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!..
