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The storms & floods last fall lifted two creek bridges off their foundations and moved them aside and for most bicycle riders are impassable. The first is about 10 miles from the Fruitland Ave trailhead, just after you go across 100 ft of very nasty large angular rocks (you'll know it when you cross them). The good news is that the detour around them is easy and pleasant.
Just go out onto the nearby road at the first one, access is obvious. This is the Lyman-Hamilton Rd, which has very little traffic on it. Follow that east until it morphs into Maple St. Turn left at the "Bike 10" left arrow sign in "downtown" Hamilton (about 2/3 mile from start of detour), onto Petit St. Go north about 0.2 mile to the "Bike 10" right arrow. Turn right. At that point you are on the old detour that has been there forever. Follow it east about 0.15 mile and look for an unmarked access path on your left, just past the small swamp/lake on each side of the road. This puts you back on the Cascade Trail.
Just after you start this detour the road makes a sharp right bend and crosses the Cascade Trail. You may be tempted to get back on it at that point. If you do, you will encounter the second bridge that was moved off its foundation and probably need to back track to the road anyway.
Given that the detour is so easy and pleasant, don't bother with these bridges. My guess it that it is very unlikely they will be fixed in the forseeable future, especially given that the first one was already partly off its foundation, req'd walking/hefting your bike anyway, and may probably been that way for many years.
Trail is becoming overgrown with blackberries and there still is the one serious washout. No sign of maintenance and even the Oso Memorial needs gardening help. That being said this is a nice ride and the Memorial is worth visiting. Good gravel and partly paved. Visit the general store in Oso which is 101 years old. Coffee, ice cream and nice folks.
This is an update to my review of last year. The ride is still great and the same as I described then except that last fall's washout mentioned by TrailLink is indeed very serious. I checked it out yesterday. I talked to two bikers that lifted their lightweight road bikes over the barrier blocks on the west end of the washout but there was no way I could do that with my heavier 60 lb eBike.
Besides that, and more important, walking your bike along what's left of the trail is very dangerous. It is narrow (1-2 ft) and one slip and you are in the river, fatally for your bike if not you as well. On top of all that I had to fight blackberry brambles all along the washout edge. I only did it because I did not realize that once you start you are commited -- there is no way to abort and turn your bike around.
I strongly recommend NOT starting at Trafton -- unless you detour out to the highway and back (there are 2 roads available to do that). Instead start at Miller Shingle trailhead (35.5 mile round trip to Darrington) or, as I did yesterday, at a small (half dozen vehicle) parking lot at the west end of the Cicero Bridge (40.8 mile round trip), where you can access the trail (the short paved section of it). Alternatively there is some parking along the highway just beyond the east end of the bridge but you have to ride back across the bridge to access the trail.
Discovered this comfortable place with great accommodations for two bike travelers. They offer a pullout sofa if you do not wish to share a bed. Indoor bike storage with a comfy bed and a hot shower! Distillery right next-door and two restaurants to fuel up in the morning to get back on the trail. Close to the panhandle of West Virginia. Their name is Harmony Trail Haven on Airbnb.
Highly recommend this beautiful and well kept trail. Beautiful to ride along the trees and over the 2 epic ohiopyle bridges.
Drove down from Anacortes to try the trail, but 13004 Meridian St which is designated on the map as a trailhead is an apartment complex and there is no parking available. Tried another location but gave up after we could not find any parking. Very disappointed.
We rode the ODT section that took us along the north side of Lake Crescent. Technically, the signage for this section says it is the Spruce Railroad Trail. It was 8 miles from the start of this trail, going west, to the tip of the lake (past Ovington). It’s was a slight upgrade going out. However, the views in this section were spectacular and the trail was in great shape! Also, there’s ample parking at the trailhead which is where we would start next time!. Unfortunately, we started our ride near Gosset road and rode west. The first 2 miles were paved trail and nice. The next 3 miles were on a gravel road which wasn’t much fun.
The next day, we continued our ride (10 miles one way) on the ODT trail starting from Sequim and going past Blyn where the trail ends. A bit more road riding in this section and some elevation changes but still enjoyable. We parked in town but would advise parking near the Albert Hailer play fields and pick up the trail from there. There are trail detours signs along the way they appear permanent. Overall, a good ride.
We rode the section from the rest area east of Port Angeles (near RV@Olympic campground) to Sequim which was 14.5 miles one way. The trail was paved and in good condition and well marked. A few sections of road travel but really inconsequential to the whole. The first 5 miles of the trail was in a forested area with some significant ups and downs and winding turns. Glad to have e-bikes as those that didn’t were walking their bikes up the hills. Just need to be careful in this section! Otherwise, a really enjoyable ride! Also, Sequim has a number of places to eat that are rideable from the trail.
This trail, while very long, is only on rail corridor for a small percentage of time. When riding this trail, you need to keep in mind that the only goal of this trail construction was to have a peninsula wide trail. There was never any intention of creating a good riding experience. So when you have areas that are 10%+ grades, get suddenly turned out on a road, or just question the wisdom of route decisions, remember the one and only goal and enjoy the good parts. If you want a real rail trail experience head out to the Spruce rail trail in Olympic NP. The best part of the trail is from Port Angeles a few miles east towards Sequim, which is rail trail until you hit the 10% grades.
We did this trail last weekend, from Trafton to Darrington and back, 48.5 miles total, on 1.5" and 1.25" tire bikes, one an eBike, one not. The only downside was the last 5 or so miles at the Darrington end, which got fairly bumpy for stretches totalling at least half that distance, but nonetheless quite do-able if you keep at it. Fantastic scenery. Other people encountered averaged about 1 every 2 miles, my kind of trail, and that on a Saturday in July in perfect weather. The log over the trail reported by the last reviewer had been clearly cut and moved out of the way. There are 2 places where there are "trail closed" signs, one a bridge and the other where the river is starting to eat away at the trail, but we ignored the signs and had no sign-related problems.
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