Welcome to Gold Creek POnd!
Gold Creek Pond is an ADA accessible, paved loop path featuring exceptional scenic views throughout the Gold Creek Valley with plenty of areas to enjoy a picnic, skip rocks in the pond and enjoy the beautiful scenery. On a clear day you may enjoy ample wildlife viewing views across the Gold Creek Valley of Chikamin Peak.
Visiting Gold Creek Pond
Trail Difficulty: Easy
Distance:Â 1 mile, roundtrip
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For more information about visiting Gold Creek Pond, please visit the Washington Trails Association.
The history of Gold Creek Pond
As the headwaters of the Yakima River, Gold Creek winds out of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness and passes under I-90 as it flows into Keechelus Lake, near Hyak, just east of Snoqualmie Pass.
As early as 1929, when the state needed material to construct Sunset Highway—what we know today as I-90— it dug massive pits throughout the valley to extract the gravel needed to build the road. One of those pits is now known as Gold Creek Pond. In the 1970s, highway expansion required even more material so freeway builders extracted another 750,000 cubic yards of gravel from this pit, which is located right next to the edge of Gold Creek.
After construction was complete, the gravel pit was allowed to fill with water draining away from the once vibrant adjacent creek instead of restoring it to its original wetland habitat. Despite its beauty, the area’s unnatural construction intensifies the creek’s annual dry period, which is especially harmful to aquatic species like bull trout that need a consistent stream flow to migrate and reproduce.
Land Acknowledgement
We gather and live on the plains, plateaus, mountains, and coastal lands that have been home to Indigenous peoples since time immemorial. We respect their Indigenous, Tribal and Treaty Rights while honoring their stewardship and culture today.
