4A ❚ WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2018 ❚ APPEAL TRIBUNE
Life in the Valley
E
O
H
S
W
O
N
S NDS
U
SO
Quiet Fay Lake trek offers best
balance of beauty, solitude
Zach Urness Salem Statesman Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK
There is nothing overwhelming
about the snowshoe route to Fay
Lake.
Honestly, that’s part of what
makes it appealing.
The trip takes you into silent
forest, past the snow-covered
North Santiam River, and to the
small clearing of Fay Lake.
The trip is challenging but not
backbreaking, scenic but without
mountain views, and, most of all,
quiet.
The trek begins at Big Meadows
Road, on the side of Highway 22
east of Detroit, just before you
reach Maxwell Sno-Park. The road
is typically plowed out to provide
room for parking.
The only concern here is snow.
At just 3,500 feet, snow has been
inconsistent during the past five
years. It’s best during a nice cold
snap, following a dump of low-ele-
vation powder.
The trip was suggested by Lee
Slattum, longtime trip leader and
snowshoe chair for the Salem-
based outdoor club The Chemeke-
tans.
He described the route as a nice
alternative to the often more
crowded sno-parks in the Santiam
Pass area.
Route to North Santiam
and Fay Lake
There are two options in terms
of how far you want to travel.
The trek to Fay Lake is fairly dif-
ficult, especially if you’re breaking
trail, at 6.7 miles round-trip and
700 feet of elevation gain.
An easier option would be turn-
ing back at the scenic viewpoint
over the North Santiam River. That
route is 3.6 miles round-trip with
just 200 feet of climb.
Before starting a trip, make sure
to download a map online (the map
of Maxwell Sno-Park shows this
route) or pick one up at Detroit
Ranger Station.
Either way, the trip begins on
Big Meadows Road and follows the
wide, snow-covered road 1 mile to a
major junction. Here, there are
roads going in many different di-
rections.
For this route, swing a sharp
left, onto Road 2257, following
signs pointing to Big Meadows
Camp.
The best part of this route be-
gins here, as the road narrows and
you have a more narrow, intimate
pathway to follow through snow-
covered fir and hemlock.
At mile 1.5, you’ll reach a horse
camp and lots of signs, while at
mile 1.8, you’ll reach a bridge over
the North Santiam River. It’s a
beautiful spot in winter.
The river is still pretty small at
this point in its journey and snow
covers much of it. White trees lean
across the river and boulders are
piled high with snow.
I stopped at the scenic spot for a
bar and water, then continued on
through the increasingly narrow
and snowy pathway toward Fay
Lake.
The toughest part of the journey
is beyond the North Santiam cross-
ing. The road climbs uphill at a
steady pace, ascending 300 feet in
1.6 miles.
You’ll also pass some roads that
branch off. The main route is
One of the highlights of the snowshoe route to Fey Lake is the
snow-covered North Santiam River. ZACH URNESS/STATESMAN JOURNAL
marked by blue diamonds and,
presumably, a few ski and snow-
shoe tracks.
Eventually, the lake comes into
view, an open snowy clearing in
the middle of the forest. I’ve never
been to Fay Lake during the sum-
mer, but apparently it's stocked
and a good place to fish. In winter,
there’s not much to do here except
admire the view and lay in the sun-
shine.
I traveled there on a bluebird
winter day and, after the shady for-
est for most of the route, the sun-
shine at the lake was welcome.
I set up a seat in the snow and
ate lunch in the glow of the lake —
so bright it looked like a bowl of
milk — and savored the silence. No
sounds of cars, people or cell
phones.
The trip back went quicker, as I
followed the snowshoe tracks I’d
made on the way in. The entire trip
took about four hours. That’s a
good ratio given the drive is about
an hour and a half from Salem.
The snowshoe route to Fay Lake
couldn’t be called spectacular —
with no mountain views — but it’s
a wonderful, quiet adventure with
some nice sights.
Fay Lake snowshoe / ski
In a nutshell: Follow snowed-
over roads through the forest to a
view of the North Santiam River
and Fay Lake.
Difficulty: moderately chal-
lenging
Distance: 6.7 miles round-trip
to Fay Lake; 3.2 miles to North San-
tiam River view
Climb: 700 feet to Fay Lake; 200
to North Santiam
Sno-Park permit required? No
Directions: From Salem, follow
Highway 22 east, past Detroit and
Marion Forks. Just before you
reach Maxwell Sno-Park, look for a
plowed-out spot on Big Meadows
Road. That’s your parking spot.
Zach Urness has been an out-
doors writer, photographer and
videographer in Oregon for 10
years. He is the author of the book
“Hiking Southern Oregon” and can
be reached at zurness@Statesman
Journal.com or (503) 399-6801.
Find him on Twitter at @ZachsO-
Routdoors.