Pilchuck Black Creek Lakes

July 1, 1981

Through the brush I traveled (with dog Buddy in tow at my heels) in search of the hidden lakes I had seen from a high log road on the east side of Pilchuck. The brush, once logged was almost impenetrable having been natural-seeded with slide alder and vine maple, plus old slash and stumps made it considerably tough.

We scatched and clawed our way through, eventually coming into some unlogged forest near the lakes, which I found to be rather brackish in color, quite shallow, and having a lot of meadow grass growing around them. Most notedly, they were more like ponds than lakes. The deer tracks were all over the place!

After only spending a few hours here, the dog and I were driven from the place by hordes of mosquitoes! Down through the meadow grass along the last little lake, we followed the outlet thereabouts into Black Creek. And rather not wishing to fight that brush along its borders, I opted to walk (stumble) in and down the creek itself. Miles later at which seemed eternity, I came upon the junction road #4021 near the Ashland Lakes Trailhead Road. What a relief!

Indeed, the dog and I were happy clams to see that road!

Our walk up #4021 was easy but the struggle of brush throughout the day had taken its toll, and we just sort of plodded along in the fading light, eventually coming to the spur road I had parked on. And the big blue grouse we spooked on the road, just seemed to fly up in a tree and peer at us as we went on by . . . not really concerned by our slow, methodical plod.

KJM

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