Three Musketeers Ridge in Enchantments via Snow Lakes Trail / 三劍客脊

  • Reading time:13 mins read

Three Musketeers Ridge in Enchantments sits in the northeast corner of the vast region. It towers above Toketie Lake Basin to the north. Plus, it’s only a stone’s throw away from the famous The Temple.

See more trip photos here.

Three Musketeers Ridge at a Glance

Access: Snow Lakes Trailhead
Round Trip: 22 miles
Elevation Range: 1320′-7680′
Gear: helmet, snowshoes
Route Info: Brian Hill
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: no pets

Core Enchantments Zone Northeast

Most visitors to The Enchantments spend their time in the popular lake basins. So people who come to this area are usually climbers going after specific peaks. Or just those who wish to be off the beaten path.

It was my second trip here in less than two years. The first time I went up to The Temple. Though, I didn’t find the place as appealing during the dry months. So the remaining snow had given the area some life.

Icicle Creek in the AM
Icicle Creek in the AM

See more trip photos here.

Snow Lakes Trail

Over a dozen cars were in the lot when I left the trailhead. Then I went up the switchbacks after crossing Icicle Creek and met two hikers as they walked past me. Soon, the path became muddy from the snowmelt.

I’d see the hikers again by the first clearing above the forest. But the snow had overtaken the trail, so it took careful navigating through the exposed terrain. Afterward, I caught up to the guys and walked together for a while.

Trailside view of Icicle Canyon
Trailside view of Icicle Canyon

See more trip photos here.

Snow Creek Valley

It was continuous snow at 3500′, then I put on snowshoes before the footbridge over the raging Snow Creek. Some snowboarders there thought it was more fun to leap over instead. Past the creek, the trail stayed flat for a while.

Snow quality was as terrible as two weekends ago. But it was less enjoyable to snowshoe with a full pack. Soon, the trail climbed up through the next broad clearing for 400′ before reaching Nada Lake.

The two day hikers
The two day hikers

See more trip photos here.

Through Nada Lake

Parts of the lakeshore trail were dry from the foot traffic. So I took off and put back on the snowshoes several times. Then it was continuous snow by the first toilet sign where I caught up to the two hikers again.

The guys weren’t sure if they’d reach the upper basin today. But they wanted to try going up to the lower lake first and play it by ear. Later, by Nada Lake’s west shore, I bid my farewell and left the beaten path.

Nada Lake in disguise
Nada Lake in disguise

See more trip photos here.

Access Ramp to Three Musketeers Ridge

Snow worsened the minute I left the trail. But I carefully weaved through the snowy talus up to the headwall. Then right before reaching the cliffs, I made my way up the buttress through an access ramp.

Afterward, I put snowshoes on at the top of the buttress above the waterfall. But it wasn’t long before I took them off again below the rocks. Then a faint path and some cairn took me through the steep area.

This way to Three Musketeers Ridge
This way to Three Musketeers Ridge

See more trip photos here.

Three Musketeers Ridge South Route

The terrain flattened at 6000′, where I saw Three Musketeers Ridge. Somehow I don’t remember seeing the peak on my way to The Temple. From there, I then continued west through the open forest to 6200′.

Soon, I made my way north through a steep gully. Though, the snow quality was still terrible on the south side. Then it took a while to reach the bottom of the south ridge at 6800′.

Hillside view of The Temple
Hillside view of The Temple

See more trip photos here.

Summit Ridge Traverse

I didn’t know where I’d spend the night, so I had my overnight gear with me. But it was slow going for the next 800′ to the ridgeline. During this, I stayed west of the south ridgeline to avoid the rocky crest.

It had been blowing south wind till now. But the minute I was on the ridge at 7600′, the north wind then took over. I left the snowshoes there and headed east only to posthole over the entire stretch.

The actual summit on Three Musketeers Ridge
The actual summit on Three Musketeers Ridge

See more trip photos here.

Three Musketeers Ridge Summit Views

As I was about to go up the first tower, I noticed something else looming behind it. Then I remembered that the actual summit sat farther east. So I continued before reaching it as more clouds moved in from the west.

It was so gusty that I spent only a few seconds on top. Soon, I went to enjoy the views behind the boulders, with The Temple front and center. Then to the east were Little Annapurna, Enchantment Peak, and Cannon Mountain.

Southwestern panoramic view
Southwestern panoramic view

See more trip photos here.

En Route to Edward Mesa

As I walked back down to my snowshoes, I thought about going out today. Later, I decided to explore this part of The Enchantments. Then I looked over at Edward Peak jutting out from behind the enticing Edward Mesa.

Three Musketeers Ridge’s west ridge wasn’t conducive to scrambling. So I dropped to 7000′ on the south and went west before returning to the crest. Then I went through the 6760′ saddle southwest of the mesa.

Toketie Lake from Three Musketeers Ridge
Toketie Lake from Three Musketeers Ridge

See more trip photos here.

A Night on Edward Mesa

From the saddle, it wasn’t clear as to which was the best way to take. Traversing the rocky crest didn’t look like fun. So I opted to look for the snow ramps I saw earlier from Three Musketeers Ridge. Then I went up a steep gully past the first cliffs on the west.

Once I reached the top in 400′, I walked north on the flat land. Shortly, I found a sandy spot with a direct view of Edward Peak. Meanwhile, the gusts continued. But it’s never fun to set up a tent in the wind!

Cannon Mountain to Edward Peak panoramic view
Cannon Mountain to Edward Peak panoramic view

See more trip photos here.

Outro

The wind died down sometime during the night. Then the sky was back to clear again at dawn. So I hung around for a while. Of all photos taken with Edward Peak in them, only one showed the tower from afar.

Later I dilly-dallied my way back through Three Musketeers Ridge. The snow stayed terrible. Back at Nada Lake, I found more boot tracks in the snow. Not sure if anyone made it up to Snow Lakes in the past couple of days.

Back to Nada Lake
Back to Nada Lake

See more trip photos here.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Discover more from One Hike A Week / 每週一行

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading