Ladies on the Palouse-Cascades Trail
Our travel took place on the ancestral lands of the np̓əšqʷáw̓səxʷ (Wenatchi), Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Yakama, Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla peoples who have stewarded those lands since time immemorial.
Here in Washington State, we are blessed with hundreds of miles of bike trails, paths, and greenways. The League of American Bicyclists has named Washington as the most bike-friendly state in the nation since 2013. There is no better example of this than the Palouse-to-Cascades Trail (formerly known as the Iron Horse Trail, which was formerly known as the John Wayne Pioneer Trail) which spans 285 miles across the state to the Idaho border. I have only gone as far as Cold Creek, but it is definitely something I want to attempt in the future — it takes about a week to complete the trail, and a lot of cyclists return on a train or bus from Spokane. The Palouse to Cascades Trail Coalition is still working to improve eastern sections of the trail.
The packed gravel trail is a former railroad line that went as far as Chicago, and the grade of the trail is extremely even and mellow — riding up to Snoqualmie Pass, the incline is nearly imperceptible. Riding to the Pass and through the mile-long Snoqualmie Tunnel makes an awesome day trip, if leaving from Rattlesnake Lake. The ride can be turned into a pretty adventurous multi-night tour leaving from Seattle via the Cedar River Trail, or the I-90 bridge and the Mountains to Sound Greenway, and camping at one of the many primitive campsites along the trail. It is gravel, but it is a much less technical trail than many others in the region. For more information on how to get started with gravel riding, check out my Gravel 101 post.
This time, we were only interested in a day trip to enjoy the incredible summer weather and the feel of gravel beneath our tires. We parked on the road outside the park and rode into the woods. It was pretty warm out, but had rained recently so everything green was electric. My friend Jean would touch the enchanting greenery every time we stopped — nearly flying off her bike at the sight of a moss-covered scree field. We even found some ripe salmonberries!
It was about 20 miles from Rattlesnake Lake to the Snoqualmie Tunnel, and even though it was starting to get pretty warm, the tunnel is still insanely cold year-round. Even with lights, the wind and echoes inside make it super creepy. We all survived the tunnel, but riding gravel can be pretty tiring. Once we made it through the frigid tunnel the group collapsed onto the sun-baked gravel at Hyak. Once we collected ourselves, we had a 2.5-mile uphill slog to beer and burgers. Jean called it ‘the longest 2 miles of our lives’.
After eating some burgers, fries, and a beer or two, we hopped back onto our bikes and rode back up to the tunnel. After the tunnel, the whole trail is completely downhill, and it is an incredibly quick ride back to the park. A successful 50-mile day!
