Cold CreekRecent Trip Reports
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Cold Creek
— Aug 27, 2011
— rnnrgrl
Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming | Ripe berries
Issues:
Blowdowns | Overgrown | Mud/Rockslide | Bugs
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Started at the Twin Lakes trailhead on road 9070 out of Hyak. This is the nice part of the trail tha...
Started at the Twin Lakes trailhead on road 9070 out of Hyak. This is the nice part of the trail that climbs gradually until it meets the trail coming in from Mt. Catherine (1348). The large lake (it doesnt appear to have a twin at all) was very nice but I didnt stay for long. Looks like agreat place to camp and easily accessible. The 1303 trail heads across Cold Creek and up the mountainside (1500 feet in ~1.5 miles). There along the lake side there is the remains of an avalanche that must have come down this winter. There is still quite a bit of snow and mud with logs and branches sticking out everywhere. It is rough going, and I wasnt really sure I was on a trail, just following any footstep looking marks best as possible. It is probably 100 yards across until I was on a distinguishable trail again. Then the trail climbs like mad, switchback after switchback. It is frequently obstructed with blowdowns as well, and overgrown with pokeys. I also got off onto a side trail at one point but it rejoined. This was turning into quite an adventure. I kept thinking I was getting close to the PCT but the trail kept climbing. The trailhead sign says 2 miles to the PCT and that is clearly wrong. It took me about an hour from the lake, which is halfway, and I was moving at a good clip. Finally I reached the PCT, and right there to the north is another large collection of blowdowns blocking the PCT. I ran down to Mirror Lake (.7) before heading north on the PCT to Windy Pass. There was no way I was going back down that crazy trail! The PCT is all melted out now and there are nice little pools and creeks in this section for the mosquitoes to gather around. This is still one of my favorite sections of the PCT in our state. Near Windy Pass there has been some trailwork done and the trail is in nice shape, no blowdowns there. Lots of ripe huckleberries there now too as you come out of the trees to road 9070.
Day hike
Issues:
Blowdowns | Overgrown
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Shepherd, Bliss, baby and I had intended to hike Tinkham and Silver Peaks with the dogs. There hadn...
Shepherd, Bliss, baby and I had intended to hike Tinkham and Silver Peaks with the dogs. There hadn't been a trail report in a year, but it was only 8 miles round-trip, 2600 ft of elevation gain, and looked like a pretty loop. Well, unless you're lugging a chainsaw and have lots and lots of time, and aren't carrying a baby in an Ergo pouch, it's probably not the easiest way to spend a day hiking. There were blow-downs and snags too numerous to count, and most required a fair deal of maneuvering to get around.
Cold Creek Trail is in fairly decent shape, just a little overgrown in places and a couple of easy blow-downs to go over or under. After Twin Lakes though, the trail gets considerably worse. When we reached the intersection with the PCT 2.5 miles and 3 hours later, and saw that there were even more blow-downs blocking the PCT north, we decided to call it a day and return the way we had come. Too bad because the prettiest part of the hike looked to be just past the PCT junction. Tons of devil's club and stinging nettles on the trail and it's very overgrown. Lots of huckleberry bushes though so I can imagine what it'd be like in the fall when the berries are ripe! Once you reach the PCT, you can take the trail to the left (south) to reach Mirror Lake about 0.7 miles below and that trail didn't appear to have as many issues with blow-downs and snags. On the positive side, there was plenty of water for the dogs, who had a good time swimming in shallow Twin Lakes. It was mostly forested so the temperature was nice and there weren't many bugs. No snow except for a densely packed layer beneath the large snag by Twin Lakes. Only a few wildflowers, no little critters. DRIVING DIRECTIONS: From Seattle, drive east on I-90 to exit 54 (signed "Hyak"). At the bottom of the ramp, turn right and enter the base of Hyak Ski Area. Stay left as you cross the parking lot and you'll enter a road signed Hyak Drive E. Continue past a series of vacation homes and public works buildings. At the first Y in the road, stay on the main road to the left. The road becomes FR 9070. Continue up the road to a hairpin turn to the right, about 3.5 miles from the base of the turn-off ramp from the interstate. Park along the road and the trail is off to the left, signed "Cold Creek Trail 1303." Green Trails Map: Snoqualmie No. 207 Pass Needed: NW Forest Pass Distance from Cold Creek TH to PCT junction (round-trip): 5 miles
Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) Section I - White Pass to Snoqualmie Pass, Cold Creek
— Sep 22, 2010
— Karen
Day hike
Features:
Fall foliage
Issues:
Overgrown | Mudholes
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Joining me for my birthday hike this year was my hiking buddy Mike, and my 2 dogs - Ollie and Haley ...
Joining me for my birthday hike this year was my hiking buddy Mike, and my 2 dogs - Ollie and Haley - on a nice walk from Stampede Pass to Mirror Lake on the PCT today. Once past Mirror Lake, we took trail #1303 that drops down to Twin Lakes and out to the car at Cold Creek. The PCT was in great shape most of the way and a bit drippy in places, but we did not get soaked. I was a bit surprised at how easy the hiking was – I guess I expected a lot more brush, mud and elevation gain. This hike is what I would call easy and was very nice as it meandered in and out of old clear cuts. There was plenty of color starting with the huckleberry bushes, vine maples and mountain ash. In the forested sections we enjoyed the mossy forest floor and some rather large trees here and there. Mushrooms galore, mostly russulas, and most mushrooms were pretty waterlogged, but we saw a few bright orange wooly chanterelles. When we crossed the trail going to Stirrup Lake we gave only a brief thought of a side trip to the lake since the brush was very thick. The only thick brush on the hiked PCT section was just south of this intersection.
Trail #1303 from near Mirror Lake down to Twin Lakes has seen some minor maintenance, but it is still a rough, steep, narrow and overgrown trail. I would recommend this hike during beargrass season or fall color. It was a great day. Stats: about 12 miles and 2000’.
Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) Section I - White Pass to Snoqualmie Pass, Cold Creek
— Sep 22, 2010
— Karen
Day hike
Features:
Fall foliage | Ripe berries
Issues:
Overgrown | Mudholes
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Joining me for my birthday hike this year was my hiking buddy Mike, and my 2 dogs - Ollie and Haley ...
Joining me for my birthday hike this year was my hiking buddy Mike, and my 2 dogs - Ollie and Haley - on a nice walk from Stampede Pass to Mirror Lake on the PCT today. Once past Mirror Lake, we took trail #1303 that drops down to Twin Lakes and out to the car at Cold Creek. The PCT was in great shape most of the way and a bit drippy in places, but we did not get soaked. I was a bit surprised at how easy the hiking was – I guess I expected a lot more brush, mud and elevation gain. This hike is what I would call easy and was very nice as it meandered in and out of old clear cuts. There was plenty of color starting with the huckleberry bushes, vine maples and mountain ash. In the forested sections we enjoyed the mossy forest floor and some rather large trees here and there. Mushrooms galore, mostly russulas, and most mushrooms were pretty waterlogged, but we saw a few bright orange wooly chanterelles. When we crossed the trail going to Stirrup Lake we gave only a brief thought of a side trip to the lake since the brush was very thick. The only thick brush on the hiked PCT section was just south of this intersection.
Trail #1303 from near Mirror Lake down to Twin Lakes has seen some minor maintenance, but it is still a rough, steep, narrow and overgrown trail. I would recommend this hike during beargrass season or fall color. It was a great day. Stats: about 12 miles and 2000’.
Cold Creek
— Jul 29, 2010
— George & Sally
Day hike
Issues:
Blowdowns | Overgrown | Mudholes | Snow on trail | Bugs
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We got off I-90 at the Hyak exit and drove the 9070 road to the Cold Creek trail head. This is the t...
We got off I-90 at the Hyak exit and drove the 9070 road to the Cold Creek trail head. This is the trail to Twin Lakes and up to the PCT. The first mile to the lakes is in good shape. It goes through a section of second growth forest before getting to the old growth. A short distance before getting to the lake is a junction with the old Mt. Catherine trail. This trail was used to get to the summit before the logging road was built up to Windy Pass. After checking out the larger lake, we crossed Cold Creek on a log and started the long hike up to the PCT. This section of the trail gets little use, has several blow down trees to get over, under or around, several areas are really over grown with berry bushes and devils club, plus talas slope crossing, rocky and steep sections. Does not look like there has been any trail maintenance on this section of the Cold Creek trail is quite some time. On the way up we came across another trail juction before getting to the PCT. This trail headed back down hill. We did get some nice views of Silver Peak along the way. The Forest Service sign at the trail head reads that it is 2 Miles to the PCT. This is incorrect. The GT Snoq. Pass map has it as 2.5 miles. Hiking up from Twin Lakes, it seems much longer. When we got up to the PCT, we stopped for lunch before heading north to Windy Pass. Before getting to the junction with the Silver Peak trail we passed several small ponds with snow still around them. Frogs were swimming around getting some bugs. Even got to hike on a little snow. Along the way we had a view down to Twin Lakes. Once out to the road at Windy Pass we headed down a 1/4 mile to the junction with the Mt. Catherine trail. We hike down to meet with the Cold Creek trail near Twin Lakes to complete our hiking loop. The first section of this trail is steep before getting back into the old growth forest. About a 1/4 mile before getting to the Cold Creek trail, we crossed an old logging road that is no longer used. The culverts have been pulled and tank traps built. It was constructed in the old growth forest that was not logged. At the junction we headed north back to the trail head. Only saw a few hikers on the PCT and a father/son backpacking on the Cold Creek trail above Twin Lakes. Not to many animals seen on this hike, one crow flying across the lake, one chipmuck along the PCT, plus the frogs. Bugs were not to bad, only a few black flys. The one mile hike to Twin Lakes would be a good hike with kids to get the next generation of hikers out on the trails.
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WTA worked here!
2011
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