Welcome back Ice Caves!

The Herald recently reported that the trail to the ice caves has re-opened with a brand-new bridge (The old-one had been washed out by flooding) (click here).

When someone says to me, “Where’s a good place to take a nice hike in the mountains?”
I immediately answer, “The ice caves, of course.”

The ice caves are located off of Granite Falls on the Mountain Loop Highway. It is a very short 1 mile trail with very modest elevation gains, so you can take anybody, including kids and folks who are in their 80’s like my mother and father-in-law, who went with me on August 2006, when I took these photos.

The ice caves are at the base of a mini-glacier that is formed from the snow that sloughs off huge granite cliffs. If you like pictures of beautiful waterfalls, this is the place to go, because they are everywhere.

The trip up to the view point is spectacular too. You are first treated to a forest where artists have carved faces into some of the fallen lumber. Then you cross a bridge over a large flowing creek, and then you are treated to beautiful meadows full of flowers, that would cause envy in the most seasoned gardener.

I would definitely recommend this hike to anyone. Go. You won’t regret it.