Flume Gorge winter

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Sgt. Pepper

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Has anyone hikes this in the winter? Curious if I’ll get in trouble hiking the loop when the park is closed?
 
Has anyone hikes this in the winter? Curious if I’ll get in trouble hiking the loop when the park is closed?

It's done quite frequently and it's a great little trip. Weekends you can catch ice climbers in the gorge itself around mid-day and watch them climb the ice. The boardwalk is missing some sections as well, but once things freeze over, you can get by without them.
 
I believe it's open to snowshoers in the winter. Not the whole thing - the wooden walkway section by the actual Flume is closed but you are still allowed to use the much of the rest of the trails.
 
The wooden walkway into the gorge itself is not in place but the ice climbers will be in there. I would advise caution if going through there when there are climbers. It is somewhat of a beginners area with a lot of climbers (often not particularly experienced) and there will be top ropes set up throughout. A lot of ice will likely be flying and a helmet is advisable. Sometimes there has been open water holes to side step. Putting that aside, I wouldn't expect anyone to give you any trouble if you are roaming around on the trails since they allow the climbers in there anyway.
 
Be super-cautious in the gorge. We have had a lot of unseasonably warm weather lately, and more above-freezing temperatures are expected this weekend, with chance of rain. The gorge itself is very shady and may stay below freezing, but if not, you do not want to be under the walls when the icicles start breaking loose. A more immediate danger might be changing water levels in the stream due to runoff from upstream: the ice under your feet may be undermined without any visible warning.
 
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