Wenatchee River Ranger District, Trails

Wenatchee River RD Conditions Home | Roads | Campgrounds


Trails on the Wenatchee River Ranger District are experiencing the end result of avalanche conditions due to the heavy snow pack we have encountered this past season.  Expect downed trees and debris to prevail throughout the forest and plan accordingly when traveling in the backcountry.  Our trail crews are working hard to address these issues. Please use common sense when traveling on FS roads, and as always, know before you go.

Mission Creek / Devils Gulch Area
Devils Spur
#1203
Maintained and clear 07/13/2023
Devils Gulch
#1220

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023
Mission Ridge
#1201
Conditions unknown 07/13/2023
Sand Creek   07/13/2023
Red Devil
#1221

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Red Hill
#1223

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Red Hill Spur
#1223.1
Conditions unknown

07/13/2023

     
Highway 97 / Blewett Pass Area
Tronsen Ridge
#1204

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023
Tronsen Meadow
#1205

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Ingalls Creek
#1215
Maintained and clear  07/13/2023
Fourth Creek
#1218
Maintained and clear 07/13/2023
     
Lake Wenatchee Area
Dirty Face
#1500
Maintained but brushy

07/13/2023

Hidden Lake
#1510
Maintained with several logs on the trail 07/13/2023
Round Mountain
#1529

Maintained and clear to Nason Ridge

07/13/2023
Nason Ridge 
#1583
Maintained and clear from the trailhead to the Lookout 07/13/2023
     
Little Wenatchee River Area
Cady Creek
#1501

Open but inaccessible via the Little Wenatchee River Road.

Conditions unknown

07/13/2023
Cady Ridge
#1532

Open but inaccessible via Little Wenatchee River Road. 

Conditions unknown

07/13/2023
Top Lake  
#1506

Accessible from Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) of FS 6700.

Many logs on the trail but passible on foot.  

07/13/2023
Poe Mountain
#1520
Closed due to Irving Peak and White River fires 07/13/2023
Lake Minotaur
#1517
Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Little Wenatchee
#1525
Closed due to Irving Peak and White River fires 08/30/2022
Heather Lake
#1526

Maintained but brushy with few logs on trail passable on foot

07/13/2023

Little Wenatchee Ridge
#1543
ALSO: Little Wenatchee Gorge #1540 / Closed due to Irving Peak and White River fires 08/30/2022
Irving Pass
#1545
Closed due to Irving Peak and White River fires

08/30/2022

     
White River Area
Indian Creek
#1502

Not maintained.  Difficult to follow and brushy

07/13/2023
Twin Lakes
#1503
Mostly cleared and a significant wash out 07/13/2023
White River
#1507

Trail not maintained / impassable beyond Boulder Pass Junction. Access to the Pacific Crest Trail is possible via the Indian Creek Trail #1502.  

07/13/2023
Mount David
#1521
Partially clear 07/13/2023
Boulder Creek / Pass
#1562

Conditions unknown

07/13/2023
     
Chiwawa River Area
Carne Mountain
#1508
Maintained and cleared.  07/27/2023
Rock Creek
#1509

Clear to Rock Creek Tie; significant washout in 1st mile on steep side of slope

Trail not recommened for stock 

07/17/2023
Rock Creek Tie
#1538

Conditions unknown 

07/17/2023

Phelps Creek 

#1511

Trail maintained and clear to wilderness boundry 

Stock travel: NO turn around at trailhead

If camping please use previously impacted sites and do NOT camp on vegetation in the fragile meadows.  

 

07/17/2023
Buck Creek
#1513

MAINTAINED AND CLEAR FROM TRINITY TO BUCK PASS

BRIDGE IS STILL OUT. HORSE FORD POOR CONDTION BUT CLEAR. 

07/27/2023
Basalt Ridge
#1515

Conditions unknown 

07/17/2023
Little Giant
#1518

Conditions unknown 

07/17/2023
Schaefer Lake
#1519

Mostly clear but must ford a creek

07/13/2023
Alder Ridge ORV
#1523

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Minnow Ridge ORV
#1524
Maintained and clear 07/13/2023
Estes Butte
#1527 

Conditions unknown

07/13/2023
Basalt Pass
#1530

Conditions unknown 

07/17/2023
Chikamin Creek ORV
#1534

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Minnow Creek
#1539

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023
Lower Chiwawa ORV
#1548

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023

Chiwawa River
#1550

Conditions unknown 

07/13/2023
Chikamin Tie ORV
#1561

Maintained and clear

07/17/2023

     
Highway 2 / Stevens Pass / Smithbrook Area
Snowy Creek
#1531
Conditions unknown

07/14/2023

Chiwaukum Creek
#1571

Mostly clear to North Fork Chiwaukum Junction

2 significant rootwads remain blocking stock travel

20-30 logs on trail between NF Chiwaukum Jct and Brigham/Flora

07/13/2023
Index Creek
#1572
Conditions unknown  07/14/2023
Painter Creek
#1575
Has not been maintained in years, almost nonexistent trail. Not recomended for travel. If you are bold enough to try it, map and compass is a must! 5/5/22
Badlands  
#1576
No information at this time 07/14/2023
Hatchery Creek
#1577

Clear to Wilderness Boundry; 500 logs on trail between Wilderness Boundry and Lake Augusta

07/13/2023
Whitepine Creek
#1582

Conditions unknown

07/14/2023
Lake Ethel
#1585
Conditions unknown  07/14/2023
Rock Mountain
#1587
Maintained 07/14/2023
Merritt Lake
#1588

Maintained and clear to Merrit Lake

Conditions unknown to Lost Lake 

07/14/2023
Lanham Lake
#1589

Conditions unknown 

07/14/2023
Smithbrook
#1590
Maintained and clear 07/14/2023
No. Fork Chiwaukum Cr.
#1591
Winter conditions 12/1/22
Wildhorse Creek
#1592

The trail is brusy and has multiple logs which can be crossed by foot.

A toilet is available at Lake Margaret

07/14/2023
Pacific Crest Trail (PCT)
North from Stevens Pass

#2000
Maintained and clear 07/14/2023
Pacific Crest Trail (PCT)
South from Stevens Pass

#2000

Maintained and clear

07/14/2023

     
Icicle Creek / Enchantments Area                          
Icicle Creek
#1551

WARNING: The bridge over French Creek 1.5 miles up Icicle Creek Trail #1551 is broken. The creek must be forded to access French Creek Trail #1595.

Also, the bridge over Icicle Creek at 5 mile point is broken and not usable and the creek must be forded.

It is not known when the bridges will be replaced.

See Photos of Bridge

08/04/2023
Eightmile Lake
#1552

Maintained and clear

07/14/2023
Snow Creek / Snow Lakes
#1553

Maintained and clear with some significant rockfall on the upper trail which may require some scrambling.

6 toilets available

Multiple Bear sightings have been reported in the Nada Lake and Snow Lake areas. If camping in the area, be Bear-Wise and practice proper food storage.

07/13/2023
Eightmile-Trout Creek
#1554

Maintained and clear


07/14/2023
Trout Creek
#1555
Conditions unknown 07/14/2023
Jack Creek
#1558

Clear to Meadow Creek Junction

From the Meadow creek junction to Van Epps there is significant fire damage and patches of lost trail. Beyond Van Epps the conditions improve.

Numberous trees are down along the trail

07/13/23

Blackjack Ridge
#1565
Conditions unknown 07/14/2023
Icicle Ridge
#1570

Maintained and clear

07/14/2023
Fourth of July Creek
#1579
Conditions unknown

07/14/2023

Chain Lakes
#1569
First part of the trail is clear but later becomes difficult to follow with numberous logs and brush on the trail.  07/14/2023
Chatter Creek
#1580
Obstacles on the trail but easy to follow 07/14/2023
French Creek
#1595

WARNING: The bridge over French Creek 1.5 miles up Icicle Creek Trail #1551 is broken due to damage from heavy winter snowpack and is unsafe to cross. There is no way to ford the creek due to high water. No access to French Creek Trail #1595 or beyond bridge on Icicle Creek Trail. It is not known when bridge will be replaced. See Photos of Bridge

5/5/22
Icicle Gorge
#1596

Maintained and clear

07/13/2023
Stuart Lake
#1599

Maintained and clear

Toilets are available.  Please use them

07/14/2023
Colchuck Lake
#1599A

Maintained and clear

Toilets are available.  Please use them.

Do not feed the chipmunks 

07/14/2023

Aasgard Pass

Route is hard to follow but has cairnes.  Please do not build more cairnes as it leads to confusion and resource damage.  

Aasgard Pass WARNING!
See Photo and Info about safe route up Aasgard Pass

It is recomended to stay climbers left of the tree island to avoid the waterfall area and potentially more rockslides off Dragontail Peak. There are large cairns to guide hikers on Aasgard to avoid the waterfall hole.

07/14/2023

Core Enchantments

Stay on main trail to prevent damage to fragile plants and soil.  

Toilets are available.  Please use them.  

Pack out all waste.

07/17/2023

 

Approximately 50% of the parking spaces are allocated for Overnight Permit holders only. If you DO NOT  have the Enchantment Overnight Permit Parking Pass, YOU CANNOT park in these signed spaces. Tickets with fines will be issued for vehicles violating the Overnight Parking area or parking along the road.

These trailheads, which access the Enchantments area of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, routinely experience intense demand through the summer months and early autumn.  As visitor use has increased dramatically over the past decade, parking and related safety and resource issues have also been compounded.  On several days of the week during this time of the year, especially the weekends, parking can extend on both sides of this one-lane road from Stuart Lake to Eightmile Lake trailhead and beyond.  This creates public safety issues and concerns along this one-lane road as it relates to the ingress/egress for emergency vehicles, to user conflicts between motorized vehicles accessing the trailheads and pedestrians walking the road to and from the trailhead.  As is, parking for emergency response vehicles and Search and Rescue volunteers is severely affected by the overly congested parking at the trailheads. PARKING IS ALLOWED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD  ONLY!

These trailheads and parking areas have been documented to be well beyond their capacity, causing repeated natural resource and sanitation issues as well.  This has created a public health concern at the 2 toilet facilities, one at each trailhead.  As they are over capacity they are often lacking sanitary supplies, which has resulted in sanitation issues and public health concerns in the forest area adjacent to the trailheads (litter and human waste).

   


Average Spring trail openings/meltout

Late March to Mid April--- Icicle Ridge, Penstock, Leavenworth town trails (Blackbird Island, Ski Hill loop trails, Fish Hatchery trails, Wenatchee Foothill trails)

Mid April to Mid May -- Snow Creek, Fourth of July, Freund Canyon, Devil's Gulch, Ingalls Creek, Lake Stuart, Icicle Creek, Hatchery Creek, Eightmile Lake, Chatter Creek, Jack Creek. Hidden Lake, Twin Lakes, White Pine, Lower Chiwawa, Nason Ridge, Rock Mtn, Dirty Face.

Mid May or later -- Lake Ethel, Tronsen Ridge, Upper Devil's Gulch, Upper Mission Ridge, Little Wenatchee TH, Minotaur lake, Top Lake, Merritt Lake, Heather Lake, Shaeffer Lake, Rock Creek, White River/Indian Creek, Upper Chiwawa River TH's, Round Mtn, Irving Pass


Current Weather Forecast for Leavenworth

Trail condition reports are gathered from Forest Service trail employees and wilderness rangers, USFS trail contractors, and public reports.

WTA.ORG NWHIKERS.NET  , AllTrails.com  and  WenatcheeOutdoors.org are also excellent sources for trail conditions and ideas for hikes and backpacking trips.