trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Though I’d rushed through Snoqualmie Pass dozens of times over the years – to or from Seattle – this was the first time I’d ever stopped to hike.
4.0 miles, roundtrip
Gain: 1160ft
Highest Point: 2078ftNo pass or permit required. And, no, there are no rattlesnakes.
This is a fine hike on a well maintained, albeit busy trail through the forest with views of the Cedar River watershed, Mount Si, Mount Washington, Rattlesnake Lake and Chester Morse Lake.
As soon as you arrive in the parking lot you have a view of Rattlesnake Ledge’s sheer rock face across Rattlesnake Lake. At this point it seems amazing to think you will be up there by the end of your hike, but a look at a trail map will reveal some well-engineered switchbacks …
WTA – Rattlesnake Ledge
It’s super popular. Hikers. Dog walkers. I saw many trail runners. (I walked up. Ran down, myself.)
Careful. In 2009 two different hikers fell to their deaths.
related – A lookout of legendary proportions
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