Big 4 Ice Caves

I love the ice caves, and go there every year at the least. It's about a 45 minute hike, and there's only a couple puddles after it has rained. They now have a lower trail to accomidate for the washed out trail, and the bridge has been rebuilt after the avalanche. My mom took her class on a hike up there, and they all loved it! There are many MANY signs that tell people to NOT go in or on the caves. Grace Tam's death was plainly a freak accident. She didn't even die at the two main caves, she died to the right, after you go up the rocky hill. I learned this from a ranger. Also, there is a Geo cash up there, to the left. This hike is easy and fun! I recommend it for all ages. The only difficulty was probably the little makeshift bridge, but it's sturdy enough. It's best to go in anywhere from spring to fall. When I went, the Ice caves had melted so much you could see the back of one! This hike is awesome!

I thought this hike was amazing! There was actually an avalanche that took place while we were there. Waterfalls, beautiful! Natural ice caves, spectacular. I plan on taking friends on this hike again in the future!

this was a very hard hike i would not reccommend it for any kids or elderly people.i died on this hike and i am a decently athletic guy, i can run a 4.45 minute mile but, man this hike was tough. good views though!!

This was a great hike for someone just looking for a day outside.  It was easy and beautiful.  However it was very populated and the huge aluminum bridge was out of place in the middle of nature.

The bridge has been repalced and is no longer out. This is a real easy hike about a mile in length one way with a very well maintained trail. Great hike for all ages.

Maybe this is good if you have kids, but if you're into hiking there are many other snowy adventures that are much more worth the trip. If you're in the area and looking for something to do, fine, go to the ice caves, but I wouldn't make a special trip out to see them.

Our favorite hike with my four kids, we've been there three times with kids ages 6-12.

The bridge is out as of Sept 7, 2008, but the river was quite low (maybe 12-15 inches at deepest part of crossing). BRING SANDALS, crossing in bare feet in very cold water with sharp rocks is painful!

Great hike even for younger kids, beautiful trail. Lots of the trail is in shade, and wind coming off snow can be chilly, even on a warm day.

$5 to park, pick up parking pass at Verlot Ranger Station, there's a machine there that takes credit cards or cash.

Recent pictures on Flickr, including our water crossing, bridge, and the snow caves.

went there a couple years ago. is real easy and fun. good hike for young ones. caves are great. nice and cool after the hike during summer.

We wanted to to this hike with kids however we were told the bridge has not been repaired yet. According to a ranger at Darrington Ranger station the temporary bridge will only be available by the end of October '08.

I saw the birth of christ on the cave.  Sounds good eh? You;d be amazed what that kind of place can do to a man.  I just can't take the pressure anymore. It seems like they still know I was there. I really can't tell. I hope the tres's can forgive me because if not, this  is all moot.... but who k nows....

i went on a hike with a girl named Britany Fanswroth, my bestest friend in the whole wied wrold and in that day we went on that long hike we hird something really horeble it was like a huge buggey man and we saw it it was green with blue dots alover him and he had the hugest pinpule on his face any ways all of a sudden he started to talk to us and he said that he was nice and if we would let him sleep with us at are tent and of course we said yes cause we didnt wont anything to happen to us and he slept in the middle of me and britany and gusse what he puched britany of a cliff that was SO SCARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008 02-23 was a bad time of year to visit the Ice Caves.  While I didn't make it all teh way to the top, I've been told that they are most likely not formed at this time of year anyway.  As other reviewers have mentioned, the main bridge is out.  (visitors told me it had been out for what they though was 2 years) But with the bridge out, that means that you are missing almost the entire hike.  Half the hike for me was hiking on the main road up to the picnic area.  The main road is closed about 1.5 miles down the road because the snow plow trucks didn't plow.  Also, this time of year that was a lot of snow and you are ill-prepared if you aren't brining snow shoes.  You'll be falling about a foot deep in snow every few steps, especially by the picnic area where the sun heats up the surface.

I ended up falling in the river trying to help me dog out after she fell in to the river herself.  Since I was wet, I decided to just walk across.  There were no foot prints to guide us and you couldn't tell where the trail led, so it was a waste of time.   You can watch a video here of what the snow looks like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SST9sx9dZZc

The best time for this hike is spring - early summer when the ice caves form.  It seems to be more popular for snow mobilers this time of year and the folks that just want to get out and walk in the snow.

NOTE: The bridge is washed out.  However, there is a fallen tree which makes for an easy crossing about 1/4 mile downstream from the old bridge.  Easiest way to find it is to hike all the way to the Big Four picnic area, cut accross to the old washed out bridge then hike down stream till you find the fallen tree to cross.

Two attempts this winter (01/20/08 and 02/10/08) both resulted in failure to reach the ice caves.  Please post if anyone has made it all the way up there this winter.  I am hoping that the previous posted Elisabeth made it but she didn't leave many details hah.

I hiked eight miles of pain

A nice, easy hike. A nice opportunity to get outside and take some photos (see http://lenny.gemar.org/?Page=Photos&Action=Gallery&GalleryNumber=21). The main bridge is still out, but the water is low and there is a decent-enough log bridge. The cool air around the mouth of the ice cave was refreshing in the otherwise hot afternoon air.

The Mountain Loop Highway is now open all the way to the trailhead, no worries there. Was looking for a fun hike for the kiddies and this was a great first hike for them, a gradual climb that even my 3-year-old son was able to walk the whole way there and back. The bridge is still out, so we used the fallen tree that serves as a temporary replacement bridge ... added a bit of adventure to the hike but my 5-year-old daughter did fine on it (I carried the 3-year-old across). There are several fallen trees across the trail as well.

The wooded trail opens up into some nice alpine-type scenery at the end. The caves were kinda small, definitely in full melting mode now in July. When you spot  the first couple of caves, just work your way up to the right (the trail is hard to spot at times but it does meander in that direction) and you will see some bigger ones ... the best one we saw was a full tunnel with the waterfall visible through the back side.

The trail was a bit crowded, as it was a Sunday afternoon. Plenty of room at the top for everyone to spread out though. Pit toilets but no water at the trailhead, so fill up your bottles at the service station on the drive in if you need to.

Stopped by here on Sat. (3/10/07), and for those unaware the Mountain Loop Highway is still closed at Bear Creek.  Though I found reference that road repairs are supposed to be completed by end of June of 2007...we'll see.

Anyway, plan on 2.5 extra miles to get from the blocked road to the picnic area and trail head.  And did I mention that was while hiking over 2 to 4 feet of snow?  I gave this a 2 difficulty since without snow shoes it can be a little taxing on the legs (my calf muscles are killing me).  I didn't actually go down the trail since the bridge was washed out on the direct route and the 6 foot snow drifts looked a little sketchy in places to traverse by myself (again without snow shoes).

The area was beautiful though, and there was a certain feeling of isolation when you see the speed limit sign along the road half buried, and given the fact that there aren't that many people out here.  That is until someone on a snowmobile hauls butt right past you...ahhh...the lingering smell of a 2 stroke engine combined with pine!

Nice small hike. The ice caves are not as big as some of the pictures on this site. The hike is partially covered and at the end, its open so on a sunny day it can get really hot. Perfect hike if you dont want to do something strenous

I'm just seconding the other great reviews.  The trail is way cool all the way up, and the pay-off at the top is fabulous.

A wonderful hike. Great reward for little effort. A great hike to take a small child or older parents/friends who don't hike much. We went on 7/23 and it is very dangerous to go in the caves because of melting and falling ice. I would like to go back in early spring/late winter and be able to explore the caves.

I did this hike with my seven-year-old today. We have not hiked at all, before, and this was perfect for a first try! The "pay-off" at the end was snow in July, which motivated her to keep going. The elevation difference from beginning to end is minor, and there were enough curiosities along the route (snags, water springing from the hillside, bridges over gurgling streams) to entertain her along the way. Bring a jacket; it was chilly near the ice caves.

Amazing, I pushed my friend that is in a wheelchair the whole way up. I am glasd their is a hike this perfect outhere. TWO THUMBS UP. **Also Tourists smoking lovely Cancer Sticks**