Quilomene Wildlife Area Overland Tour – 7.22.2007

After a nice peaceful night in a hotel in Ellensburg, Washington, we loaded up the Land Cruiser and headed out for a day trip to the Quilomene Wildlife Area. After topping off the fuel tank, we met up with the Northwest Backroads Drivers group for breakfast. Today, in addition to the participants from the previous day’s trip to the Whiskey Dick Wildlife Area (see Whiskey Dick Overland Tour), we were joined for breakfast by Bill and Ed, both of Ellensburg.

After breakfast, we headed through town via the side streets and dropped off Bill’s vehicle so he could ride with Jerry (Ed was moving that day and could not attend). A triathlon was scheduled for that morning along the Old Vantage Highway, so we had to find an alternative route to Colockum Road.

Shortly after reaching Colockum Road, the road turns to gravel and begins to climb past a few residential lots. After switchbacking up the hill, the road crosses back and forth under powerlines until it reaches a plateau where it parallels them.

The basic route we took, as far as I can tell from my notes and points of interest from my GPS, are as follows:

From Colockum Road, we first headed East on Caribou Road and then turned right when we came to Perkins Road. Most of the way is on a large plateau, slowly descending in elevation.

Perkins Road eventually drops into the Little Brushy Creek Canyon and follows the canyon bottom before climbing out and meeting Brushy Road at the top of the ridge. Brushy Road gradually descends and drops into and out of Dry Gulch.

From Dry Gulch, Brushy Road leads us past Brewton Road into West Bar. West Bar is a large, relatively flat area across the Columbia River from Crescent Bar, Washington. According to the signs, this area is closed to vehicular access during elk hunting season. We crossed a good portion of West Bar until we made our way to the shores of the Columbia River, where we stopped for lunch and enjoyed the water.

After lunch, we backtracked on Brushy Road to the intersection of Brewton Road. We followed Brewton Road through the Tekison Creek canyon and then onto the ridge top and plateau until we reached Colockum Road.

If you want to visit this area, plan for a full day to make this trip. Overall we spent approximately eight hours on the road from Ellensburg, through the Quilomene, and back to Ellensburg, including a lunch break. This route is not as brushy along the canyon bottoms as the previous day’s trip into the Whiskey Dick, but some areas will scratch your vehicle. Most of the way, the road is very rocky and rough.

Along the way, we saw a small herd of elk and a nice 4-point buck still in velvet.

This area makes a great overland day trip. There are no formal campsites or facilities anywhere along the way. Be aware of seasonal closures; you must remain on the green dot roads only.

You can view more of the photos from this trip at Quilomene Wildlife Area Overland Tour Photos.

You can also read Jerry’s trip report of the Quilomene at Exploring the Quilomene, Part 2, Sunday.