Pick your plan
| Your permit | Start at | 1 night | 2 nights | 3 nights | 4 to 7 nights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core | Stuart Lake Trailhead. Crossing plans finish at Snow Lakes Trailhead | Colchuck Lake, back the same way | Colchuck Lake, then a night in the Core | Colchuck Lake, the Core, Nada Lake | Colchuck Lake, then the Core slowly |
| Colchuck | Stuart Lake Trailhead | Colchuck Lake, an afternoon at the lake | Colchuck Lake, a day up in the Core | Colchuck Lake, a Core day and a lake day | Colchuck Lake, day hikes and days at camp |
| Snow | Snow Lakes Trailhead | Upper Snow Lake, back the next day | Upper Snow Lake, a day up in the Core | Upper Snow Lake twice, then Nada Lake | Upper Snow Lake, Nada Lake last |
| Stuart | Stuart Lake Trailhead | Lake Stuart | Lake Stuart, a day hike | Lake Stuart, two day hikes | Lake Stuart, day hikes and days at camp |
| Eightmile/Caroline | Eightmile Trailhead | Lake Caroline, up to Windy Pass | Eightmile Lake, then Lake Caroline | Eightmile Lake, then two at Lake Caroline | Eightmile Lake, then three at Lake Caroline |
How many permits each zone gets
The outer zones count groups. The Core counts people.
| Zone | Entry each day |
|---|---|
| Snow | 5 groups |
| Stuart | 4 groups |
| Colchuck | 3 groups |
| Eightmile/Caroline | 3 groups |
| Core | 24 people, 16 through the advance lottery and 8 through the daily lottery |
A group can be up to eight people. So the Core takes as few as 3 groups a day and the four outer zones take 15. Recreation.gov's numbers for the 2026 season, checked October 2, 2026. Read the permit page.
Up or down Aasgard Pass with a full pack
In these reports, 15 trips carried overnight packs over Aasgard Pass. Thirteen carried them up and three carried them down. One trip did both. The crossing plans here start at Stuart Lake Trailhead and finish at Snow Lakes Trailhead for that reason. One writer did not recommend going down Aasgard with a full pack. Another called the way down worse but still preferred it to walking out past Snow Lakes. Neither agency names a direction.
It is about 2,300 ft up from Colchuck Lake in about 1.5 mapped miles, from the app's terrain model. Recreation.gov's caution covers both directions. “Use extreme caution when climbing or descending steep snow slopes, exposed and hidden creeks and waterfalls are present.” Read the full caution.
Getting from one trailhead to the other
The Core crossing plans start at Stuart Lake Trailhead and finish at Snow Lakes Trailhead. Plan a second car or a shuttle. Per the Forest Service, Snow Lakes Trailhead is 4.3 miles up Icicle Road from Leavenworth, and Stuart Lake Trailhead is about 8.5 miles up Icicle Road and about 4 miles up Forest Road 7601. Road closures and the drive in are on the roads page.
Before you go
These plans are built from 30 overnight trip reports dated 2013 to 2026, read September 28, 2026, and the app's mapped line. Most of the reports are Core trips. The Forest Service says “Camp only at previously impacted sites.” Read the permit rules.
The free self-issued day-use permit, your overnight permit and your parking pass are three separate things. Zone edges on the map are mapped estimates. See packing and the app, which has the map offline.