Map Annotations: (A) - The trailhead has room for a dozen cars or so, with old logging slash around it. (B) - The old mining road is a nice trail to follow up to the mines. (C) - Just after the mine road narrows, look for the ruins of the old cabins on the right side of the (now) narrow trail. (D) - A view of the lower Durrwachter mine. Driving: Drive I-90 east to the Salmon la Sac/Roslyn exit (Exit 80) and drive thru Roslyn and Ronald. Continue on the paved road along Cle Elum Lake and the many new subdivisions being built. At 15 miles from Roslyn, turn left on the Cooper River road No. 46, and drive 4.7 miles to the Cooper Lake junction. Keep left (straight) on road no. 4600, climbing over Cooper Pass (now gravel) and dropping into the Kachess valley. At about 11 miles from the Cle Elum River road, find the trailhead on the right, elevation 2400'. Allow about 2 hours from Issaquah. Hiking/Bushwhacking: The trail enters the woods on a wide tread, and crosses Mineral Creek on a log after about 500 feet. The trail climbs up, sometimes rough for about 1/3 mile until it meets the old mining road that comes from Kachess Lake. Turn right here on the wide trail for about another mile. The mine road then will become a trail and the cabin ruins should be visible off the right of the trail. The location of the adits can be seen from the area of the cabin ruins. It is across the creek, slightly upstream, just below a large area that has slid down toward the creek. It is visible as a large dirt area. The best way to reach the mine area from the cabin site is to continue up the trail a few hundred feet, past a wet up & down gully, and just beyond where some remains of an old wooden staved pipe can be seen (loops of iron wrapping) on the right. Leave the trail here, and go towards the creek in easy open woods and light brush. As you drop to the creek, and adit area becomes visible across and slightly downstream. Allow about 1/2 hour from the trailhead to reach the cabin ruins. The Mineral Creek trail continues past the mines for about 1/4 mile, and crosses the creek. It continues to gradually climb in a rutted tread and brush for 2 more miles, until the outlet stream from Lower Park lake is reached. Just before this gully is a nice camp and area to rest. Past the stream the trail climbs steeply again, and then more gradual through the woods for 1 more mile until it levels off in the meadows near Upper Park lake. It took us about 4 hours to hike the trail to this point. Some camping near Upper Park lake, for more camping continue on the trail to where it joins with the PCT, camping along the trail in both directions. © 1999-2008 by 2DrX Explorations Last Modified: 01/06/05 00:31:14
Map Annotations:
Driving: Drive I-90 east to the Salmon la Sac/Roslyn exit (Exit 80) and drive thru Roslyn and Ronald. Continue on the paved road along Cle Elum Lake and the many new subdivisions being built. At 15 miles from Roslyn, turn left on the Cooper River road No. 46, and drive 4.7 miles to the Cooper Lake junction. Keep left (straight) on road no. 4600, climbing over Cooper Pass (now gravel) and dropping into the Kachess valley. At about 11 miles from the Cle Elum River road, find the trailhead on the right, elevation 2400'. Allow about 2 hours from Issaquah.
Hiking/Bushwhacking: The trail enters the woods on a wide tread, and crosses Mineral Creek on a log after about 500 feet. The trail climbs up, sometimes rough for about 1/3 mile until it meets the old mining road that comes from Kachess Lake. Turn right here on the wide trail for about another mile. The mine road then will become a trail and the cabin ruins should be visible off the right of the trail.
The location of the adits can be seen from the area of the cabin ruins. It is across the creek, slightly upstream, just below a large area that has slid down toward the creek. It is visible as a large dirt area. The best way to reach the mine area from the cabin site is to continue up the trail a few hundred feet, past a wet up & down gully, and just beyond where some remains of an old wooden staved pipe can be seen (loops of iron wrapping) on the right. Leave the trail here, and go towards the creek in easy open woods and light brush. As you drop to the creek, and adit area becomes visible across and slightly downstream. Allow about 1/2 hour from the trailhead to reach the cabin ruins.
The Mineral Creek trail continues past the mines for about 1/4 mile, and crosses the creek. It continues to gradually climb in a rutted tread and brush for 2 more miles, until the outlet stream from Lower Park lake is reached. Just before this gully is a nice camp and area to rest. Past the stream the trail climbs steeply again, and then more gradual through the woods for 1 more mile until it levels off in the meadows near Upper Park lake. It took us about 4 hours to hike the trail to this point. Some camping near Upper Park lake, for more camping continue on the trail to where it joins with the PCT, camping along the trail in both directions.
