Hiking
Fourth of July Creek to Icicle Ridge is a hike near Leavenworth, WA. After looking at the weather forecasts for skiing at Crystal, climbing at Vantage, and hiking in the Olympic Peninsula, we decided to join our friends Julie and Thaddée for hiking near Leavenworth. The weather conditions in Vantage were also great, but we decided to brew beer instead of climbing on Saturday.
Home Brewing Oatmeal Stout
My heels blistered early, so I attached mole skin and duct tape and continued to hike with views of the Enchantments, Mount Stewart, and Aasgard Pass. The alpine meadows were blooming with wildflowers. I am not much of a flower expert, so we saw yellow, purple, pink, and white flowers. We also heard grouses throughout the hike.
Hiking to the Ridge (Photo by: Andy Crampton)
The trail was narrow and steep. I was glad I decided to bring my trekking poles! We gained 4700 feet in 6 miles one way. The last 500-1000 feet had patches of snow, which we walked through no problem without snowshoes or crampons. We had amazing views from the top of the ridge, where we took a break to eat and take pictures of the icicles, snow, and views.
Icicle Ridge
Views from the top of Icicle Ridge
A couple of dogs, Nala and Duke, hiked the trail for fun and followed back to the trail head. We found the owner after getting back into town. Hiking with the dogs made the steep hike down a little more enjoyable. Overall, the hike took us about 6.5 hours from start to finish and was a great day hike.
What was your highest elevation gain while hiking?
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