Snow Lake

July 6, 2026

Washington Trails Association page for this hike. All Trails page for this hike.

My wife and I had considered this a moderate to easy hike, but the WTA page lists it as “Moderate/Hard”.

Hikers stopping for a photo.

Parts of the trail are out in the open hot sun. The hill is steep but gradual to hike with the switchbacks.

Hikers turning on a trail switchback and then heading up hill.

View of a hill of boulders.

I like to take advantage of the good lighting and scenic backgrounds for some portraits

Portrait photo of my grandson.

Portrait photo of my granddaughter.

Along the way, here are some pictures of our surroundings.

A view of the Pacific Northwest vegetation and mountainous scenery.

A yellow flower with red spots in a drooping and curled position.

A view of evergreen trees and a rocky mountainous ridge.

The trail alternates from being in the woods to being out in the open sun.

Hikers on a rocky switchback trail.

We take a break and I take portrait pictures of my hiking companions.

A portrait of my grandson.

A portrait of my granddaughter.

A portrait of my wife.

We continue up.

Three hikers going uphill on the Snow Lake trail.

View of the area that includes a large rock wall on the hillside.

At the top you can get the iconic Snow Lake photo while standing on this large rock as well as take more portraits.

Hiker taking a photo of Snow Lake from a vantage point.

Portrait of my grandson above Snow Lake.

Portrait of my granddaughter above Snow Lake.

A photo from above as we head down the trail to Snow Lake.

Snow Lake taken while traversing down the trail to it.

A small stream and pond.

Angled rock with a stream running through it, dropping off to a small reflective pond.

Remains of some structure that includes a fireplace.

Site of decayed rock walls to a building structure that is nearly gone.

A view of the lake shore.

The shore of Snow Lake with shallow water showing the rocks and dirt below the water. A mountainous ridge is around the back end of the lake.

A wooden walkway that is part of the trail that goes around to the back of Snow Lake.

My granddaughter with arms extended on a wooden path.

We take more photos before heading back.

A view of Snow Lake from the side.

My grandson with the out of focus Snow Lake in the background.

My granddaughter with the slightly out of focus Snow Lake in the background.

My wife and I were happy that our grandchildren were able to have this experience with us. They were rock solid and handled it well.

From this point on you can continue on to Gem Lake if you have the energy.