We wanted to share this great little snowshoe outing with those who live in the Pacific Northwest.
It’s a great example of a place that looks really great in photos – like you’re in some remote exotic mountain locale, but it’s only a short stroll from a major interstate freeway.
The Lower Gold Creek Basin trail at Snoqualmie Pass is one of the easiest (and easy to reach) trails in Washington. And while popular, there’s a lot of bang for your buck.
Let’s be honest. Most of us don’t want multi-day treks through avalanche terrain when we snowshoe. We want a nice little winter wander through some mellow snow-covered country.
The early part of this trail is worn flat by snowmobiles (don’t worry they just have access to the handful of cheery cabins along the trail) and widened by large groups of snowshoers and XC skiers. The grade is gentle enough that we could easily carry our 1-year-old son in a backpack. And we saw more than one mother nursing their newborns on the trail!
Payoff happens about 1.5-miles in. An awesome frozen lake! Have a lunch and play in the snow! Gawk at the huge icicles on the nearby cliffs.
For many that’s enough. And if the kids are crashing, it’s an excellent turn-around point.
For those with fresh legs, the trail continues, getting more narrow with little ups and downs as it follows Gold Creek into a canyon. Feel your heart pound when you cross the avalanche shoots where RV-sized snow-boulders line the trail (be sure to check avalanche conditions at NWAC before you cross them).
One of several avalanche shoots you have to cross on the upper part of the Gold Creek Basin trail
Scenery grows more dramatic as you head into the valley
Eventually you reach a remote little opening alongside the river where we had a snowy playground all to ourselves. Despite the busy Saturday afternoon on the lower part of the trail, we didn’t see a soul for over an hour.
Your last challenge is to get across the sketchy bridge
When you snowshoe with a kid, eventually this happens. Thankfully, Ian didn’t want to stray too far from his Columbia snowsuit when Amanda changed him.
“I love snow!”
Directions:
From Seattle drive east on I-90 over Snoqualmie Pass to exit 54, 2 miles east of the summit. Exit the freeway and turn left, crossing under the freeway. Just past the freeway onramp, turn right onto a narrow paved road and drive east parallel to the freeway for about 1 mile. Park along the shoulder near the Gold Creek Sno-Park.
You MUST display a Sno-Park pass in your windshield our you’ll get a hefty ticket. The passes pay for the plowing that keeps the parking areas open all winter and Gold Creek is frequently patrolled.