Here's a message from Lisa Therrell, Wilderness Manager for the Leavenworth Ranger District, about access issues affecting Icicle Creek Canyon and the Stuart Range during 2002 and possibly into next year. Climbers may interpret this as saying that if you approach the Stuart/Colchuck Lakes area from Ingalls Creek or through the Enchantments, that's O.K. and you don't need a permit. Don't assume that's the case. Check with the Forest Service first to be sure, so you don't get cited. Or bivy outside of the Stuart/Colchuck Lake area and only day trip in this area until the construction work is completed.

Thanks for asking about climbing access in the Icicle. We will not be doing any salvage logging in the Icicle. However we will do some non-commercial thinning, which may temporarily displace the recreating public for a very short period (like a day or two) in any one location due to tree falling posing a safety hazard. This will include the area from the Eightmile Campground vicinity (not the campground itself) up to the Fourth of July Trailhead. The work will occur on weekdays. It could briefly affect access to rocks such as Eightmile Buttress, Carnival Crack, Bathtub Dome, and Fourth of July Wall (including all the less popular rocks and walls in this area).

A more unfortunate imposition on the public is the closure of the Eightmile Road area beyond the Eightmile Trailhead due to reconstruction of two road bridges. The purpose of the project is to provide ongoing future access to the Stuart Lake Trailhead. The construction is slated to begin July 15, at which point all cars MUST be gone from the Stuart Lake trailhead so that the first bridge can be torn out. Access will not be allowed to the Stuart Lake Trailhead during construction. If the weather gods work in our favor, we will have an extended fall and construction might be completed before it snows. However if the snows come early, or if there are construction delays (almost inevitable I would guess) then the bridges will be completed when they emerge from the snow next year. We are letting the entire Enchantment quota go in via the Snow Lakes Trail. We are not giving out the Colchuck or Stuart Lakes quota.

I hear there are some climber "chat rooms" where all kinds of conspiracy theories are being debated regarding this closure. Hopefully this message will reach a few of those folk. We very thoughtfully considered whether there might be an option to allow public access to the Stuart Lake Trailhead during this time. Every scenario we thought of wasn't really feasible because of public safety issues. We also need a way to keep the public out of the construction site, which will have heavy equipment operating. For those that want the excruciating detail, here's what we discussed--

1) No closure, still issue permits, let folks find their own ford-This option invited a real liability because the "average" hiker is not accustomed to selecting, sizing up, and negotiating fords. And knowing when not to ford. Because they would have paid permit fees, they will have much more investment in fording, even if conditions are not safe. For example, when the footlog across Mountaineer Creek at the Colchuck forks finally gave way a few years ago, we had hikers threatening to sue the Forest Service because they were swept downstream in strong runoff. They felt we could rush right out and get a bridge built immediately.

2) No closure, don't issue permits, let folks find their own ford-This option would carry a little bit less liability since less money is involved. However we would really be creating an "attractive hazard" by saying "have at it, you don't need a permit". And we could create a situation of overuse in the wilderness, which is what the permit system holds in check.

3) No closure, provide a temporary crossing-- We discussed putting in a temporary trail and footbridge across the two creeks. This strategy would be costly, and adequate funding was not available either for the additional planning and analysis this would have entailed nor the actual construction of a temporary facility. As it is the bridge project is slightly underfunded. All three of these options would also create a massive parking problem at the already crowded Eightmile Lake Trailhead. We would need a way to accommodate about 80 cars on weekends.

4) Don't replace the bridges, build a new parking lot for 80 cars, and close the road above the parking lot-- Several years ago we seriously looked at this option on the ground as we knew these bridges were rotting. First we looked at the Eightmile Trailhead area for an expansion. The flat areas were too small for the number of cars and had surface water that would rule out that possibility. We looked at a large flat one mile down the road (now a logging landing), but even it is not quite big enough and we guessed the public would not be happy about adding 1 mile to the Eightmile Trail and 2 miles to Stuart.

We are all amazed that it takes SO LONG to build two bridges. Here is the deal. It will take LESS time than to replace each bridge individually, but there is some choreography that has to happen here. First you tear out the upstream bridge, build abutments forms, and pour the concrete. Then you do the same for the lower bridge. The abutments have to cure for 28 days before stringers go in, thus the possible delay to the following year.

I can appreciate that suspicious minds will leap to the conclusion that this is just a plot to keep people out of the wilderness. Not so. Remember the whole purpose for this project to provide ongoing access to the Stuart Lake Trailhead. People can still access the peaks of the Stuart Range via Ingalls Creek or Snow Creek. Y'all please bear with us! We will keep our forest recreation report updated. If the beginning of construction is delayed, we will make permits available via our daily lottery.

Thanks for providing a place for climbing information...