Information about this hike provided in partnership with
Mountaineers Books.
Copyright © Dan A. Nelson/The Mountaineers Books Lake Susan Jane Snowshoe
Featured In:
Snowshoe Routes - Washington,
by Dan A. Nelson.
A portion of all book sales from the links above benefits WTA and helps protect and maintain our trails. Before strapping on the snowshoes, walk up the slope past the ski lodge and angle off to the left to get clear of the downhill ski runs. The PCT actually slices diagonally across the ski area, but snowshoeing on groomed ski runs is frowned upon. So stay on the outside edge of the ski runs on the left, and climb up along the border of the ski area. As the ski runs taper south to merge at the top of the Tye Chairlift, veer southwest, still skirting the downhill runs, to traverse along a wide bench at the base of a steep hillside. Continue to climb, slanting off to the right, until the top of the ridge is reached in about 1.5 miles (5200 feet). Turning south, drop off the back side of the ridge to skirt around the headwall of Mill Creek valley, and pass under the high-tension powerlines that carry electricity from the upper Columbia River dams across Stevens Pass to the Puget Sound area. The PCT drops steeply downslope, looping through a few switchbacks. Most winter recreationists find it easier to just angle down and across the slope. Continue almost due south, staying above the 4500-foot level on the eastern flank of the ridge that is the Cascade Crest. An old road is passed at about 2.5 miles, and Lake Susan Jane--a small pond set in a quiet forest glade--is reached at 3.5 miles. Author’s Rating: More Difficult Some previous snowshoe experience helpful. Some winter survival skills recommended (basic knowledge of avalanche evaluation, emergency shelter construction, etc.). Elevation gain is usually less than 1000 feet with a gradual slope.
Driving Directions:
To get there, from Everett drive east on U.S. Highway 2 to the summit of Stevens Pass. Park in the ski area parking lots on the south side of the highway. Recent Trip Reports
Hiked here recently?
Submit a trip report!
There are
4
trip reports for this hike.
Lake Susan Jane Snowshoe
— Dec 07, 2010
— charisboof
Day hike
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
2 friends and I headed out to Stevens Pass to do the Lake Susan Jane trail because the stats were...
2 friends and I headed out to Stevens Pass to do the Lake Susan Jane trail because the stats were right for us - long enough with enough elevation gain. However, the route description in the Snowshoe Routes book was really hard to figure out. Since the left-most ski run was not operating today, a guy inside the office said we could walk up the groomed run and go wherever there weren't skiers. After passing the end point of the first chairlift, the steepness became daunting so we cut the "up" section short and thoroughly enjoyed our return downhill through the woods, just beyond the park's boundary markers.
A very nice ski patrol person met us on the way to the car and told us that he has no idea why this hike is included in the book since it requires a crazy hike up (near a dbl diamond run), then down, then up again, in territory that is too close to skiers. He claims that he has this conversation with snowshoers every year and is frustrated that anyone would even try this snowshoe. Instead, he helpfully suggested trying the routes on the north side of hwy 2. Also: anyone who plans to hike at the ski area is supposed to check in with ski patrol beforehand so they are aware of your whereabouts. Snowshoe/XC Ski
Issues:
Blowdowns | Water on trail | Snow on trail
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
Looked like there had been a decent amount of new snow, and the ski area was still closed, but scheduled...
Looked like there had been a decent amount of new snow, and the ski area was still closed, but scheduled to open the following weekend.
Even so, the one open south parking lot was full at 10am. The north parking lot on the other hand was mostly empty. There is now a pedestrian bridge, so no need to risk life and limb crossing Hwy 2. Couldn't make much sense of the route description and map from the Snowshoe Routes book, so we followed some tracks up the still ungroomed ski slopes (Promenade and Skid Road). The snow was great for snowshoeing, but there were several small streams that were still partially exposed and required some care crossing. Upon reaching the ridge, instead of heading down to Lake Susan Jane (where visibility was looking poor), we headed over to the chairlifts, from where there was a nice view to the north. On the way down we followed tracks along the Pacific Crest Trail, which for the most part stays in the forest. Much nicer than the open slopes, though there were several blowdowns (especially at the very bottom). There was a big crowd of people playing in the snow at the base, but we met fewer than a dozen snowshoers and skiers further up. Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/[…]/StevensPassNovember2010 Tracklog: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/57472064
Lake Susan Jane Snowshoe
— Jan 30, 2010
— cheryld
Snowshoe/XC Ski
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
FYI: We were not allowed to snowshoe to Lake Susan Jane from Stevens Pass. Ski Patrol said that...
FYI: We were not allowed to snowshoe to Lake Susan Jane from Stevens Pass. Ski Patrol said that the forest service is not allowing any snowshoeing near the ski lifts, even when we said that we would take the route as stated in the route description, (left of the ski lifts). We opted to snowshoe on the North side of Hwy 2 toward Skyline Lake. Sorry that I could not give you a trip report, but thought you might like to know this information. I guess we gotta wait till the ski season is over.
Cheryld Day hike
Issues:
Snow on trail
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
A weekend promising fresh snow and the potential to get into some partly blue skies led us to the Pacific...
A weekend promising fresh snow and the potential to get into some partly blue skies led us to the Pacific Crest Trail beginning at Stevens Pass. We had planned to hike from the ski area up the slope to Lake Susan Jane over the ridge. |
The trail to Lake Susan Jane. Photo by Opus.
|
Document Actions
- Email this page
- Print this
- Share
Forgot your
New user?
