Rimrock Lake - White Pass Scenic Byway

Rimrock is known for its camping, fishing, boating and wildlife watching. The lake is actually a reservoir formed by the Tieton Dam blocking the Tieton River. Because the mountains around the reservoir are steep and forested, the views make for nice viewing from all directions.

Kloochman Rock is a volcanic intrusion composed of what is called pyroxene-rich andesite. Intrusions are created when molten volcanic material is pushed up into a fissure or crack where it cools and hardens. Andesite is a relatively hard fine grained material and the pyroxenes are seen as crystals within the andesitic rock. Over time the surrounding softer material eroded away, leaving the feature you see today. There is a local legend, from the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, about the creation of Kloochman Rock. Chief Me-ow-wah was a well respected chief who had no desire to have a wife. Nearby chiefs felt that great and respected chiefs such as Me-ow-wah should have a wife. They decided to send their most beautiful princesses to Me-ow-wah. Me-ow-wah did not want this and left his village to live alone in the mountains. Eventually his people found him, and he realized that they were intent on making him return and take a wife. He consulted with his father, a medicine man, then resolved to return and make a sacrifice of himself and the potential brides. When the women arrived he commanded them to stop and they were all turned to stone, including Me-ow-wah. One of the women became Kloochman Rock, and Me-ow-wah became the nearby mountain now known as Goose Egg.

Rimrock Lake Recreation Area

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