Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1897-06-18
A Submerged Forest.
Seattle Times.

Seattle Times.
Many years ago, even so far back
that the traditions of the oldest ST
wash extend not thereto, there wa
some vast upheaval of Mother Eartl
on the Shores of Lake Samamish tha
sent portion of the Newcastle hill.
sliding down into the lake, with it.
tall evergreen forest intact, and there
it is to this day. About this time o
the year the waters of the lake are al
their lowest, and then the tops of tn,
tallest of these big submerged trees
are out of the water, but never more
than ten or twelve inches.
Unfortunately for the curiosity
seeker and travelling public generally
the submerged forest is on the uppo.
site side of the lake from the railroad
and the station of Monohon, and very
few people ever see the phenomenon
unless they take the time and pains
necessary to reach it.
Sam Coombs, the pioneer, is very
enthusiastic concerning its beauties
and mystery. He talks Chinook
tiuently, but with all his quizzing OF
the red-skinned inhabitants he has
never learned anything that will throw
any light on the history of the for
est under water. The waters of the
lake are very deep, and the bluffs
back of the beach very precipitous, SO
that the only explanation of the
freak is that either by an earthquake
or some other means a great slide had
been started in early times, and it went
down as a mass until it found lodg.
ment at the bottom of the lake. AT
this time one can see down into the
glossy mirror-like depths of the lake
for thirty feet or more. Near the
banks the forest trees are interlaced
at various angles and in confusion,
but further out in the deep water they
stand straight, erect, and limbless and
barkless, 100 feet tall. They are not
petritied in the sense of being turned
to stone, but they are preserved and
appear to have stood there for ages.
They are three feet through, some OF
them, and so firm in texture as to be
scarcely affected by a knife-blade.
The great slide extended for some dis.
tance, and it would not be danger
GUS piece of work for steamer to at
tempt passage over the tops of those
tall trees. Even now the water along
shore is very deep, and ten-foot pole
would sink perpendicularly out OF
sight ten feet from the shore line.
All over this country are found
strata of blue clay, which in the win
ter season are very treacherous, and
given the least bit of opportunity will
slide away, carrying everything above
with them. This is the theory of the
submerged forest of lake Samamish.
1t probably was growing above one OF
those blue earth strata, and heavy
rains, or probably an earthquake, set
it moving. The quantity of earth car
ried down was so great that the posi-
tions of the trees on the portion car
ried away were little affected. 1t is
hardly to be believed that the earth
suddenly sank down at this point and
became a portion of the beautiful
lake.
Few such places exist. There is a
place in the famous Tumwater Canon,
near Leavenworth, which is in some
respects similar. At some early time
portion of the great mountain side
came rushing down and buried itself
at the bottom of the canyon. Now
there is considerable lake, and in the
center stand tall, limbless trees, differ
ent in species from those growing
along the canon.
At Green Lake, near Georgetown
Cola lake which is 10000 feet above
sea LEVELS q submerged forest o.
pine trees, some hundred feet tall, but
not so numerous as in Lake Samamish.
This same theory explains their pres
ence as given abOye