Halfway to Gifford Lakes, The Hard Way Traditional Geocache
Halfway to Gifford Lakes, The Hard Way
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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This cache is at the base of a waterfall located about halfway to
Gifford Lakes, the hard way. Not that there is an easy way; the
next best option is a long trek up and over the nearby ridges
adding several miles and a lot more cumulative elevation
gain.
The primary section of this route is constrained in Gifford Valley
where there is an unnamed stream, let’s call it Gifford
Stream, out-flowing from the lakes above. The approach to this
section has many alternates; myself and CJJIT chose a relatively
direct route by parking at the provided parking coordinates then
fording the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River.
From the Snoqualmie River the terrain slopes somewhat steeply
uphill until the start of the Gifford valley where it becomes very
steep. It's never easy going, even in the lower area near the
Snoqualmie. From the start of the Gifford Stream valley to the
cache the going it is outright brutal at times. From there to the
lakes above it gets worse.
Along the way to the cache, expect some or all of the following,
often in combination:
- A river crossing with very cold water
- Large piles of flood debris
- Downed and tangled trees, often many feet off the
ground
- Downed trees too large or too high off the ground to easily go
over, too low to go under
- Travel along an old and overgrown road bed
- Landslides (at least one still unstable)
- Steep slopes (40-50%+ in places)
- Thick undergrowth (slide alder, vine maple, blueberries,
huckleberries, etc.)
- Prickly things (devils club, many different types of thorny
plants and often with vines)
- Short sections of boulder scrambling
- Travel along a boulder strewn streambed
- Bear sign (bear trees, dung piles)
If you choose to continue up to the lakes, expect more of the above
with some or all of the following, often in combination:
- Steep slopes (60-100%+ in places)
- Class 3 scrambling in places
- Class 4 scrambling in a couple short sections
- Mosquitoes
- Very thick new tree growth in places
- Slippery logs on steep slopes that are too big to
straddle
- Rotten logs that collapse without notice
- Hidden holes between forest-debris covered logs
- Hidden holes in forest-debris and low growth covered talus
The going will be slow. For us, it was very slow at about 0.8 mph.
I had hoped we would place a cache at the second lake but we hit
our turnaround time before we made it. So, at least for now, this
one is on its own.
As noted, there is several ways to approach the valley. If you
chose to follow our route then be sure to keep a close eye on the
river level Link.
We crossed at about 150 cfs and about a week earlier I had also
crossed in a nearby spot with the flow at 280 cfs. Probably
anything above about 300 cfs would start to get interesting and
somewhere it would also become too not-safe. Then you might
consider approaching from the closed SE 116th just before the
bridge while the Middle Fork Road is still on the east side of the
Snoqualmie River.
The cache itself is a smaller lock-n-lock that can hold small
trackables. It's located near the stream where it opens ups after
the falls in a place that should be unaffected by high stream
flows. The signal is bouncy so a good hint is provided though keep
in mind that is a hint and not a spoiler so it must be interpreted
and applied. The difficulty level accurately reflects the
hide.
The terrain rating is 4.5, though could probably easily be a five,
for a couple of many reasons. For one, it gives me room to rate
higher a cache at the lakes. For another, there aren't many 4.5s
around.
Be sure to take the essentials, hike with a buddy, let people know
where you're going with a timetable, etc.
And, of course, enjoy the adventure!
Updates:
7/17/10: We have returned and conquered; there is now a cache
located at
Gifford Lakes. Also it has become quite clear that the best
route is via 116th rather then by fording the river.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Sbezre naq arjre zrzoref bs gur sberfg. Abegu fvqr bs fgernz ba uvyy evtug jrer gur pnalba bcraf jvqr.