Denny Creek Trail to Melakwa Lake
Date: August 12, 2012
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Distance: 9 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,300 Feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry all the way to the Melakwa Lake.
Hiking with: Linna Freeman, Cathrine Howe, Beatrice He, Andreas Wieberneit and Macho the wonderdog.

I haven’t hiked up Denny Creek to Melakwa Lake this year and knowing that all the ice was gone from the lake it was time to gather a few friends to enjoy a body numbing experience. Linna (my wife) invited a couple that she recently met in Seattle, Andreas Wieberneit & Beatrice He. We all met up at exit 17, off of I-90 along with another friend, Cathrine Howe.

It was a sunny day with temperatures in the eighties, so by the time we got to the trailhead we had to park along the road due to the amount of people; I figured there would be many on a warm sunny Saturday. After the 4 1/2 mile hike up to lake I was more than ready for that body numbing experience! Yes, the water was ball shrinking freezing, maybe 36 to 40 degrees. After a nine mile hike on a hot day meant for a cold beer at the North Bend Bar & Grill.