Name of area: Icicle Creek
Where: southwest of Leavenworth, WA
How do I get there from Walla Walla?: Take Hwy. 12 to Tri-Cities. Take I-182 to the Vantage, West Richland exit. Follow the signs to Vantage as you turn northwest onto Hwy. 240. Stay on this road as it crosses the Columbia at Vernita Bridge and then heads upstream past Desert Air and Mattawa. At the stop sign, turn left on Hwy. 26. After one mile, get on I-90 headed east-bound. After 12 miles take the George exit and head north on Hwy. 281 to Quincy. At Quincy turn left (west) onto Hwy. 28. Stay on Hwy. 28 to Wenatchee where you turn left (westbound) toward Leavenworth and Stevens pass on Hwy. 2. On the west side of Leavenworth, turn south onto Icicle Rd. The climbing starts about 5 miles up the road.
How long of a drive is it? 4.5 hours
What's there?: Lots of granite butresses. One of Washington's premier cragging areas. Snow Creek Wall contains superb multi-pitch crack routes. Numerous routes of all lengths both sport and trad. spread out over 10 miles of canyon.
Land Ownership: Wenatchee National Forest
Pros: Great rock, tons of routes, great scenery.
Cons: A very long drive. Many routes require very long steep approaches (not for sport weenies). Crags near road are often very crowded on weekends.
Comments: A great place to go for a three-day weekend. A new guidebook is due out soon. Check the shops in Leavenworth.