In partnership with The Mountaineers "Snowshoe Routes: Washington" by Dan E. Nelson This authoritative guide provides complete details on a prime selection of 81 diverse snowshoe routes. Paperback, 256 pages $16.95 For more snowshoe routes, buy the book now. More Mountaineers books

Description:
Snowshoers who like to climb will love this route. Although the trail is broad and easy to follow all the way to the ridge crest, ample opportunities exist for snowshoers who want to show off their climbing abilities by heading straight up the open slopes.

But this trail isn't all work. Plenty of rewards await the dedicated athletes who point their snowshoes toward the top of this ridge. Best of all, even those who cut their trips short of the top will find the journey pays off tremendously. Views from the route are incredible, and the higher snowshoers go, the better the panoramic scenery. The jumbled peaks of the South Cascades spread away to the southern horizon with Mount Rainier dominating the skyline.

Directions and route:
To get there, from Seattle drive east on Interstate 90 over Snoqualmie Pass to Exit 62, signed Kachess Lake, about 10 miles east of the pass's summit. After exiting the interstate, turn left, cross over the freeway, and turn left onto the freeway on-ramp and drive westbound I-90 for 1.5 miles to the Price Creek Westbound Sno-Park. (Although another Sno-Park is located on the other side of the freeway, there is no way to cross the interstate to reach it.)

A small trail leads northwest from the Sno-Park for a quarter mile to Forest Service Road No. 4832. Turn left and hike west a couple hundred feet to leave the multi-use crowds behind. (Snowmobilers, skiers, skijorers [skiers pulled by one or more dogs], and even dogsledders use this trail.) Climb to the right onto a small side road, Forest Service Road No. 124. This road climbs steeply up the flank of Keechelus Ridge alongside Price Creek for a half mile before angling west away from the creek in a long, looping route that isn't too steep but does cover several miles. You can choose to stick with the road, but a faster, more enjoyable route is to head cross-country up the slope, slicing across old clearcuts and thin stands of forest.

The best cross-country "trail" is found about 1.3 miles out from the Sno-Park. As the road rolls farther west away from Price Creek, snowshoe up the slope away from the track, staying right while the road goes left. Parallel Price Creek uphill, but stay on the bench above the stream rather than descending into the brambles alongside it. The slope rolls upward over several small benches and false summits, crossing clearcut, old and new. In light snow years, take care to avoid hooking a snowshoe on some of the brush protruding in the older, grown-over cuts. The climb covers about a mile of distance before crossing another heavily used road, Forest Service Road No. 4934, just below the ridge crest (4,300 feet). Emerge onto that road at about the same place as Road No. 124, which finally loops back from its long journey around the ridge flank.

Rather than joining Road No. 4934 - a popular snowmobile route that creates a long loop when coupled with several other roads in the area - merely snowshoe across it, and head toward the ridge crest. This last half mile of climbing is also cross-country travel, although you can follow the road (Road No. 124) here too, if you are nervous about routefinding on the open ridge. The top is easily identifiable on the approach by tall radio-relay towers. At the top, put the towers behind you (thus keeping them out of sight) and enjoy the panoramic vistas of the eastern Cascades.