Distance: 5.22 mi.
Elevation Gain: 2791 ft.
We arrived at the Snoqualmie Ski Area Summit West parking lot at 8 AM and reached the Kendall Katwalk trailhead across the street at around 8:30 AM. We maintained a steep ascent northeast through the trees, making awkward kickturns in the fluffy snow at times, but reached our highpoint at Kendall Stump by 10:30 AM. We decided to do a lap on the southeast side of the Stump toward Kendall Peak Lakes, then quickly climbed back up and made our decent on the west side to the trail. We got a little mixed up trying to cross the various creeks in this basin, but eventually were able to sneak out on a northwest traverse and circled back around to the Pacific Crest Trail. We had a couple of exciting creek crossings on the trail with thin slices of snow to support us, plus lots of snowshoers, but otherwise the descent down the trail was uneventful. We finished around 1 PM. What a great powder day, taking advantage of the lower avalanche danger in the thick trees around Kendall Katwalk. Definitely lots of fun to be had up there!
If you’re using our GPS track, try crossing the creek higher than we did because we had to use a snow bridge that may not always be there.
(Download the free Gaia GPS app on your phone to view tracks and then get a Gaia GPS membership if you want offline access. Discount below!)
Recommended Brewery: Dru Bru couldn’t be more convenient!
Gear Used:
- Avalanche beacon/shovel/probe
- Backcountry boots/skis/skins
- GPS
- Helmet
- Trekking poles
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