Daryl and Tina Faust: Big Four Ice Caves

Daryl had Friday off work so we wanted to get the boys out and do something fun; it's been blazing hot the last few weeks (it even reached 105 degrees at our house!). My ankle wasn't quite ready for a long or difficult hike so we settled on the Big Four Ice Caves. It's a nice stroll through the forest, 2 miles round trip. The trail is very well maintained and fairly level. It was beautiful all the way through, but the end was stunning. There were many waterfalls on the face of the mountain, a huge pile of snow at the bottom caused by avalances, the caves just starting to form and wildflowers in bloom.

The ice caves are caused by wind that comes over the mountain (Big Four Mountain) and blows down the face, under the avalanche. As the air blows through and the snow starts to melt a cave is formed. They collapse easily so walking inside or on them is not recommended. Standing at the mouth of a cave you are treated to a nice cold blast of air. It was soooo refreshing! The ranger said September/October they get quite big. There is a snow cave about 3/4 mile away and he said it's the biggest he's ever seen it. We didn't hike to it, but I did get a picture.

On our way out Daryl took the boys down to the Stillaguamish River to play in the water for a bit. CJ was hesitant about getting in, but not Storm! There was a log sticking out of the water and both boys swam out to it and pulled as hard as they could - never able to unearth it. When Daryl was ready to get going again, he called CJ to him... CJ started to come, saw the leash and went running for the river. NOW he wants to get in. It was quite funny watching this happen a few times before Daryl finally starting walking off without him. CJ must have realized Daryl really meant it, so he sulked back to his leash. Click the photos to view a larger size... enjoy!