The Snow Lakes Trail and Colchuck Lake Trail form a 20.4 mile semi-loop through the Enchantment Lakes Basin in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. This challenging and stunningly scenic route features over a dozen subalpine and alpine lakes set among craggy peaks and granite bowls in the Stuart Range of the Cascades. This gallery follows the loop east to west:

The Snow Lakes Trail climbs 3,535' in 5.5 miles to Nada Lake (4,923'), the first lake on the loop

The Snow Lakes water release occurs every year from late July - the first week of October; the release improves water flow and quality in Icicle Creek, which supports hatchery fish and riparian restoration efforts

The trail runs across the isthmus / dam between Lower and Upper Snow Lakes, where social trails branch out to each with many interesting nooks and outcrops to explore

The majority of Lower Snow Lake (5,415') is initially concealed by timber, but numerous spurs lead out to its deceptively long north shore

Upper Snow Lake (5,420') is the largest lake on the circuit; there's a sprawling logjam near its outlet that opens to great views of the upper valley

On the map it's a seemingly flat and fast 1.5 miles around Upper Snow Lake to a bridge over the inlet, but a shifting, rugged path can slow travel a bit

A 1.5 mile, 1,365'+ climb on a mostly-primitive route leads from Upper Snow Lake to Lake Viviane (6,785'), which fills a deep granite bowl under Prusik Peak

Temple Lake and Gnome Tarn are located above Lake Viviane and accessible with some deft scrambling

Leprechaun Lake (6,882') is shapely with diverse littoral terrain distinguished by wavy granite slabs and big outcrops

The landscape opens and moderates past Leprechaun into open rock with plots of heather, tree-topped knolls, rushing streams and waterfalls

The Snow Lakes Trail meets the Colchuck Lake Trail on the west side of Perfection Lake

The trail wraps around Perfection Lake's (7,090') level, grassy shore to the Prusik Pass Trail split

Mountain goats have few natural predators; most naturally occurring deaths are the result of rockslides, avalanches and starvation due to worn out teeth

A short but steep (and potentially tricky) scramble over snow and rock leads out of the Inspiration Lake basin to open granite terraces

The landscape opens past Inspiration Lake to granite slab terraces and large, stream-connected ponds

The Enchantment Lakes Basin is carved from the Stuart Range, a batholithic crest in the northern Cascades

The main trail runs above Crystal Lake, which is framed by Little Annapurna (8,436’) and holds one of the most private (and desirable) campsites in the Enchantment Core

Isolation Lake (7,712') is distinguished by a large rock jetty and seldom completely thaws

Tranquil Lake is a large, icy tarn north of Isolation Lake, and the last major water feature before reaching the pass

The final approach to Aasgard Pass weaves through an open rocky landscape

View of Colchuck Lake (5,570') on the descent from Aasgard Pass (7,812'); at one point you'll drop 2108' in just 1.4 miles on this challenging segment

View of Dragontail Peak (right) from the rugged shore of Colchuck Lake

The Snow Lakes Trail climbs steadily over the Icicle Creek valley, whose hillsides were scarred by recent fire

The Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area features over 615 miles of trail that see over 150,000 visitors per year; most visits occur during a peak 10 week period

Leprechaun Lake drains in to Lake Viviane; it's possible to shorten the distance between the two by scrambling down the outlet

Cairns lead across steep, exposed rock slabs on the final run to Lake Viviane; these sections can be tricky (if not treacherous) when wet or snow-covered

Sprite Lake is located just below Perfection Lake along its outlet

Goat crossing! Mountain goats are common along this route, and you'll likely encounter them several times along the way

Lake Viviane