Читать книгу Olympic Mountains Trail Guide - Robert Wood - Страница 38

Length: 3.5 mi/5.6 km

Access: Camp David Jr. Road

Custom Correct Map: Lake Crescent / Happy Lake Ridge, Washington

Green Trails Map: Lake Crescent, Wa. No. 101

Agency: Olympic National Park

The trailhead (700 ft/213 m) is reached by driving 3.1 mi/5.0 km on Camp David Jr. Road from the Olympic Highway. The trailhead has been developed to provide wheelchair-friendly access to the Olympic Discovery Trail, and includes a paved ramp to the newly expanded Spruce Railroad Trail.

The Pyramid Mountain Trail is continuously uphill, ending at the top of Pyramid Mountain, thus making it a 2400-ft/732-m climb. On this trail you can hear the noise of vehicles traveling on US 101 along the lake’s south shore.

At first the trail ascends a bench covered with large second-growth fir, but it soon enters the virgin forest and contours the steep mountainside above Lake Crescent. The trunks of the tall, slender firs have been blackened by a fire that swept these slopes in the past. Numerous madronas grow among the conifers, and the ground cover consists largely of salal and Oregon grape. Sunlight streams through the trees, and one has glimpses of the lake and the ridges beyond.

Climbing steadily, the trail crosses a rocky watercourse, where a stream flows underground in late summer and fall. Usually water can be heard issuing from rocks above the trail at a point where the stream comes to the surface. This is June Creek (1.4 mi/2.3 km; 1070 ft/326 m). The stream probably received its name because it flows during June but disappears in July.

The trail then crosses a brook in a rocky ravine and presently comes out to an open spot having a good view of the lake. The area of the rocky ravine was the subject of a massive slide in winter of 2006, and the exposed slide area can be a bit unnerving to the novice hiker. Beyond this point the route steepens, rounds a spur, then switchbacks sharply upward to the divide west of Pyramid Mountain. Here the hiker will see on the north slope a big clear-cut that comes right up to the ridge crest; the contrast with past memory is striking, because the forest that formerly stood here was dense and shaded. The ridge marks the boundary between the national park and the national forest, and the trees were cut right to the line. The clear-cut does have one virtue—it provides a view of the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

After climbing a bit, the trail leaves the ridge and works its way up the north slope of Pyramid Mountain. The trees are remarkably large for this elevation, and the undergrowth is sparse. The trail begins to switchback again, then descends slightly before emerging from the deep shadows into the bright sunlight on the ridge. Much of Lake Crescent is visible from the open, sunny spot here. Directly ahead stands the summit lookout, which was used during World War II as an aircraft spotting station.

The trail follows the narrow ridge to the cabin, which sits upon an airy perch (3.5 mi/5.6 km; 3100 ft/945 m). The vista is outstanding—an excellent view of Lake Crescent and the hills beyond, with Lake Sutherland glimmering in the distance. However, the scene is dominated by Mount Storm King and complemented by the blue-green slopes of Aurora Ridge to the south. One has only to glance downward to see the delta of Barnes Creek far below, protruding into the lake.

Hikers should use care when moving around outside the cabin to check the different viewpoints because the slopes of the peak drop sharply on the north and east sides.