Crystal Mountain, Out Past Boondoggle

Does anyone know what is out past boondoggle at crystal mountain? I've always wondered where it would take you if you went past the boundary signs. The map looks like it would just put you out somewhere between quicksilver and goldhills, but if this was the case why wouldn't it be inside the boundaries of the resort? Thanks for any ideas.

Much of that terrain funnels into an unpleasant creek gully.  The best way to explore that area is to ascend the summer trail that leads to bear gap from gold hills.

Orion

Does anyone know what is out past boondoggle at crystal mountain?

Jim Town!!

Crystal’s ski area is located on what was the “west of the crest” portion of the Summit Mining District which consisted of mining claims on both sides of the Crest in both the Silver Creek drainage (where the ski area is located) and the Morse Creek drainage (on the east side of Bear Gap). Jim Town was a mining settlement east of the Boondoggle run and (probably still) has a FS trail sign marking the location. There is a mine tunnel above the town site on the west facing slope of Pickhandle Ridge where some of the miners (at least some of who were probably named “Jim”) most likely worked in the summertime. Examining the townsite in the summertime discloses the remnants of at least on cabin foundation and pieces of old cast iron stoves.

If you want to “sidecountry tour” over there it makes sense to hike the area in the summertime to get the lay of the land mark the good lines and dangerous terrain with waypoints. Winter approaches to Bear Gap and the surrounding areas can be quite sketchy in high avalanche conditions, and there is many areas where it is difficult to see what is above you due to tree cover.
The “unpleasant creek gully” that Orion mentions starts just above Jim Town and drains into Elizabeth Creek, which Boondoggle actually follows as it drains down from Henskin Lake (see map below). As Orion suggests, it needs a LOT of snow to graduate above the “unpleasant creek gully” rating.

The Summit Mining District had quite a colorful history. The Blue Bell Mine (below what is now Blue Bell Pass at the head of Union Creek) was for a time worked year round through the winter. The miners apparently stayed at Fog City, which was located in a small bowl near the Crest just below Pickhandle Gap east of the Crest. Down at the base of Gold Hill was the settlement of “Fidelity”. I can’t now remember where I read it, but it was told that two women ran the post office in Fidelity in the summertime which also doubled as the local brothel for the miners. Seemed like quite an enterprise… stop by and check you mail and indulge in other fancies while you’re there :

(Excerpted from a portion of Crystal Mountain’s Environmental Impact Statement )
Non-Indian use of the Silver Creek basin and adjacent areas east of the Cascade crest during the historic period was largely mining-related. The earliest recorded gold discovery in Washington was in the 1850s in the vicinity of Naches Pass (Meany, 1932). Miners began traveling to the head of Silver Creek and Morse Creek, just across the Cascade crest, after gold was discovered there ca. 1880-1882. The Summit Mining District was established in 1891, and by 1897, 49 placer and lode claims had been filed in and near the permit area, including Bluebell Pass, Pickhandle Point, and around the Miners Lakes (Hodges, 1897). A seasonally occupied mining settlement, known as Jimtown (or Jim Town), grew up around the Pickhandle Point claims. Small amounts of gold and silver were apparently found in Silver Basin, but most of the gold came from the Morse Creek watershed on the east side of the Cascade crest. Mining declined significantly after the turn of the century, however, during the early 1930s, a miners’ road was built up Silver Creek from the White River road, superseding a pack trail (McCullough, 1970; McDonald, 1988).

(Excerpted from some of Lowell Skoog’s research, i.e. a Seattle Times article, Sep 23, 1962 - Wernex, Katherine, "Chinook Pass, Too, Had Its Gold Rush")
In 1880 at the head of Morse Creek, near Sourdough Gap, H.L. Tucker and George Gibbs of Yakima "by placer mining took out better than wages in gold." Tom Fife later came into possession of the mine and sold it for $3,000. Fife's Peak is named in honor of him. Prospectors made discoveries near the head of Silver Creek and named it Pick Handle Point. At the turn of the century, Gold Hill had a population of more than 300. A post office was established at a little mining settlement called Fidelity. "Six thousand feet up the mountain, in an alpine basin, was Fog City, reached through Pick Handle Pass, and down in Pick Handle Basin was Jim Town." In Cement Basin, at the head of Union Creek, Tom Fife and John Anderson worked the Blue Bell Mine. Jack Nelson, often referred to as the "Sage of the Lake," lived at Bumping Lake for over 50 years. He recalled that more than 250 claims were staked in the area. The article includes photos of Jack Nelson and an old miner's cabin at Gold Hill.

Did I cover that well enough (sorry, I just got going and then it reminded of something else and… well, you know)

Just be careful. Some of those S/E Facing slopes from Crown Point down to JBAS can be deadly avalanche terrain in certain conditions and skiing them require long exposure to big slopes to skin out of.
I've been spooked back there many times.

Very interesting.  I took my husky, Salem, on a hike through that area in early October to witness abscission and the on set of fall.  We hiked from the Bullion TH, bushwhacked straight up, climbed to PCT, and traversed to Pick Handle gap.  So much terrain, VERY grassy.  I'd be very interested to scope out some of these mining sites in future summer months!  I always have ski dreams of ending up in some mining town tucked in the hills!

Really neat Ron, thanks for posting. I had no idea that the area had any mining history, but now of course, a lot of the place names make perfect sense.

...from Crown Point down to JBAS...

JBAS?

Good call on the lengthy exposure times.