Monte Cristo Ghost Town, Sauk River Wagon Road — Thursday, Sep. 25, 2025

Began my history/exploratory hike in the area of the old Sauk River Wagon Road off the Mtn. Loop Highway (MLH). I parked near the gate of the CERCLA Road about 0.8 miles from Barlow Pass just north of the MLH bridge over the SF of the Sauk River. The Sauk River Wagon Road was built back in 1891-'92 to get supplies up to the miners at Monte Cristo. It ran from Darrington with horses or mules pulling the supply wagons. The wagon road was abandoned in 1907 since the Everett & Monte Cristo RR had reach Monte Cristo in 1893 and was no longer needed. I did see a short section of the old wagon road.

The CERCLA Road was built by the Fed EPA during the Superfund clean-up of the Monte Cristo mines in order to get their heavy equipment (bulldozers, front end loaders, dump trucks, track hoes) up to Monte Cristo. The project was finished in 2015 with the removal of over 3,200 tons of high-level hazardous materials like arsenic, copper, lead and zinc.  They are now in a repository site along the Monte Cristo Trail before getting into the town site. CERCLA means, "Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act" (1980). It gave the Fed EPA the ability to intervene in managing land containing high levels of hazardous materials. The clean-up project cost $11 million and ASARCO paid half. Remember their smelter in Tacoma that was known for its aroma?

I started up the CERCLA Road that is no longer drive able but can be hiked or ride a bike from the gate off the MLH. At the start of my hike, I had a view down to the SF Sauk River. The trail heads up hill into the old growth conifer forest. Along the way I ducked under some large blown over trees and around some others. They are easy to get by. I then got to the first of three log road bridges with wood decks and side rails over deep creek gulleys. The bridges are still in good shape after not being used for ten years. I did see at a few other smaller creek crossings that had 18" to 48" culverts that are still working okay, no wash outs. The first bridge had been repaired last year after a large tree had fallen on it. Further along I left the old growth forest and entered the area of second growth conifer trees where the trail is more single track with small Red Alder trees and brush growing along it. I saw that someone had been up the trail this year and cut up any blown down trees.

During this part of my hike, I came to a large rocky now dry creek bed. Looks like it runs fast during the Spring snow melt. This creek crossing does not have a bridge or large culvert. It is not in a deep gulley, so the CERCLA Road was probably just built over the dry creek bed with rock and gravel now washed away. The next section of the road looked like it was an old Forest Serice logging road used when the area was logged back in the 1950's-'60s. The road ended at the junction with the Monte Cristo Trail that is on the old roadbed/railroad grade with a sign on a tree with an arrow saying, "Monte Cristo 2 Miles".

After the Fed EPA had finished their clean-up project the Forest Service did not want the CERCLA Road since it was not built to Forest Service standards. It would cost a lot of money to fix up the road to be able to drive it into Monte Cristo and the FS does not have the funds. That is why the restroom along the road part of the Monte Cristo Trail near the campground is locked since a septic tank pumper truck cannot get up to it.

The only wildlife I saw on my trip were two wrens. I did meet two other hikers on my hike back, a senior couple. I thought the trail might be all overgrown with many fallen trees, but it turned out to be not bad at all. Makes for an alternative hike to get to Monte Cristo. George