Tye River

Snows of Deception

Deception Creek, that is. I didn’t have much time this weekend aside from a half afternoon. A period of lowland snow and mini-cold snap made me consider a trip to the Deception Creek trail up the Stevens Pass Highway (US-2). I’ve been here before but that was in the summertime. I thought this would be a cool place to visit on a nice snowy day so I gave it a go.

The biggest problem with going here in the winter is access. A short forest service road climbs to the trailhead but it’s not plowed in the winter. Complicating matters, there is virtually nowhere to park along this stretch of the highway during winter due to plowing activities. Add in a lot of traffic headed up to the Stevens Pass ski area and you get a nervous walk along a busy highway.

After hugging the snowbank for a third of a mile, I gladly left the highway for the forest service road. The road had a foot plus of powder so breaking trail even with cross country skis was a slow affair. Just under an hour found me in the parking lot below the eerily buzzing powerlines overhead. I decided to walk the trail instead of ski it since there’s too much tight up & down. In the forest, the snow depth eased a bit it was still calf-deep.

The trail parallels Deception Creek, never straying too far from its banks. There are several large old growth douglas fir trees and I was reminded of some of the winter scenes typical in Sequoia National Park. The trail was fairly easy to follow but I ended up losing it where the creek had previously washed over it. I was hoping to make it up to the log bridge over the creek but time was running short. I’ll have to return some other day when I can devote more time to exploring.

I almost hesitate to share these photos because, frankly, they’re rushed and a bit of a compromise due to the time constraints. Meh. Here ya go!..

Deception Creek in a fresh winter coat
Deception Creek in a fresh winter coat (two image blend for depth of field).
Snowfall in the Deception Creek valley
Small waterfall along Deception Creek
Small waterfall along Deception Creek
Ice and fresh snow along Deception Creek
Fresh snow on rocks in Deception Creek

Tye is High

…and I’m moving on. Sorry- couldn’t resist the pun.

This past weekend’s weather brought a series of strong pineapple express weather systems. For those of you not from the Pacific Northwest, a pineapple express storm is one that originates from the area around Hawaii (hence the pineapple reference) and brings a lot of moisture and high snow levels. These storms sometimes quickly follow snow storms which bring rain on snow events and that spells major flooding.

This weekend’s storm brought moderate flooding to the Skykomish River basin and I decided to head up the valley along Highway 2 to check things out. Despite the “moderate” tag, the river levels were REAL high, seemingly higher than the record events of just a couple years ago. I first tried visiting Alpine Falls along the Tye River east of the town of Skykomish but the down spray from the falls was just too great for photography.

From there, I moved on to the Deception Falls Picnic Area to check things out. Located at an elevation of about 2000 feet, it’s closed in the winter due to snow but one can usually park outside the entrance along Highway 2 and (CAREFULLY) cross the busy highway and walk in. I’ve visited on two other occasions, one of which was during a flood event back in November of 2008. By far, conditions on this day were the highest water levels I’ve seen. Quite impressive!

Deception Creek side channel overflow at the Deception Falls Picnic Area - January 2011

High waters of this Deception Creek side channel lap against the bottom of a trail bridge - January 2011

Tye River high water surges along - January 2011

There are two observation platforms along the loop interpretive trail that highlight the river’s power during times like these. The first platform is located in an area where the river runs headlong into a rock wall, forcing it into a 90 degree turn. Compare yesterday’s flow versus a normal flow from two years ago:

High flows along the Tye River smash into the 90 degree turn - January 2011 (1/250th sec @ F13, ISO 12,800)

Normal winter flow along the Tye River at the 90 degree turn - December 2008

Quite a difference! Just a little further upstream is another platform where the Tye River flows over a waterfall and bends around a corner. Now compare yesterday’s flow versus high flow back in November of 2008:

High flows along the Tye River at the Deception Falls Picnic Area - January 2011

High flows along the Tye River at the Deception Falls Picnic Area - January 2011

High flows along the Tye River at the Deception Falls Picnic Area - January 2008

Once again, quite a difference. I made my way towards the Deception Falls along Deception Creek but the amount and force of the water was too great. The down spray was intense and the churning waters were actually splashing over the pedestrian bridge that leads you to the viewing area. My Pentax may have 77 weather seals but it can’t keep a camera safe from THAT much abuse! It was getting late in the afternoon and I wanted to make two more stops on my way back into town. I first stopped at a roadside wetland west of Skykomish. Ended up not getting very much (aside from even MORE soaked from the rain). I guess it looked cooler at 60mph!

Roadside wetland along Highway 2 west of Skykomish

Roadside wetland along Highway 2 west of Skykomish

My last stop SHOULD have been my first stop. Just west of the town of Index, there’s a spot along the Skykomish River where Kayakers park and launch into the river. In the middle of the river at this location is a huge (and I mean 2 story HUGE) boulder. On my way up earlier in the day, the river’s torrent was splashing up and OVER the top of this large boulder. I had to get a photo of this but decided to wait until my return trip.

BIG mistake.

Over the preceding four hours or so, the river level subsided enough such that the river was no longer splashing over the top. In the failing light, I was only able to snap a couple quick shots, and most weren’t up to snuff due to bad focus and some vegetation between me and the river which I could not avoid:

Skykomish River envelopes the huge boulder a few miles downstream of Index

Moral of the story is STOP AND TAKE THE PHOTO!

Tye Waterfalls

I wasn’t going to head out this weekend but decided I needed to get out after a very lengthy day of yard work. Forecasts were stream and waterfall friendly so I decided to head up Highway 2 to check out a couple waterfalls in the Tye River valley. First, I decided to revisit a location from a couple weeks ago to re-shoot it under better conditions:

Unnamed Creek - Foss River Valley
Unnamed Creek - Foss River Valley
Next up, Alpine Falls which is just east of the Old Cascade Highway’s west end. The volume of water is pretty high so it’s hard to get a balanced exposure and detail in the waterfall:

Tye River
Alpine Falls (Portrait Version)
Alpine Falls (Landscape Version)
My last stop was was a waterfall I had no idea existed which is appropriately named Scenic Falls. It’s located just off of the road to the Surprise Creek trailhead and pretty impressive. Once again, with water volumes running on the high side, photos were difficult because a hefty amount of spray downwind of the falls. I found a “dry zone” which was partially shielded by a slope to take the photos you see here:

Lower Scenic Falls
Another view of the lower Scenic Falls
Base of the upper Scenic Falls
Upper Scenic Falls
Bunchberry bloom
I will return to Scenic Falls at some point to re-shoot it. It was late in the day but I saw another vantage point up higher and outside of the spray zone so I’m anxious to try it.

Surprise Creek

My last trip to Deception Creek was so nice that I decided to head one drainage over to the east and check out Surprise Creek. Located at the upper end of the Tye River Valley, it’s located in the vicinity of where the railroad punches through the Cascades through a tunnel. The trailhead starts underneath the BPA transmission lines but quickly dives into beautiful forest and finally enters the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.

The trail is about 5 miles in length and eventually reaches the highlands and some upper lakes near the Pacific Crest Trail. It does steadily gain elevation as you head up valley but does so at a somewhat leisurely pace. After about 2/3rds of a mile, you finally gain sight of Surprise Creek. After a mile, the trail switches sides of the creek and continues upstream. During my trip, I only continues another half mile or so upvalley due to time constraints. The warm, sunny day made for difficult photography but its definately worthy of future trips and additional exploration…

Small Waterfall on Surprise Creek
Surprise Creek Waterfall
Devils Club along Surprise Creek
Surprise Creek (Vertical Shot)
Surprise Creek (Horizontal Shot)
Surprise Creek

 Scroll to top