Harrison Lake East FSR 60 days after snow

[BC backroader]

Jim and I headed out to our favorite trail run on one of the few days that it hasn't rained since our Feb 13th trip (There's a reason this is called the West Coast RAIN FOREST!!!) The day was bright and sunny as we entered the FSR at km 0 at about noon, and other 4x4s were in evidence, though not too many to be annoying. At 4 km, the first of many branch roads heads left up the mountain at Slollicum creek, but we found a locked gate just 500 meters in, so turned back to the main road, and continued N. At km 7, just past Rainbow Falls, another branch heads E uphill for a short climb, then turns N and parallels the main road at a higher elevation for about 5 km, and has been somewhat overgrown and unused for at least the last decade, making it a nice, moderately challenging trail, but it was immediately obvious that it had been graded and brushed along the sides to accommodate logging equipment. We carried on up it, finding that one of our nicest stands of mature second growth forest has been clearcut, looking like a bomb had leveled it! The last half of the route back to the main FSR was still untouched, except for survey tapes, so I guess that will also be cut later this year. From our rejoining the main road at km 12, we carried on to km 15 and the Bear Creek FSR, again climbing E into the steep creek valley, where we found another locked gate, just 2 km up the hill, so another logging operation has shut us out of that one, too. That was enough disappointment for one day. We turned back and headed out the main FSR to pavement, and in 30 min., pulled into the lot of the Wildcat Grille for some tender steaks to refuel us for the trip back home on Hwy 1.

I didn't take any shots of the logging shows, but did get a few scenery shots to post here: