Franklin Falls Winter Hike – A Winter Wonderland

A Franklin Falls winter hike is like taking a stroll through a winter wonderland. Images of snow-dusted trees, icicles, frozen rivers, wooden bridges, and partially frozen waterfalls line the trail. Franklin Falls Trail is a 2-mile round trip hike that will lead you right up to the waterfall. What’s even better is that Franklin Falls is less than an hour drive east of Seattle in the Snoqualmie Pass region. This makes it a greats spot for a day trip.

Hiking Franklin Falls in the winter is especially amazing and resembles a winter wonderland with thick snow and icicles everywhere.

Franklin Falls Winter Hike – What To Expect

• Marvelous views of snow-covered waterfall and redwoods
• Franklin Falls trail length: 1 mile to the Falls (2 Miles Roundtrip)
• Winter total trail length: 3.2 Miles to the Falls; When service road to the trailhead is inaccessible to cars. (6.4 Mi Roundtrip)
• Elevation Gain: 400 ft
• Icy and slippery conditions in the winter from the heavily traveled trails and packed snow.

Getting To The Franklin Falls Trail

Winter Parking at Franklin Falls

Parking in the winter is not as straightforward. During the regular season, you can park at the Wagon Road Trailhead parking lot. The service road to the Denny Creek Campground is closed to automobile traffic in the winter. Visitors will need to park and walk up the NF-5800 Service road to reach the Franklin Falls Trailhead.

The intersection of NF-5800 and ND-9034 is where you can park (47.395098, -121.474442). There is a gate by the entrance to NF-5800. Before you head out, check here (WSDOT) for nearby road conditions. From this parking location, you will have to walk the extra 2 miles to reach the Franklin Falls Trailhead trailhead.

Once you reach the Franklin Falls the trailhead sign, follow the trail to the small footbridge directly to the left behind the sign. There are a few forks in the road but the bridge is where you want to go.

Winter Trail Conditions

Part of the allure of hiking in the winter is walking through freshly fallen snow. The trail can be packed snow or ice all the way through depending on the time since the last snowfall. It was well traveled enough that show-shoes were not needed even though few feet of fresh snow had fallen previously within throughout the winter. The trail is still highly traveled during the winter months.

The only caution would be the section leading right down to the falls which can be a bit steep and slippery with compacted snow and ice. There might be a rope to grab on to that will help you with your descent.

Gear For a Franklin Falls Winter Hike

Shoes and Traction Cleats

The service road to the Franklin Falls trailhead is especially icy with compacted ice. The usage of Yaktrax or traction cleats that fit on top of your shoes helped immensely from slipping and falling. 

There was a section where I was unable to make it up the hill until I put on the traction cleats. I can’t imagine hiking the trail without it. I had it on one shoe and lent the other to my friend. One shoe was slipping while the cleats helped with the climb.

I would also recommend waterproof hiking shoes during a winter hike. There were spots of fresh snow where you can sink your entire leg into.

Hiking Poles

Hiking poles were not necessary for this hike but definitely helps with the ice. It is not nearly as effective as the traction cleats but it would be ideal to have both.

Tips

Go Early For Parking

We’d recommend to go as early as possbile for a Franklin Falls winter hike. The available space for parking fills up quickly especially if the service road to the trail head is closed. Depending on how much snow has fallen for the season, spaces can also be limited by accumulated snow.

Bring An Extra Change Of Socks And Shoes

There might be spots on the trail that you may accidentally sink your entire foot into the snow resulting in wet shoes and socks.  It would be a good idea to have a dry set of socks in the car just in case they accidentally get wet.