Bradley Hut

Located 4.5 miles up the Pole Creek drainage at 7,500’, the Bradley hut is the second hut of the classic Sugar Bowl to Squaw Valley traverse. Formerly in the Five Lakes basin near Alpine Meadows, the hut was relocated from 1997 to 1999 due to the designation of the Granite Chief wilderness. Interestingly, the hut in its current location probably gets fewer visitors than it would have in the Granite Chief wilderness, which is less than 1 mile from the end of the Alpine Meadows road. Because of the relocation of the Bradley hut, newer construction lends a more modern feel than the other rustic huts. With ample living and sleeping space for up to 15 people, the hut also has an outhouse, woodstove, plentiful drying racks, solar lighting, two tables and a deck.

If staying at a hut means more to you than spending a night in the woods, and access to expert ski terrain is a critical factor in choosing where to stay, then look no further than the Bradley Hut. Although the other huts access great ski terrain as well, the concentration of long runs in an array of aspects will lure you here. In the immediate vicinity are south facing trees and east facing bowls that will bring you back to the doorstep, as well as nearby Silver Peak to the south. For a longer trip from the hut, ski north into the glades of the Deep Creek drainage. Or drop off the west side of the Sierra Crest into the American River drainage, where touring options include Lyons, Needle and Granite Chief peaks.

Parking is found in a well plowed lot on the west side of Highway 89, 6.5 miles south of Donner Pass Road in Truckee, and 2.3 miles north of the Squaw Valley road. To reach the hut, skin up Forest Road 8 for 4.5 miles over a gradual 1,500’ in elevation. The hut is located on FR8 near a small meadow, and at the base of a hill near the end of the Pole Creek watershed.