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Chetwood Lake via Big Heart Lake |
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| Ranger's Report | Weather | Road Condition | |||
| Distance: | 9.5-10 miles | ||||
| Hiking Time: | 9-10 hrours | ||||
| Trailhead Elevation: | 1600 ft | ||||
| Elevation Gain: | 4500-5000 ft | ||||
| Season: | Late June- Early September | ||||
| Difficulty: | Strenuous | ||||
| Rating: | Best - Very Good - Good - Fair | ||||
| Use: | Light | ||||
| Users: | Backpacking trip only | ||||
| Region: | Skykomish Ranger District | ||||
| Maps: | USGS Big Snow Mountain Skykomish Ranger District Map Printable Topo Map | buy maps online | |||
| Permits: | Northwest
Forest Pass is required Alpine Lakes Wilderness Regulations |
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| Driving Directions: | |||||
| From Seattle take I-5 North to Exit 194 to Highway 2 East. Follow the highway for about 50.6 miles and turn right onto Foss River Road NE #68. Gravel road starts in about 1.2 mile. Follow Road #68 for about 6 miles. Turn left onto Road #6835 and follow it for about 2 miles to the West Fork Foss Lakes Trail #1064 trailhead. Follow trail #1064 for about 1.9 mile. Left trail #1064 at the first sighting of the Cooper/Malachite outlet and head downhill. | |||||
| Trailhead: | |||||
| Lots of Parking available, this trail is not as popular as it used to be, toilets available, water is at the river about 0.5 mile up the trail #1064. | |||||
| Trail: | |||||
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The trail climbs a scant 400ft in 1 1/2 miles to trout lake without too much difficulty. After that, the hard work begins. You proceed to climb 2000ft in 2 miles up to Copper Lake. The trail is actually not that bad. It is ver gradual with lots of switchbacks and a few very scenic views of the falls coming out of Copper and Malachite Lake. The trail continues on along Copper Lake's southern shore and gain about 300ft in a mile before coming to Little heart lake; another picturesque gem of a lake. It is a very good idea to fill up on water at the outlet stream from Little Heart, because there is no more water for another mile. The trail from Little heart ascend a steep 800ft in one mile to the to of a ridge that offers and incredible view of Trout, Delta, and Otter Lake. Then the trail drops another 300ft to Big Heart Lake. Inexperienced hikers should stop at this point. Big Heart is a beautiful lake with plenty of room for exciting exploration and fishing. From
Big Heart the trail becomes more difficult to see and much more
difficult to traverse. It takes you up and around one ridge top
on a very steep hillside and then up another knoll before descending
down again toward the end of Big Heart Lake. From here, climb a
rockslide up to about 5300ft to the top of a ridge. Altogether the
climb along Big Heart results in about 2 miles. From the top of
the ridge you can see Chetwood Lake. Drop down about 400ft to the
lake, there are several great campsites at the east end of the lake
by the outlet stream. This is really and incredible area with lots
of great day hikes. The evenings are especially beautiful when the
sun casts an iridescent orange glow on the rock walls that encircle
the lake. This is a great hike and well worth the effort. |
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