Hancock Creek

Hancock Creek is a varied canyon which is much better than the topo and lidar lets on. It has a bit of everything including big and technical in flow rappels, jumps, small slides and a stunning corridor section with a smaller creek cascading down a cliff into the main creek. Another highlight at higher flow is the swim of faith behind a raging curtain of water which provides some serious stoke once you pop out the other side unscathed! Can be combined with neighboring Calligan creek for a full day out known as a "Callicock".

Turn off i90 at exit 27 and proceed to where North fork Road SE branches left (do not take SE 72nd St). At this point you are on a well maintained gravel road for 3.3 miles. Park at the spur 10 gate. At this point it is highly recommended to take bikes for the remainder of the approach as it turns the 2 mile forest road slog into a breezy 10-15 minute cycle. Don't forget to get your permit from the self serve kiosk (on the right side of the road 500 feet from the gate). Cycle or walk until you cross the NF Snoqualmie river (approx 1.5 miles), then take the right hand branch of the road and follow for a further 0.5 miles until you cross the bridge over Hancock Creek. If cycling, park your bikes in the woods and hike straight up the clear cut section of the forest under which the pipes for the hydro electric project are housed, it's steep but pretty easy going due to the short grass under foot. If you want to make it easier you can just walk the gravel road which switchbacks its way up the hill.

R1: 80 feet from a tree DCR J1: 8 feet or so into 8 foot deep pool, always check depth before jumping. The downed log that spans the creek has also been jumped. S1: Swirly slide down a narrow chute R2: 30 feet from single bolt DCL. R3: 40 feet from bolts DCR. At high flow there is the option of taking a dry line off a tree DCR. Both the in flow and dry line will put you on the DCR side of a where a big curtain of water shoots out and hits the wall on the other side. This is the swim of faith. Swim in behind the curtain and about 15 feet later you will emerge on the other side. Looks much scarier than it is and is a lot of fun! This drop has been jumped from a perch about 25 feet up DCL into a tight pocket about 7 feet deep. As always, depth check before you jump. R4: 100 feet from double bolt anchor on the back side of a big slab of rock DCL. At higher flows there is another option further down DCL from a tree. R5: 150 feet from big downed log. Watch for rope abrasion on the final 1/3rd of the rappel as the falls go from a ramp to a vertical drop. R6: 50 feet from single bolt DCR. This drop has been jumped from 2 spots, the first is the lip of the falls which requires you boost out over a gap. The second perch is up a little higher DCR and can be accessed using a hand line off a tree. This jump has absolutely zero gap. The pool was an even 12 deep throughout in 2023. Check depth before jumping. R7: 80 feet from tree DCR

After the final rap follow the creek through some nice narrows and then continue either creek walking or get out DCL and hike parallel to the creek through relatively open forest. When you see the bridge, hike out to the road DCL.