Arthur Coleman's party of 1893 was perhaps the first to travel over this pass. Coleman later wrote, "The following day's journey took us over the divide at 7,550 feet. Near its summit Cataract Pass, as we may call it, is swept by snowslides which have mowed down the timber, making an almost impassable tangle for ponies to cross; and at the highest point the snow was so deep on July 24th that we made a wide detour up the mountain to get our horses past it. Fine peaks of dark red quartzite rise on each side, with glaciers about their shoulders, one reaching the level of the pass and feeding an indigo-coloured pond amid the snows of the summit. A sharp descent on the other side brought us to the headwaters of the Brazeau."

There is reason to believe that when Arthur Coleman wrote the above passage he was refering to what is now called "Cline Pass." Steve Howes, who has travelled over both, feels that the description fits perfectly for Cline Pass and the elevation mentioned by Coleman is closer to the actual elevation.