly impenetrable mass. In areas not covered with vine maples, there were thick ferns mixed with salmonberry and devil’s club. This made it hard to see where I was putting my feet on ground that was always uneven with rocks and logs. I frequently fell after putting my foot in a hole between some rocks or sliding off unseen rocks or logs while at the same time grabbing something that put thorns in my hands or fingers. Then I would have to laboriously right myself like some turtle that had been flipped over onto its back. 

It took me 5 hours to cover a distance of a little more than a mile and a half, sweating profusely all the while. This was true wilderness walking, no trail, no sure footing where you have to choose almost every single step and figure out what route to take around various obstacles. The Goat Lake hike is very popular and there were 14 vehicles at the trailhead when I left. It didn’t look like anyone had been up this valley, which is just off the Goat Lake Trail, in years.  

There were rock rabbits or pikas all over the place. I saw dozens and their calls were almost constant on my way up the valley. I saw seven mountain goats  on a large snowfield at about 3800 feet and a small black bear just ten minutes later. I also saw several toads and some tailed frog tadpoles. There were a number of goat wallows and trails and goat wool on brush in the area. I think this spot might be attractive to them because there is a constant cool breeze blowing off the snowfield that would keep temperatures and biting insects down.

I camped for the night near the snowfield and made an attempt to get into the ponds the next day which was Monday. After breakfast, I made my way to the pass at the head of Pearsall Creek only to find that my way was blocked only about 400 feet in elevation and a quarter of mile from my goal.

The ground was too steep. There was a goat trail that led up in the direction I wanted to go but it was a nearly vertical climb. I think it would have been pretty easy for someone skilled in rock climbing but I am not a climber and this spot was beyond my capabilities.

It was really discouraging to have to turn back after getting so close. This is not an uncommon experience for me. Last year I finally made it into one lake after five attempts over many years and two more after three attempts over three separate weekends. So I headed back to regroup. So far 2013 looks to be a pretty inauspicious year, two failed trips in two weeks. The year isn’t over yet but it looks bleak from this point in time.

Tuesday we started working ten hour overtime days. So I had to get up at about 4:30 a.m. I spent a lot of that day in an exhausted haze.  

Small western toad (Bufo boreas) that I saw at the beginning of the trip. Overall I saw three toads on this trip. 

Pearsall Creek at its confluence with Elliiot Creek. 

Pearsall Creek in its lower, timbered end. 

The first of the overgrown talus slopes I encountered in the Pearsall Creek valley. The ferns and brush don't look like much here but they were chest high or higher, hiding lots of holes between rocks and making the footing treacherous. It took me about 45 minutes to reach the patch of trees just up the valley at the center of this frame. The small tree in the foreground to the left of center of the frame is a subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa). The elevation here is about 2600 feet, much lower than you would ordinarily find this species except in talus slopes where it often occurs at much lower elevations. 

The view from inside a vine maple patch. I saw a lot of this on my way up Pearsall Creek valley. The brush is not only hard to move through, but it obstructs your view and makes it hard to navigate. 

A patch of open talus. More treacherous footing. Several large rocks in this slope kicked out from under me. If I had been pinned, these rocks would have been too big for me to move. My destination at the head of the valley is visible here but still several hours away.  

View down Pearsall Creek valley from about the halfway point. Vine maples, lady ferns and devil's club. 

View up Pearsall Creek valley from about the halfway point. 

View down Pearsall Creek valley from near the top. Whitechuck Mountain in the distance. 

The tail end of the last of seven mountain goats (Oreamnus americanus) that I saw. I only had a chance to make a quick count while fumbling for my camera. By the time it was out they had all disappeared up a side ravine. 

Enlarged view of previous photo. The goat's rump is more visible here. 

I went quickly upslope and managed to see the goats again in the timber above the ravine. Again, a goat's rump in the center of the frame. 

Enlarged view of previous photo. 

Finally, a glimpse of the front end of a goat, though not a very good one I admit. 

I saw this black bear (Ursus americanus) not ten minutes after the goats. It was pretty small, I guessed 150 pounds or so. I was upwind of it and it walked almost right into me, within 30 yards. As soon as it figured out I was there, it took off which suited me just fine. 

Whitechuck Mountain shedding clouds just before sunset from my camp. 

The view up the valley from my camp. My goal was the low saddle to the right of the rock point. 

Shed mountain goat wool caught on a small subalpine fir. 

The view down Pearsall Creek valley from the saddle at the top. Whitechuck Mountain is in the distance to the left of center frame, Mount Pugh is to the right of center frame. 

My stopping point. The ponds or tarns I was trying to get into were only about one quarter to one half mile away and 400 feet higher up. The lighter area on the rock is a goat trail. This is probably child's play for a rock climber but it was beyond my nerves and capabilities to keep going. Some of this is nearly vertical. 

Western rattlesnake root (Prenanthes alata). This member of the Aster family is interesting to me. It is not rare but, then again, you just don't see it everywhere like some other species. I ran into some copperbrush (Cladothamnus pyroliflorus) further down the valley and it is the same way. 

Mountain goat wallow or dust bath. At least I assume that is what this is. I have seen a lot of these with shed wool and hair and goat tracks. Evidently mountain goats have penchant for dust baths like buffalo and cattle do. I have heard this helps keep the biting insects down. 

Tailed frog (Ascaphus truei) tadpole in tributary stream to Pearsall Creek mid-valley in the talus and avalanche chute area. This stream was only watered at the valley wall and went dry several hundred feet below. The main stem of Pearsall Creek was dry in this area as well. By the time I had packed my camera, this tadpole had worked its way completely out of the water while eating the algae on the rock. 

Butterfly or moth. I think this might be a butterfly known as a Parnassian but I haven't had a chance to try to identify it. 

My right forearm after getting out. This is why I always wear heavy long-sleeved shirts and long pants. You still get scratched but not as much. I will end up packing around several salmonberry thorns in several of my fingers for weeks. 

My shoes at the end of the trip. They were retired from hiking service after being worn for several months.