As its name suggests, Icy Creek is very cold all year. It is on the lush northern side of the Green River Gorge.
Like nearby Hanging Gardens, there are no signs and you recognize the trailhead by the color of the gate.
The hard-packed gravel road through the forest is a much easier ride than the singletrack to Hanging Gardens. The grade is steep but consistent all the way to the river.
Icy Creek emerges from underground out of the steep hillside.
In fact, numerous waterfalls shoot right out of the gorge wall, with no immediate source on the surface.
Icy Creek makes a perfect cold water supply for the Department of Fish and Wildlife trout rearing ponds. Electric fence discourages out the bears, while netting keeps out most of the eagles and hawks.
Small catwalks allow you to get up close and personal with the rushing waterby the inlet to the ponds,
and by the outlet where the fish are released to the Green River.
A narrow side trail takes you further upriver through the wet forest.
The Fish and Wildlife access road, closed to private vehicles, offers a smooth, steady climb out of the gorge.
Icy Creek enters the Green River.