Gold Creek Pond

This is one of our all-time favorite trails. We try to go once a year and it’s especially good on a clear day when you can see the mountains.

It can get crowded, especially in the summer and especially on the weekends. But it’s worth it given how rare it is to find a paved trail at such high elevations. Some day we hope to strap on some skies to Lucas’s wheelchair wheels and do this one in the middle of winter…

Gold Creek Pond is just off I-90 after you go over Snoqualmie Pass. Take exit 54 and drive about a mile along Lake Mardee Rd, then turn left on Forrest Road 144. If you have a wheelchair accessible van with low clearance then be careful over the last few hundred feet of the dirt road — there are lots of potholes that get bigger every year. But the parking lot itself is nice with a wheelchair spot right next to the trailhead.

Key stats:

Distance: The trail is 1 mile, round trip.

Wheelchair accessible parking? Yes

Wheelchair accessible bathrooms? Yes

Trail condition? Paved, flat trail. Not too wide and it seems to deteriorate a little each year with more cracks and roots popping up. The last time we went there were multiple holes in the few wooden bridges that cross over creeks, as well as in the boardwalk. All of them were passable in the wheelchair but if they get any worse that might not continue to be the case.

Highlights? The views! There aren’t many places where you can get this close to the mountains and access a mile-long paved path in a wheelchair. There’s also a great picnic area… oh yeah, and one time a few years ago we even thought we saw some dinosaurs peaking out of the trees.

More information about Gold Creek Pond.