Serene Lake - Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington

Serene Lake - Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington

October 21, 2018

Distance: 9.51 miles

Time: 5 hours, 50 minutes.

Calories: 2,130.

Difficulty: Medium

Elevation Gain: 3,314.3 ft

Entrance Fee: We used our America The Beauty Pass.

This was one of our favorite hikes, the weather was perfect, the distance and difficulty were just what we needed. We had heard a lot about Lake Serene and decided to give it a try. To do this trail, you need to have a Northwest Forest Pass or America The Beauty Pass.

The trail is divided in two sections, the Bridal Veil Falls Trail is an easy 4-mile round trip hike. The second part is the Lake Serene Trail which is about 8-mile round trip. Please notice that the entrance sign states it is a 3.6 or 7.2 round mail trip, however once you reach Lake Serene, you can walk to Lunch Rock, and in our case, the GPS end up with a total of 9.51-mile round trip visiting Bridal Veil, Serene Lake, and Lunch Rock.

To reach this trail, take Highway 2 east towards Gold Bar. Before reaching the Skykomish River bridge, take a right into Mount Index Road, then another right about one quarter mail into the parking lot. Plan to arrive early as this is a very popular trail and the parking gets full fast. Watch for the parking signs as there are many places in which parking is not permitted.

Once you reach the headtrail, you will see the registration box and the sign with the trail information and the passes honored. The first part of the hike is easy and offers amazing views, the fall colors are pretty.

About 1 mile in, you will see a fork, stay to the right. The trail has multiple streams and wooden bridges, of course, you know how much we love wooden bridges! Here are some pictures of them.

About 1.6 miles in, you will see the fork towards Bridal Veil, it is absolutely worth it! It is a 1-mile round trip full of stairs. The top section is a loop, if you go left, you will have a clear view of the entire fall, if you go right, you can literally walk udder the waterfall.

Take your time, enjoy the sounds of nature and click some really awesome pictures!

Back in the Lake Serene Trail, continue for about 1.5 miles towards Lake Serene. The views along the path are nice. The last mile gains constant elevation and it strenuous, however, the reward is worth it.

When you reach the sign indicating there is not camping or campfires within ¼ mile of Lake Serene, prepare yourself for a glimpse of the lake, congratulations! You made it to Lake Serene. Check out the view

Continue to the right to visit Lunch Rock and, as the name suggest, enjoy your snacks, the sun, and the view. If you reach between 12 and 1 pm, we will strongly suggest waiting until Mount Index to the right covers the sun, it creates a perfect scene that is mesmerizing.

Tips:

Arrive early as the parking lot fills out fast.

Visit Bridal Veil on your way to Lake Serene, if you don’t, you might be too tired on your way back and be tempted to miss it.

Bring food and snacks so that you can spend some time at Lunch Rock.

Aim to reach Lunch Rock by 12 so that you have enough time to eat and see the different shades in the lake as the sun moves behind the mountains.

See you next time!

Silver Peak Trail, Snoqualmie Pass, Washington

Silver Peak Trail, Snoqualmie Pass, Washington

August 12, 2018

Distance: 6 miles from the head trail.  We walked 10 miles from the parking spot we got.

Time: 5 hours, 20 minutes.

Calories: 1,965.
Elevation Gain: 2,721.1 ft
Highest Point: 5,297.2 ft

Entrance Fee: We used our Discovery Pass / America The Beauty Pass.

Difficulty: Medium

Today we wanted to do a day hike and gave the Silver Peak Trail a shot.

If you plan to do this hike, we would strongly suggest that you drive an SUV, as the potholes on the road make it nearly impossible to drive to the trailhead in a car that has low ground clearance. It will be a lot easier if you a have an SUV or Jeep. We decided to park on the side of the road about 2 miles away from the trailhead because this was our experience visiting this trail and we were not aware of the road conditions.

To reach the hike from I-90 take exit 54 towards Hyak Dr. E, and then merge into FR-9070 which will eventually cross the Pacific Crest Trail on your right. Look for the PCT sign carefully.

The silver peak trail is a little hard to locate because there are no signs to mark the trailhead for this specific hike. As mentioned on WTA, Silver Peak trail starts after walking nearly 2 miles(some reports we read said 1.7 other 2.0 miles) on towards south on PCT(Pacific Crest Trail).

The picture below is facing north (do not go this way).

The Pacific Crest Trail sign is barely visible.

 The picture below is facing south, this is where you need to go for Silver Peak Trail.

From the PCT to the trailhead of Silver Peak Trail the hike is easy, it was heavily transited during summer months and you will find hikers, hiking with dogs. You will have good views of Silver Peak, fallen trees, water formations, a couple wooden bridges, and at least during August, some almost dried up streams.

As mentioned before, about 1.9 miles after hiking the PCT towards the south, pay attention to the Silver Peak trailhead towards your right. There is no sign, and the only marking we saw was a cairn with a fainted “Silver Peak” label.

Th next 0.5 mile is steep and a little slippery. At some points you will have to “climb” your way up some rock formations. You will be able to see Keechelus Lake (which had a low water level given the heat this year) and I-90 in the distance.

Once you reach Abiel Pass, you will see a fork. You want to continue to the right side (Northwest) for Silver Peak. The left goes towards Tinkham Peak.

Shortly after, you will your destination. Notice that the last part of the trail is a steep path with loose rocks. There is a clear path to follow, however, you are free to take any route you see fit. We decided to go a little left to click a couple pictures of the Annette Lake. We do want to hike the Annette Lake trail as we were told we might even try swimming there (not sure about how cold it would be though).

On your way back, be extra careful as it gets tricky with the loose rocks and at some point, after Abiel Pass, it gets slippery when wet.

Tips

·        FR-9070 has many potholes, an SUV will make your trip better.

·        There are plenty of mosquitos and bugs, wear repellent.

·        The trailheads are not easily viewable, make sure to bring a compass, GPS, and make sure you pay attention to the rock cairn marking Silver Peak Trailhead.

·        If you like to hike with dogs, this is a good trail for that.

We hope you enjoy your visit.

See you next time!