The Cave at the End of the Boundary Trail

Some seven or eight years ago two hunters by the names of Gardner and Howard, while hunting for bear in Stevens County near the boundary line between the state of Washington and British Columbia, and some fourteen miles north of Metaline, were attracted by a steamlike vapor arising in the timber a short distance from them, and their curiosity to learn the cause of the same led them to an opening into the earth some eight feet in size on top of a small lime hill. They reported their discovery and later explored it to some extent.

To visit this cave the best starting point is from Metaline, some 65 miles down the Pend Oreille River below Newport. From the former place it is about 14 miles over a fairly good trail, known as the Boundary trail, which will bring you after some miles' travel to Mr. Franske's place, where it would be best to secure the services of his son Edward, which can be done for a small consideration, as a guide to and through the cave, as the trail leading to the cave leaves the Boundary trail here, and is an old blazed one, full of windfalls and brush, and without a guide the cave would be difficult to find. Having recently paid a hurried visit to it I shall attempt to give only a brief sketch of the same.

Originally the opening into this cave was only some three or four feet in size, but later about 50 feet from this opening the roof, being near the surface, gave way, forming an opening of some eight by ten feet, down which one must descend on a ladder for possibly ten feet, which lands one in the vestibule, as it were, of the cave. This room is about 12 by 15 feet in size, and seems to be the home of wood rats by the odor, yet none were seen.

A gradual descent begins with this room, which increases until quite a depth is reached by the time one reaches the end of the cave, which is said to be about 1,500 feet in length. Leaving the vestibule one enters a large long room or hallway some 12 feet wide and 150 feet long and 25 feet high. Here lime ornaments begin to appear. A passageway from this hall leads one to the first of a series of three bathrooms. At the entrance of the first stands a magnificent white stalagmite pillar of lime, about 3 feet in diameter and 10 or 12 feet in height, slightly cone-shaped at the top where it reaches the roof. It is a beautiful column and looks as though it had been carved and erected by the hand of man.

The first bathroom is possibly 10 by 15 feet in size and contains some lime stalactites, but the floor space is given to a number of lime bathtubs, so to speak, mostly of an oblong shape of different sizes and designs, from a foot to a foot and a half in depth. From this room, through a descending passageway, one is led into a larger and possibly more elaborate bathroom and on through a passageway descends into the third and last bathroom and somewhat more ornamented. We found no water in any of these tubs, saving one which might be termed a basin, which held clear, cool and delicious water.

One leaves the last bath chamber by a small and almost secret marble hallway, some two and a half feet wide by four feet high at the beginning by 150 feet long, but which passageway will allow one to stand erect as one approaches the end, when one enters a small chamber, whose passageway beyond is almost blocked by another stalagmite column some three feet through, but not as tall nor as beautiful as the 'Guardian of the Baths.' Around this column one must get down and crawl.

Through, one stands erect at the entrance of the Music Room, the most beautiful of all. This room was once rich in stalactites, and one could play a tune by striking them with a cane or knife handle, but vandals have removed quite a number, thus destroying the octaves. This is a room of nature's wonderful carving and frescoing. Here the journey of ladies must end unless they have donned overalls at the beginning, for to proceed one is forced to enter an aperture of about 18 inches in height by 3 or 4 feet in width, feet foremost, down an incline some ten feet, where one lands in a large chamber. From the small aperture above described the descent becomes quite perceptible and leads on through a series of chambers, all of less beauty and design than those passed through. There is the sound of dripping water, the walls seem darker and the floors become muddy or sticky, evidencing a less lime formation through which the cave traverses.

After having entered possibly 1,000 feet, owing to the lateness of the hour, we were compelled to retrace our steps, in order to get out of the woods before nightfall. We did not enter the cave until 5 o'clock p.m., which was too late in the day to admit of the exploration we would like to have given this wonderful cavern.

R. B. Curry.