If you continue driving beyond the 5.1 mile point, you will reach the infamous red gate and have driven a mile too far.
I drove up the road to the Racehorse Creek Fossil Fields in the North Fork Nooksack today. It is evident from comments from many readers that they have been going the wrong way. Many went too far and came to a locked red gate; those folks missed the white ‘1’ on the tree just 1 mile after the turn at Racehorse Creek. The revised directions are in the edited original blog post. So if you struggled mightily and walked [or biked] for miles on gravel roads beyond the gate- go back! It is only 1 mile of road walking to get to the start of the fossil fields. If you visit, send photos of your finds and report on the conditions.
Dave
Filed under: News and notes |
Northwest Geology Field Trips 
I was at Racehorse Slide last week. As Dave says, from the Racehorse Bridge junction, drive exactly one mile up the road, and turn left onto a minor side road. Park and walk from here, the initial road barrier can be bypassed by a path in the woods along its left side. Follow the road uphill about one mile to reach the start of the way trail to the ridge crest that overlooks the slide. The road has a lot of waterbar trenches, all easy to cross on foot. Lots of shade, the road is reverting to a trail.There are three rock cairns where the waytrail to the landslide begins, it’s easy to spot the start of the trail. I trimmed some overhanging branches, the way trail is in good shape and easy to follow, with some very steep spots. Lots of forest growth since the 2009 slide, the landslide itself is getting overgrown with brush and trees, The site is still interesting to visit.
George Mustoe.