Big Four Ice Caves are easy to reach.  They are precisely one mile up a fine Forest Service trail from the site of the old Big Four Inn, about 25 miles east of Granite Falls, Washington. The trail rises about 300 feet from a beginning at 1,700 feet, making Big Four the lowest glacier cave on record anywhere!   Big Four Glacier is really not a glacier at all; it is a debris pile. Snow avalanches tumble down the mountain continually during the cooler half of the year and accumulate in the bowl-shaped cirque on the north flank of the mountain. 

 Because it is on the north, it is sheltered from direct sunlight and consequently is sheltered from the melting radiant heat. Big Four is actually the name of a magnificent mountain on the south wall of the Stillaguarmish River Valley East, Everett, Washington. If you want to see the caves, give yourself a fighting chance against nature’s cruel blows.  Take plenty of warm clothing in the winter, as well as food and shelter in case you become stranded by bad weather.  In soft snow, snowshoes or skis are a must. Beware of high avalanches from December to March each winter.

Big Four Ice Caves - This is a short hike, the caves are easily accessible from the highway in the summer, about 1 mile in. The hike starts as a paved trail until becoming pathway into the ice field. Our impression is the ice caves may not be around much longer as the Big Four glaciers are melting - global warming??? Inside the caves it is very cold and wet and you don't want to stay long, although the ice ceiling is awesome when the light shines through it. There is a large waterfall at the back end of the caves feeding the stream from the mouth. The cool breeze at the mouth of the cave is welcome also.