The Forest Service deserves a hearty slap on the back for its recent decision to decommission FSR #16, which penetrates the Illabot Creek valley above Rockport in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. This road, constructed in the 1960s to forestall Wilderness designation on the lower Illabot, saw fairly modest logging activity over the decades.
Much of the Illabot valley remains largely intact, and will be effectively rewilded with the removal of #16 and its spurs. The wildland qualities of the North Cascades' western slope will correspondingly improve, as well. The rugged and heavily forested acreage from Illabot Peaks and Betty's Pass, north to Marten and Jordan creeks, is now well-situated for future addition to the Glacier Peak Wilderness.
