Gold Creek Pond — Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015

Snoqualmie Region > Snoqualmie Pass

This short loop hike can entertain for an entire afternoon or provide a quick fix of nature and a nice picnic spot. The salmon are running NOW (October 11) (I assume they are Kokanee, but if someone knows different please say so). There are no signs suggesting that you look for them, but good views of the flashing and leaping red backs can be found from the bridge between the parking lot and the lake and in the channel that runs parallel to the trail before you get to the turnoff for the Gold Creek Trail. We were distressed to find a family methodically destroying a beaver dam in the channel; they thought this would help the salmon get up the channel to the lake. We asked them to stop because salmon spawn in the channel not the lake and the sudden release of water and sediment behind the dam could wash away and/or cover the eggs that were being laid just 20 feet downstream. Our pleas were in vain, as we came back later to find a channel through the dam. Aside from this, the perambulation of the pond brought many lovely views, which only got better as the golden light of late afternoon and the stillness of the water created perfect reflections. The picnic area was very busy with lots of shouting children, who were having a great time but it was not conducive to peaceful contemplation or sketching. Another hiker with his dog suggested we try a side trail to the main creek, where we enjoyed solitude on the gravel beach with views of the mountains (but no kokanee). A few other notes- the gravel road to the picnic area is full of potholes but passable in any passenger vehicle, Gold Creek Pond is also the trail head for the Gold Creek/Alaska Lake trail (the road to the alternate trail head is barricaded).