I've been laid up sick the past couple of days, so I thought I'd take the opportunity to do a little wool gathering about hikes I've been on in the past. Today, I'll talk about the Iron Goat Trail, an almost perfect hike in my opinion.
The Iron Goat Trail was the name given to the Great Northern Railway as it went over Steven's Pass in the Cascade mountains. The railroad would be considered crude compared with today's standards, for there were a dozen switchbacks up the valley leading to the pass. It was time consuming, but it was much easier than going over by horseback (US 2 didn't exist in 1893.)
It became obvious that the original route would not work after the first winters, between the snow plows and avalanches, so they built the first tunnel at Wellington in 1900 to bypass most of the switchbacks. This did not solve the problem, since the there were still massive snowfalls causing delays. Tragically, in 1910, an avalanche trapped a passenger train resulting in the death of 96 passengers. This, and escalating costs and additional snowsheds led to the Great Northern building a longer tunnel 500 feet below the first.
The original trail was abandoned until 1993 when the Volunteers for Outdoor Washington (VOW) and the USDA Forest Service opened a 4 mile stretch of the old grade for hikers and bikers. The VOW has an excellent
guidebook detailing the history of this trail. Too long of an intro to one of my favorite hikes (in hindsight).
In August, 2010, I was heading over the pass to visit a supplier in Spokane. It was such a gorgeous day (mid 70's, no clouds), that I decided that I'd stop along the way to take a little hike. As I found the sign to the Iron Goat Trail, I couldn't help myself. So, I decided that I'd give it a go.
Not being prepared, I did the exact wrong thing to do when making this hike, I turned right. You see, since the trail is on railroad switchbacks, there is a gently ascending trail following the old railroad grade. If you go left. If you go right, you go 700 feet straight up. That's the path I took. Having almost died on the way up, I was wondering if it was all worth it, until I got to the Windy Point viewpoint. On a clear day in the Cascades, you feel like you're all alone on top of the world.
However, what makes this hike exceptionally fascinating, is that the old tunnels, snowsheds, reservoirs, and railroad debris is still there, slowly crumbling into ruins. I know that there are some that like their hikes "unspoiled" by human presence, but as a lover of history and one who is enthralled by puzzles, these ruins give a glimpse of what it was like in those days. I just wished I'd brought my camera.
Note: This trail parallels abandoned tunnels and other structures that have been unmaintained for the past 80 years. I would advise staying out of them.
A cooking pot is no use if you don't have anything to heat it with, so next in line in the stove. (The National Park Service doesn't take too kindly to starting campfires in the back country. Something about forest fires burning down old growth forests tend to make Park Rangers a little cranky.)
