Snoqualmie Pass Train Tunnel, Washington, United States

5Christopher R 5:00 PM Oct 11, 2014

A different sort of family hike.
Went with the family on Oct 12, 2014. It was a partly cloudy day in the mid 60s. A typical October day in the Cascades. Finding it is not hard, just past the ski resort. Arriving at the tunnel requires a short 0.4 mile hike from the lot. Once there, it feels like a portal, like you're about to walk into another world. Think C.S. Lewis's "Lion, Witch and Wardrobe." I'll call it the haunting passage to paradise. The impressive size of the tunnel is easily 25 to 30 feet in height. You feel dwarfed my the massive wooden doors of yore. Step in. It's 50F degrees, breezy, damp and with a faint mist. Word is it's like this year round; 90F or 15F just outside the gate matters not. A few hundred feet around the gradual curve and you'll see a brilliant shining pin point of light resembling Venus on the horizon at dusk--that's the other end, 2.3 miles away. But just as Venus does not light up the sky, the speck of light at the far end does nothing for the maddening darkness within the tunnel walls, buried thousands of feet below the mountain peak. The ground is generally smooth and flat. There aren't any humps, holes or other physical hazards you'll encounter. That said, a light source is not necessary. But your mind will fill in all sorts of strange apparitions that will be either frightening or fantastical, depending on your disposition. Go brave or go home.... The sounds within are harrowing yet contemplative: dripping water, pattering footsteps, eerie voices, all of which fade to an indistinguishable echo that never quite goes away. You'll come to realize a similarity of this and all that you encounter in life. Walking toward the light at the other end is quite like a curious dream for much of the journey: you're walking toward a mysterious, lighted object in an otherwise dark and unfamiliar room. You seem to be getting closer to the object yet it never really becomes clear as to what it is and all the while continues to be just out of reach. Until you actually do make it to the other end... It's like walking out of a frigid catacomb and to an area of paradise where you can see enormous peaks and deep valleys of the beautiful Cascade range. A relief of the tension that lay within the dark, so to speak. Going thru the tunnel once necessitates a hike back thru, making the entire round trip just shy of 5 miles. You'll notice that there is no point of light on the way back because of the gradual curve at the other end. Rather, a faint glow becomes apparent about 1/2 to 2/3 way thru and intensifies till the end. All told, I had a great time doing this spooky hike with my wife and 2 children who are 4 & 7 years old. At first they were a bit spooked, but it became a great "just before Halloween" adventure. As stated before, you don't need a lamp, but bring one just in case. Some people also bicycle thru the tunnel, in which case if you're bicycling, you'll need a lamp for safety.

5ukqt40 5:00 PM Aug 11, 2018

very interesting hike!
firstly, be careful not to end up in easton! my gps sent us there.... its actualy at exit 54 at hyak, the ski slopes, before the big lake...not after! we took the 5yr old grandson, and parents and baby in the stroller,the dog, and it was great fun. lots of torches, and bring a sweater, on the way out my hands were cold, on the way back i was warm. we had a picnic at the end of the tunnel, 2 1/2 miles long. 4 picnic tables and a porta potty. a total of 5miles there n back...we made lots of echo noises, count the numbers on the wall down...fun with the grandson. tired out now.