Trails of the Wild Cabinets
Dennis Nicholls with Jim Mellen
Nonfiction. 176 pages, 6"x9" with 86 maps and photos, appendixes.
$15.50 Item BKB218

Preface to the Second Edition

As I sit atop Grambauer Mountain at 7,377 feet on the last day of May, I am stunned by the views. From this, the northernmost peak in the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness, I can see Cedar Lakes, Dome, Parmenter, Scenery and Indian Head mountains with Taylor Peak nearby. Far to the south, the magnificent 8,000-plus-foot A Peak, as well as Snowshoe and Bockman stand out proudly. I came up here to sort out some confusion regarding William Grambauer Mountain; there was conflicting information about its elevation gain and trailhead location. In the process, I sorted out a lot of confusion and conflict within myself. For me, this is always therapy – both mentally and physically. Up here, I cannot understand what was so important, pressing and stressful in my life because now the stuff of civilization seems so small, distant and insignificant compared to the here and now.

I was most pleased to be asked to help with this second edition. It is rewarding to share knowledge with others and occasionally get to watch them gleefully develop an appreciation for the wild places or visit a new special place. Intro­ducing more people to the wild Cabinets can take its toll in terms of impact to the environment – but not necessarily. We have added an appendix on “Leave No Trace” ethics to this edition, which if fully heeded, will minimize degradation of these fragile ecosystems. Hopefully, those who discover for themselves the splendor of wild will be the ones who stand up for the protection of these special wild places, as many are currently doing with the Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness campaign.

New trails have been added as well as changes and corrections made to several trails. Many of the changes are the result of the floods of November 2006. If proposals are approved, some of the trailheads may be restored to their original sites. GPS coordinates are now listed for every trailhead, and indexes by trail name and number have been added.

By the way, if you do decide to venture up to William Grambauer Mountain, bring plenty of water. This is one big hunk of a mountain to bite off!.

-Jim Mellen