Information about this hike provided in partnership with
Mountaineers Books.
Copyright © Dan A. Nelson/The Mountaineers Books Denny Creek
Featured In:
Day Hiking: Snoqualmie Region,
by Dan A. Nelson and Alan L. Bauer.
A portion of all book sales from the links above benefits WTA and helps protect and maintain our trails. Head up the trail as it rolls north under the high viaduct that carries I-90 traffic west. The trail crosses a creek at about 0.5 mile, then winds through the forested valley before recrossing the creek at base of the waterslide rock at about 1.3 miles. Come mid-August, you'll certainly find hikers--young and old--sporting in the cold water of Denny Creek as it slides over the granite slabs. The creek is shallow enough to be safe, but strong enough to be fun. You'll want to stick close to the kids, though, as there is a small plunge pool at the end of the slab, and the cold water can be shocking. After cooling off, keep moving up the trail. Just above the waterslide is a small stairstep falls, Keekwulee Falls. In another 0.5 mile (2 miles from the trailhead), is the small Snowshoe Falls. Turn around here for a 4-mile hike. Be sure to stop at the waterslide on your way out--its worth another round of water play before driving home.
Driving Directions:
From Seattle drive east on I-90 to exit 47 (Asahel Curtis/Denny Creek). Turn left over the overpass and proceed to a T. Turn right and travel 0.25 mile to Denny Creek Road (Forest Road 58). Turn left and drive 2.5 miles, turning left on the paved road just after the Denny Creek Campground. The trailhead is at the road's end. Northwest Forest Pass required. Recent Trip Reports
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Day hike
Features:
Fall foliage
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Beautiful fall colors. Some mud....
Beautiful fall colors. Some mud.
Day hike
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We started our hike just before 8:00 A.M. It was cool and there were some scattered showers until we got...
We started our hike just before 8:00 A.M. It was cool and there were some scattered showers until we got higher in elevation, then there was barely any rain at all. There was no one on the trail when we first arrived, but did see some hikers coming back after camping out there for the weekend. When we arrived at Denny Creek it was rainy, but my dog still enjoyed it.
We arrived at Melakwa Lake around 10:20 A.M. and we were on a misson coming back out there twenty days after the last time we were up here on Labor Day. We were here this time to find the kid's belongings that had fallen on September 5th because his mom had mentioned to me that a couple of his personal belonging's were still up there. When we arrived at upper Melakwa Lake we made our way around to where him and his friends climbed up. We suddenly experienced gusts of winds for about ten minutes as we made our way up to the area below the peak they attempted to climb. My dog was following us up there. My friends and I recovered everything that was left up there of his belongings and eventually made our way down. On the way back my dog was much slower. I checked his paws when we were below the peak and they looked fine to me. When I got home, I realized that the pads of his paws were ripped up pretty good and he was beat. Climbing the rocks was too much for him and I felt bad about it. It's a decent hike for dogs, but probably not a good idea to take them on the rocks.
Denny Creek, Melakwa Lake
— Sep 17, 2011
— Weluv2hike.
Day hike
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Ripe berries
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Rained the on and off, mostly sprinkles. The lake is so blue and the trail is nice and groomed. Parking...
Rained the on and off, mostly sprinkles. The lake is so blue and the trail is nice and groomed. Parking lot full when we got there. Had a great hike today. At the lake and on the trail it was like a dog park. Have never seen that many dogs on a trail.
Denny Creek
— Sep 17, 2011
— Zachary Oliver
Day hike
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Ripe berries
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My friends Kelsey and Livya joined me today on a hike to Snowshoe Falls. This one is located near Snoqualmie...
My friends Kelsey and Livya joined me today on a hike to Snowshoe Falls. This one is located near Snoqualmie Pass, just off of the Denny Creek trail. The hike to the waterfall is simple and straight forward; however, the unmarked turnoff to the falls can be easy to miss (we actually didn't find it until the return trip).
The parking lot was jammed but we lucked out and found a spot to parallel park right near the trailhead. The rain was on and off throughout the day and the trail was muddy in areas but the cool weather was a welcome respite from last weekend's heat. Keekwulee Falls was running pretty low but was still nice to look at from the hillside. As far as trail conditions (which is the primary purpose of this report), it is in prime shape with no obstructions. The mosquitoes were evident but were few and far between. Day hike
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Did this wonderful hike today with my brother and best friend and his brother. I am an avid hiker and...
Did this wonderful hike today with my brother and best friend and his brother. I am an avid hiker and Melakwa Lake was recommended to my by a good friend. Just joined this site today and I thought I'd share this with you... The destination was beautiful. Although, we got to our destination (Upper Melakwa Lake) and climbed a really steep ridge that looked down at both Melakwa Lakes. Then all of a sudden two helicopters flew in. One was the King County Sheriff. For about 8 minutes they were looking for somebody. The helicopter flew over to us and my best friend and I motioned for them to look behind them. There was a large crowd of about 9 people across from the ridge that we were standing on (600 yards away). King County Sheriff flew over there and dropped a rescue worker to assess the situation. They lifted a body back into the helicopter. Apparently what had happened was a 20-year-old man and his buddy were climbing a steep ridge when one of them turned around to take a picture of the view behind him and ended up falling 40 feet. He did not survive. CPR was performed for about 50 minutes but the man had suffered massive head trauma and his brain had swelled. You know, it's moments like that that reminds you safety should always be #1 priority. People go into hikes not thinking that, 'hey maybe I may die today.' It's crazy. Be safe.
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The water slide area of Denny Creek. Photo by "Solo Steve."
2010, 2011
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