Darrington rock climbs

[mattp]

The roads leading to rock climbs in Clear Creek, Copper Creek, and Squire Creek have been hammered this winter.

The Squire Creek road, number 2040, has been hit by a massive mudslide which blocks the road somewhere between one and two miles before the end, and I am told by the roadway person in the Darrington Ranger Station that they will very likely establish a new trailhead at the site where the road is blocked by this slide. http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/recreport/squire_creek.htm

The Clear Creek Road, number 2060, has a small washout that threatens to block the road just a few hundred yards from the Mountain Loop Highway, and the same roadway person in the Darrington office indicates that they will probably repair that damage pretty soon. Meanwhile, the road is currently passable for a mile or two, and it is then blocked by avalanche debris that cover the road somewhere at least a couple of miles from the trailheads for Exfoliation Dome and Three O'Clock Rock. Once the snow melts, and assuming that neither of these two slides has completely blocked the road, we believe the remainder of the Clear Creek Road is OK and the Forest Service has even indicated some interest in adding a culvert on the Copper Creek road extension beyond Three O'Clock Rock, heading toward Green Giant Buttress.

With the approval of the Darrington ranger station, we performed some volunteer maintenance on the road toward Exfoliation Dome and at the end of the Copper Creek road last fall. Once the blockage down valley is clear and the season gets underway, parking for the popular "Dreamer" will be improved over last year.