JWPT Take 2! - Day 4

We were determined to make it home as once you leave Lake Easton there are few campsites between Lake Easton, Rattlesnake Lake and Duvall. The Snoqualmie Valley Trail does not allow camping off the trail, so we needed to push for home.  This was made much easier by the fact that what we had ridden up just a few short days prior we now got to ride down.

Memorable moments: Head wind. EPIC LONGEST DOWNHILL EVER!!! F16 flew over screaming up the I-90 canyon. Tons of people on the trail. We essentially rode around Lake Easton (we discovered this later on when we looked at our maps). Fabulous "you should" list compiled on the way down Snoqualmie Valley trail. Celebrated with dinner at the Duvall Grill.

Wildlife sightings: Douglas squirrels, 4 Townsend chipmunks, 4 soaring turkey vultures, 1 sage grouse, 1 bunny

Vital stats:
50 trestles
9 gates
3 tunnels
2.7 miles to trail start from Lake Easton campsite
ATM = 0:27:10
MXS = 17.6 mph
AVS = 5.9 mph
Once on the trail...
64.76 miles
ATM = 7:14:13
MXS = 16.7 mph
AVS = 8.9 mph

Nick's GPS:
66 miles
ATM = 9:01:49
MXS = 20.62 mph
AVS = 7.31 mph
840 feet elevation gain
2,887.1 elevation loss

JWPT Take 2 - Day 4

FINAL STATS

Total miles ridden: 250.22

Total hours in the saddle: 25:45:11

Total trestles: 148

Total gates: 48

Total tunnels: 11

Total canyon cut-throughs: 64

Total elevation gain: 4,379.5

Total elevation loss: 4,022.1

JWPT Take 2! - Day 3

After spending a lovely night in Thorp by the Yakima River, being able to clean up in the river and dry out our gear we had a conversation about how far we wanted to continue down the trail or not. Nick felt he had experienced the trail and knew that farther down the trail it was not going to get any smoother or easier.  We decided to ride a short distance to Ellensburg and would then turn around to head home.

The day was cool and grey with off and on sprinkling, mistiness that eventually became constant rain. After Ellensburg we turned around and headed back towards home, but the trail and weather was kicking our butts. We took a brief break and ate at Smokey's BBQ which was delicious! Back on the trail, as we left the canyon leading back towards Cle Elum, we decided to divert up onto the road and ride the road for a ways to give our bodies a break. The road was quite challenging, but we managed to make it to Lake Easton where we set-up camp in one of the small bike camp sites. Whether you are headed West or East, this is a great campground to stop at! Bike campsites can be directly ridden to after registering at the ranger station and there are lovely hot showers that you can purchase tokens for.  We definitely took advantage of this as we were frozen and soaked when we reached Lake Easton.

Trail riding notes: to reach Lake Easton's campground from the trail (not road riding like we did!) watch for a brown trail sign off to the left (if you are heading East)/right (if you are heading West) indicating a very small trail that leads you through the forest [if you reach the large trestle over the Yakima River in-flow to Lake Easton you've gone too far (heading East); short trail is very shortly past trestle on the right (heading West)]; the trail takes a sharp left hand turn after 0.3 miles and continues on for another 0.4 miles where it will make a right hand turn onto old US Hwy 10. You'll travel on this road for 1.5 miles, then turn left onto Lake Easton State Park Rd to register at the ranger station. They will provide you with a map to the bike campsites and shower tokens are available for purchase.  Whether you are heading East or West the next day simply follow these directions in reverse to return to the JWPT.

Memorable moments: Wind, rain, fog = freezing! Rode the road a bit which felt so good on our derrieres. Met 2 ladies walking a section of the trail. Met a guy riding since July 10 from Newport to Plummer to Tekoa to Issaquah and home again due to an article he read about the trail closing. HOT SHOWERS at Lake Easton!! Lovely Smokey's BBQ where we ate a delicious meal. Decided not to ride through Ellensburg, turned back at the trail sign.

Wildlife sightings: Hairy woodpecker, 2 HUGE turkey vultures in a snag, 5 bear scat, 1 ground squirrel, Cedar Waxwings eating Saskatoon berries, 8 deer (1 was a buck), Quail coveys, Bald eagle flew over our camp in the morning

Vital stats:

35 trestles

16 gates

2 tunnels

41.83 miles

ATM = 5:41:27

MXS = 21.6 mph

AVS = 7.3 mph

Nick's GPS:

43.1 miles

Camp to Ellensburg = 5.26 miles one way

Ellensburg to Lake Easton = 37.8 miles

ATM = 7:44:19

AVS = 5.57 mph

600 feet elevation gain

269 feet elevation loss

JWPT Take 2 - Day 3

JWPT Take 2! - Day 2

We got up with the bird song and the sun(!) which helped us warm up before setting off down the trail.  Our intention was to ride from Hyak to Thorp and camp at the same spot the Trio had in July. The sun was gloriously warm and the fall colors out in force.  When we reached the canyon outside of Cle Elum that leads to Thorp we rode through an archway of gorgeous, brilliant yellow Black Cottonwood trees.  We saw loads of bear scat and were very aware of our surroundings; which is why when we happened on a herd of free range cattle (1 of which was sleeping in the ditch next to the trail) it was very startling and when the sleeping cow stood up our brains had a bit of a stutter between cow versus bear.  It was pretty hilarious and we laughed for quite some time!!

**If you are needing trail directions please reference our July Ride**

Memorable moments: scared by black bear-cow (hilarious moment!); gorgeous fall colors!! So, so very sweet to camp at the same spot the Trio did.

Wildlife sightings: 2 ground squirrels, 1 Douglas squirrel, 2 turkey vultures checking us out, scared a Raven, Pileated woodpecker, 1 sage grouse in full freeze mode, 3 huge piles of bear scat, 1 baby garter snake

Vital stats:
26 trestles
22 gates
4 tunnels
12 canyon cut-throughs
46.85 miles
ATM = 5:15:38
MXS = 17.5 mph
AVS = 8.8 mph

Nick's GPS:
48.7 miles
ATM = 6:47:36
AVS = 7.17 mph
118 feet of elevation gain
866 feet of elevation loss

JWPT Take 2 - Day 2

JWPT Take 2! - Day 1

We began our day in such a thick fog that you could hardly see the trail in front of you and it drenched us to the bone which also made us quite cold.  We also had to ride on the road from our house to a different trail access point because King County was renovating the trestles on the trail. We began our ride around 7 a.m. and headed straight out from our house towards Hyak on the Snoqualmie Valley Trail.  We reached Rattlesnake Lake around lunch time and stopped for a rest and food.  By this time the sun was starting to come out and we were warming up, but still drenched with sweat and the morning fog.  The steady climb up to Hyak began after Rattlesnake Lake and it was hard going!  Neither of us had trained with weight and Nick hadn't trained the long distance we were doing on day 1.  For need and memory's sake we stopped at the waterfall from our July 2016 ride and refilled our water. After what felt like forever, we finally reached the Hyak tunnel and proceeded through.  We used the hot air blowers in the bathroom and hot water to warm up and dry as much of our gear as possible, then set-up camp a short ways down the trail. By the time we ate dinner and set-up camp it was dark and we fell into our sleeping bags.  It got quite cold that night, probably into the low 40's/high 30's and much of our gear did not dry completely.

**If you are needing trail directions please reference our July ride**

Memorable moments: Brutal day of riding! Started on the road from the house due to trail construction. Got on the trail at the white post. So foggy this morning we were drenched and the fog turned to rain on our glasses and helmets. We saw some friends on the way out and said a final farewell as they were moving away. Filtered water at the same waterfall the Trio did. Made it to Hyak!! Camped at the side of the trail after utilizing bathroom and hand dryers to wash and warm up.

Wildlife sightings: Grey squirrel, Townsend chipmunk, lots of Flickers and Juncos, beautiful fall colors

Vital stats:

51.02 miles

7:06:43

MXS = 28 mph

AVS = 7.1 mph

2,821.5 feet of elevation gain

37 trestles

2 tunnels

1 gate

Nick's GPS:

53 miles

10:49:00 (Nick forgot to turn the GPS off at rests and stops)

AVS = 4.59 mph

JWPT Take 2 - Day 1

A Trio & A Trail's 2016 Final Stats & Big Thanks!

We finished the trail, said our goodbyes and went back home. The ending of our journey was incredibly emotional and moving and in reflecting back we wish there had been more of a closing; a time to share stories, reflect on our adventure and have closure.  This is vitally important and I strongly encourage you to celebrate your accomplishment whether big or small; if you rode the entire trail or sections, detours or your own roads.  Celebrate!!  You just rode almost 325 miles!!

After our trip we totaled everything up and here's our final stats:

• Total miles ridden: 319.27
• Total miles walked: 12.46++
• Total hours in the saddle: 44:27:29
• Trestles: 125
• Tunnels: 9
• Canyon Cut-throughs: 199
• Trestle Bypasses: 24
• Railroad crossings: 2
• Gates: 8++ (apparently I didn't count the gates we managed to work around!)
• Gate lift-overs: 3 or 4
• Total elevation gain: ~10,000 feet
• Total elevation loss: 8,000 feet

We had soooooo many fabulous human beings and organizations who supported our journey:

• My hubby, Nick - trail support extraordinaire!
• My dad, Richard - so much help with maps, routes, satellite, prayers and more
• Our friends, Aaron & Connie - supported precious cargo on the East side
• My sister, Sarah - schlepping everyone across the pass and cheerleading
• My brother-in-law, Ryan - cheerleading
• Family and friends for following our journey online, praying, cheering
• Jakroo helped bring my jersey designs alive and we loved wearing these for our group
• All our lovely trail angels who provided us shelter, water and listened to our stories
• Edge & Spoke, Redmond helped me prepare so much for this trip with gear, bike tuning, and advice
• Allegro Cyclery helped my mom and Sandy prepare for this trip
• Good To-Go Meals were the meals we used the most for our dinners

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 9 - CELEBRATION!!

We rode from Rosalia to Tekoa and then the final 5 miles to the actual Washington/Idaho border. Conceivably you could ride from Pine City to Tekoa. Please refer to our Day 8 post that includes directions around the removed Rosalia trestle and through the Rosalia marsh.  You really begin to relish the change in scenery as you start traveling towards Tekoa.  Aspen groves, Ponderosa Pines and other evergreens intersperse with marshes, thick vegetation, and rolling fields of wheat, alfalfa, chamomile and other agriculture.  This is also an area where there are large egg distribution centers and seed producers.  There are huge marshes outside of Tekoa and when we rode in 2016 they were impassable; however, in 2017 these areas had been mowed and vegetation killed back so we were able to ride quite a ways through the marsh.  There is definitely a spot you reach where you could choose to wade through or just hop up on the road, ride a short ways and return back to the trail. There aren't any road or trail signs to indicate where these short detours are, you will just have to sense for yourself and choose ways that work best for you.

The trail officially ends in Tekoa, just up the main road where there is a large sign called "Slippery Gulch", however, if you want to reach the actual WA/ID border you'll need to ride up and onto the trail for the 5 miles to the true border.  The Tekoa Trestle has no decking and there is no way around it so you have to watch for a small road that will take you up on to a farm road you can ride into Tekoa.  If the marshes are overgrown again, then you can ride the farm roads into Tekoa.  I've included directions below with farm road detours and staying on the trail.  Tekoa has a couple of restaurants, a market and a wonderful, somewhat self-serve, B&B - Tekoa Lodging.  We had our family meet us at the border for celebrating our accomplishment and a ride home!

Trail riding notes:

• Rosalia to Tekoa with farm road detours: As you leave Rosalia, ride North back on S Park Ave, left on W 7th St, left on Horlacher Road, left up onto the trail (you'll see the gate and signs). Once up on the trail you will have to wade through the Rosalia marsh; follow the trail for 6 miles. At this point, you will reach a huge trestle that no longer exists; you need to walk to the left and up onto Pandora Road; turn right and ride down Pandora Road, then right on Wilhelm Road; follow Wilhelm Road for 0.1 miles and then left back up onto the trail.  Follow the trail for another 6.6 miles, you will notice the trail bed significantly changes from gravel to thick marsh grass as you look North into a canyon cut-through. There is a tiny dirt road of about 500 feet long to the right and you can take this to get on the farm road detour; turn left onto Lone Pine Rd; follow Lone Pine Rd for 5.2 miles (LOTS of hills) and then it makes a natural left hand turn, cross the bridge and then ride up to Hwy 27; turn right onto the highway and follow for 0.2 miles, then turn left onto Spring Street (if you wanted to go into Tekoa and take pictures at the Slippery Gulch sign and trail end you would ride 0.6 miles down Hwy 27 and turn right onto Crosby Street; the sign will be on your right); follow Spring Street for 0.3 miles, it dead-ends in a T at Washington Street; turn right onto WA Street, then left onto the trail.  Finish the trail in 5.3 miles where there is a small sign to the left that states "End of WA DNR Milwaukee Road Corridor".
• Rosalia to Tekoa via the marsh: As you leave Rosalia, ride North back on S Park Ave, left on W 7th St, left on Horlacher Road, left up onto the trail (you'll see the gate and signs). Once up on the trail you will have to wade through the Rosalia marsh; follow the trail for 6 miles. At this point, you will reach a huge trestle that no longer exists; you need to walk to the left and up onto Pandora Road; turn right and ride down Pandora Road, then right on Wilhelm Road; follow Wilhelm Road for 0.1 miles and then left back up onto the trail.  Follow the trail for another 6.6 miles, you will notice the trail bed significantly changes from gravel to thick marsh grass as you look North into a canyon cut-through.  If the marsh is passable, you can go ahead and keep riding! Follow the trail for another 2.2 miles; at this point (in 2017) we reached an extremely soggy, overgrown marsh and diverted up onto the road for a short ways. Turn left onto Chase Road, right onto Lone Pine Road and follow for 1.2 miles; at 0.1 miles on Lone Pine Road stay to the right at the Y to continue on Lone Pine Road; at 1.2 miles turn right on a dirt road (no name) then left back onto the JWPT. Follow the trail for 1.1 miles where you need to exit onto the farm road to ride into Tekoa as there is no way down from the absent trestle; turn left onto Summer Road for 200 feet, then right onto Lone Pine Road; follow the road for 1.1 miles and then it makes a natural left hand turn, cross the bridge and then ride up to Hwy 27; turn right onto the highway and follow for 0.2 miles, then turn left onto Spring Street (if you wanted to go into Tekoa and take pictures at the Slippery Gulch sign and trail end you would ride 0.6 miles down Hwy 27 and turn right onto Crosby Street; the sign will be on your right); follow Spring Street for 0.3 miles, it dead-ends in a T at Washington Street; turn right onto WA Street, then left onto the trail.  Finish the trail in 5.3 miles where there is a small sign to the left that states "End of WA DNR Milwaukee Road Corridor".

Memorable moments: Pouring rain in the morning; waded through a marsh first thing; Mama was ecstatic that she had decided to put on her long pants and keep them on! We ended up wading into Lone Pine marsh a ways before turning around, where we spotted our friends and my hubby, Nick, riding down the road towards us. We ended up riding the road into Tekoa all together. Back in the Pines and rolling wheat fields. Nick was at the finish line with a toilet paper line and videoing, took tons of pictures and waited about 2 hours for my dad, sister and brother-in-law to arrive. We said our goodbyes and ate an epic dinner at our friends'!

Wildlife sightings: 6 coyotes, 2 red tailed hawks, 1 harrier, 1 owl, 2 mice, 2 chipmunks, birds bathing in puddle

Vital stats:

70 canyon cut-throughs, 7 bridges/trestles, 8 trestle bypasses

Duvall to Tekoa = ~10,000 foot elevation gain and 8,000 foot decline

27.19 miles

ATM = 4:06:05

MXS = 20.6 mph

AVS = 6.6 mph

JWPT Day 9

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 8

We treated ourselves the morning of day 8 to a glorious breakfast at the St. John Inn Cafe'! It was utterly fabulous to not eat oatmeal and such a great treat as it had rained pretty heavily the night before and we were cold and our gear was all wet.  Sandy was fortunate enough to find shelter under the picnic bench area at the fairgrounds.  This was doubly fortunate because since Doris/Huntzinger Road, Sandy had no poles and could not setup her tent or fly to be out of the elements.

We rode from St. John to Rosalia via back roads as we chose not to ride back to Ewan and take the Rock Lake detour; however, you could choose to ride back to Ewan  and take the Rock Lake detour. I've included directions below for back roads to Pine City from St. John.  In Rosalia, you are able to camp at the Rosalia City park and if you email ahead of time the mayor is willing to open the bathrooms where you can potentially shower and clean-up.  There is also potable water and a picnic shelter. You could easily walk up into town to have a meal as there are several restaurants and a market.  We were so grateful to lay out all of our wet gear in the sunshine and let it dry! The picnic shelter was extremely fabulous because it proceeded to pour rain all night and we were able to keep our gear dry.

Trail riding notes: From St. John you will need to ride back down Hwy 23 and turn right onto Pine City-Malden Road, follow this for approximately 9 miles until you reach Pine City. Turn right at the grain silos and onto the JWPT. If you do not go to St. John and ride from Marengo to Pine City, your day would begin in Pine City and you would be riding to Tekoa to finish the trail. When you ride this section you will ride through Rosalia and there is a brief detour here due to a trestle being out. I will provide the detailed riding notes for Tekoa in our Day 9 ride, but have included the information for Rosalia here. There are extremely steep and rugged trestle bypasses during this stretch, be sure to use caution as they can be very steep and overgrown so the trail bed is hidden and sometimes these lead down to road crossings and then quickly back up onto the trail. When you reach Rosalia, there is a trestle that is out requiring you to travel on the road for a brief distance; turn left onto W 7th St; take the first right onto Horlacher Road (if you cross the bridge you've gone too far); follow for 0.2 miles, then turn left onto the JWPT (you'll see the signs and gate).  After you get back up on the trail, there is a huge canyon cut-through that is a serious marsh; I would encourage you to wear water shoes or crocs to wade through as the water can be ankle deep.  As we were staying the night in Rosalia, we continued into Rosalia on W 7th St, turn right on S Park Ave, this dead-ends into a T at W 9th Street and the Rosalia City Park will be directly in front of you.

Memorable moments: Started our day off with a GLORIOUS breakfast at St. John Inn cafe' - so delicious!! Slept in picnic shelter in Rosalia, Nick brought us cookies and off-loaded a bunch of gear for us. Ate a ton of food to lighten our gear load! Started the day in off and on rain, then sunny and warm all afternoon/evening, did laundry at the spigots in Rosalia. Finding trees again in Pine City!

Wildlife sightings: 3 chipmunks, 2 Great Blue Herons, Rufous Hummingbird hovered in front of us in a gorgeous canyon we nicknamed 'Fern Gully', marmot, coyote pup checking us out on the trail

Vital stats:
6 canyon cut-throughs
8 bridges/trestles
1 gate locked and wouldn't open, second gate opened; we were able to get around the 1st gate by carefully maneuvering through the barbed wire fence
Stats before Rachel changed bike computer battery:
12.10 miles
ATM = 1:26:51
MXS = 26.5 mph
AVS = 8.3 mph
~1,280 lifetime miles on the odometer prior to battery change. Not working after battery change.

Mama's bike computer stats:
24.84 miles
ATM = 3:40:39
MXS = 23.6 mph
AVS = 6.7 mph

JWPT Day 8

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 7

Once you leave Lind you will need your permit from the Washington State Parks as the gate codes differ. From Marengo we set off for Ewan and a plan to spend a night in the town of St. John.  We were almost out of Central Washington and the Palouse and noticed the ecology beginning to change - more trees, marshes and vegetation.  Several of the canyon cut-throughs were super marshy and soggy.

We chose to ride on into St. John as a treat towards the end of our trip; however, you can stop in Ewan and then continue on via the Rock Lake detour.  This detour is extremely important to follow due to the fact that there is a caved in tunnel, a rock slide and non-existent trestles, and private property that the owner has not permitted access to. The road detour I describe below does take you pretty close to Rock Lake where you can see the lake and the old trestle and tunnel. St. John is a lovely spot to detour to - many services (restaurants, B&B, hotel, grocery store, etc.) and you can camp at the fairgrounds where there are restrooms to clean up in. There are no services in Ewan, but you could potentially ask for water from one of the house in this sweet little town.  There also appears to be a church here that you could potentially camp at for the night.  You could also choose to ride from Marengo to Pine City. There are no services in Pine City, but you could perhaps ask for water from one of the houses and you could seek shelter and camping near the grain silos where the trail begins again.  I have provided several different directions for riding options below.

Trail riding notes:

• Riding from Marengo to Ewan, then detouring to St. John; it is approximately 7 miles from Ewan to St. John: the trail mostly continues from Marengo to Ewan with several gates that have challenging locks to open. At one point you ride onto Wagner Road and it eventually joins the trail again, but there is little to no signage. When you reach Ewan the trestle is gone so you need to take the steep downhill road to the right and drop down to Highway 23; to continue to St. John you turn right onto Hwy 23 and ride until you reach St. John.
• Riding from Marengo to Ewan, Rock Lake detour to Pine City: When you reach Ewan the trestle is gone so you need to take the steep downhill road to the right and drop down to Hwy 23; pretty much directly across the highway is WR Damrell Road, this becomes Rock Lake Road; follow for a little over 1 mile and then turn right onto Gene Webb Road, this dead-ends into a T where you will turn left onto Stephen Road; follow for approximately 13.5 miles where the road dead-ends into a T where you will turn left onto Pine City-Malden Road; follow this road for 0.7 miles and then turn right at the grain silos back onto the JWPT.

Trail angels: Joe at the golf course in St. John let us camp at the RV park by the fairgrounds. Tammy at the tavern let us use the phone and kept the kitchen open so we could eat our first meal not out of a bag. A lovely couple at Ewan let us know the road was pretty flat into St. John.

Memorable moments: Discovered that we needed an actual permit from Lind to Tekoa from the state, not just a Discover pass.  Managed to call the Ranger and get our permit and she was gracious enough to give us the codes, but neither worked.  First gate lift-over of the day and another later on; lots of other gates that we either went around or were able to make the locks open. Mama and I ran over a bull snake, but it was OK! Ended up riding on private property we weren't supposed to, but the gate opened and there was a state parks sign (**caveat: I believe this has changed as the maps now show trail access is permitted). Spectacular habitats and ecosystems with underground springs causing lush vegetation and animal life. Deep, heavy river rock to ride through. Went through gorgeous columnar basalt formations that looked like forts and other structures. Cows kept running alongside us in one pasture. Had to cross two small marshy spots. Take Wagner Rd until joins trail again, several spots riding on gravel type easements, poor signage and really tough locks to open; Hwy 23 to St. John. Mama fell arriving at our campsite, Rachel fell in the thick gravel. Saw two huge cargo jets fly over.

Wildlife sightings: Lots of red tailed hawks and other birds, 2 coyotes, 1 deer, Fly catchers (?) with nest, Yellow headed blackbird, mama duck and babies, Osprey and nest.

Vital stats:
58 canyon cuts
5 bridges/trestles
1 waterfall
34.93 miles
ATM = 5:03:26
MXS = 15 mph
AVS = 6.8 mph

JWPT Day 7

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 6

Lind to Marengo is another hot, dry, no services section of trail.  You might be fortunate to find trail angels in Ralston, but do not necessarily plan on this. There are also no services in Marengo, unless you can again find trail angels.  Be sure to carry lots of water!!!  Your only shelter will be the shade of grain silos/elevators.  There is a small park in Ralston that you could potentially camp at, but there is no water there.  There is also a significant road detour between Lind and Marengo.  The trail maps that come with your permit offer a detour to Ritzville from Ralston and then riding back down to Marengo and on to Ewan or St. John.  Our group opted not to take the Ritzville detour, but rather rode directly on to Marengo.  If you are at all worried about having the help of trail angels in Marengo or being able to carry enough water, then I highly encourage you to take the Ritzville detour.  There are services in Ritzville and I did not research this at all so cannot offer details on what is available regarding camping, supplies, etc.  There are other blogs/resources that have information you can research; check out the "resources galore!" section on this blog for links. Before you reach Marengo, as you are going down Marengo Road, there is a huge grove of trees to the right; you could potentially camp there, but I believe this is private property.

Trail riding moments: From Lind, you will take 1st street which becomes Van Marter Ave, turn left/take Y to the left on Wahl Road to return to JWPT.  You will take the trail the entire way until you reach Ralston.  At Ralston you can decide if you will take the detour to Ritzville or take back farm roads to Marengo.  I do not have the directions to Ritzville, but they are on the map when you receive your permit.  Our directions are as follows: turn left onto highway 261, take second right onto Benzel Road which makes a hard, natural left; in approximately 1 mile, take first right on Roloff Road; makes a sweeping left and becomes Klein Road; follow Klein Road for approximately 6 miles and turn right onto E Gering Road; road makes natural hard left and becomes Snyder Road; follow for approximately 1 mile and turn right onto E Heineman Road, this will dead-end into a T; turn right onto Hills Road, makes sweeping natural curve to left and becomes E Urquhart Rd; follow for approximately 1.4 miles and turn right onto Marengo Rd. Follow Marengo Road for approximately 3.6 miles until it curves around near some large grain silos. You could potentially camp here overnight.
**Caveat: this detour exists because the HUGE trestle that used to cross Cow Creek no longer exists. I've become curious if it might be possible to ride this section as there is a small little road below the trestle that you could possibly take and get back onto the trail directly over Cow Creek (Google Maps Pin). That being said, I have no idea if this is a huge marsh; how big the creek is or any other information. From Cow Creek it does look like the trail continues on into Ewan. If you were going to attempt to ride this section, I would highly encourage you to drive the back country roads to see if the trail is accessible through this area.**

Memorable moments: Wicked rough trail, road detour at Ralston to Marengo had insane hills!! ~900 feet climbing and 625 feet dropped.  No injuries besides regular bumps and bruises. Amazing old farm homesteads, grain elevators/silos, little railroad stops.  Poor Sandy's lips became incredibly swollen from the sun and wind burn!  Sandy bought a bag of grapes and we ate sun-warmed grapes throughout the day. Passed, and smelled, a mounted cow skull and dead, rotting coyote hanging over a "No Trespassing" sign.

Trail angels: Dale at Jim's Market super sweet and helpful.  Found some lovely trail angels in Ralston who allowed us to use their bathroom and fill up with water.  Their house was incredible!! So much history - 200 people lived in/around Ralston.  The house we stopped at was a hotel, restaurant, whorehouse, dancing floor, meat locker and grain storage throughout its life. It had 16 rooms, but technically only 15 because no number 13. Lots of original parts and pieces.  In Marengo we talked to a wheat farming family that told us there used to be 9 families living there, a grocery store and school.  Marengo was the switch yard for the Milwaukee and Northern Pacific rail lines - one train heading west and the other east. When you ride down to Marengo you will ride past a huge grove of trees - these were planted in 1985 to attract birds.  So many birds!!!!

Wildlife sightings: rabbits, pheasants, quail, lots of birds and insects

Vital stats:
4 bridges
~15 canyon cut-throughs
8 trestle bypasses, one of which was a marsh at the bottom
3 huge underpasses ridden through
35.56 miles
ATM = 5:28:36
MXS = 23.1 mph
AVS = 6.4 mph

JWPT 6

Othello to Lind

Okay, so weirdly enough, our group has not actually ridden this section in full due to challenges related to heat, starting points, personal health, etc.  Rather than trying to weirdly overlap posts about what we've done and haven't done I'm choosing to write an entirely separate post.  Othello to Lind is definitely doable, however, be aware of how hot and dry this section of the trail is and also what your capabilities are.  There are absolutely no services between Warden and Lind and no residences. Warden has places to purchase water and several small restaurants; there is nowhere known to camp here.

Here's what it can be...

When you leave Othello you should continue on W Main St which becomes W Cunningham Rd, turn left on Booker Rd becomes Rd U SE becomes S County Rd and takes you directly to Warden.  Once in Warden, turn right on 1st Street, about 0.6 miles down 1st Street, turn right on Fir Avenue and rejoin the trail almost immediately.  This section, from Warden to Lind, is where we encountered the locked gates that we had to do a lift-over in 2016.

You will ride for approximately 20 miles on the trail and then cross highway 21 to continue on the JWPT for about a mile; the trail dead ends due to the fact that the Lind trestle no longer exists.  The trail drops onto highway 21 which you will ride into Lind.  Turn left on 1st street, turn right on 2nd avenue, the Sculpture Park is on the right or you can travel a little further down 2nd and the Town of Lind Park is on the left.  You are allowed to camp in either of these.  Lind has a little grocery store, Jim's Market, a tavern and is an excellent place to stop for rest and re-supplying.

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 5

Because we left from a different place than originally planned we did have to make some adjustments to where we were riding and we ended up doing quite a bit more road riding than planned. We rode through beautiful countryside and fields upon fields of numerous different plants.  We rejoined the trail in Warden and the trail continued to kick our behinds! Rough trail - sand, heavy, deep gravel and river rock, overgrown canyons with tumbleweed and sagebrush, trestle bypasses (these are spots where trestles have been removed and you must ride around), and gates we had to lift over as they wouldn't open and there was no way around. We rode from Scooteney to Lind.  Our plan had been to ride from Doris/Beverly to Othello.  In 2017, we did ride from Beverly to Othello.  From Othello you can ride on to Lind.

We are truly in the heart of Central WA and the agricultural center of our state. Absolutely beautiful and the columnar basalt formations are breath-taking!

**Trail etiquette note: when gates are closed and locked you will need the codes from your permit to open them.  That being said, codes don't always work; be respectful of gates - if you see a way around them you could attempt this.  NEVER cut fences, locks, change gate codes or leave gates open/unlocked.

Trail riding notes: If we had ridden from Beverly we would have arrived in Othello. I'm including directions for what we would have ridden rather than what we did ride. Once you cross I-90, turn right onto Highway 243 and proceed south, turn left onto Road 17 SW, take the first left onto Main street and you will dead-end onto a very rough parking area where the trail begins on the eastern portion.  Proceed on the trail for as long as possible, the trail technically 'ends' in Smyrna, but you can remain on the trail if you wish.  There are no services anywhere between Beverly and Othello, unless a trail angel helps you out; be sure to carry extra water!  The trail eventually dead ends into where the railroad tracks are still in place and trains actively run.  You must diverge from the trail at this point and best to do so prior to the railroad tracks.  About a mile before the railroad tracks begin you will see a steep road-cut to the left, take this down to Road 17 (a gravel back road), turn right onto Road 17; eventually the road becomes Crab Creek Road and eventually changes to W Gillis Road; the road will take a sharp turn to the left, climb a short ways and you will turn right onto Highway 26.  This is a busy highway, but there is a wide shoulder and drivers will usually give you space. Make sure you are visible! Turn right onto S Danielson Road (caveat: when we rode in 2017 this road was closed), makes a sharp right, follow and cross railroad tracks, turn left onto W Bench Road, turn left onto Hwy 24/S Broadway Ave, turn right onto Main street. If Danielson Road is still closed, you could continue on Hwy 26 all the way into Othello.  You ride Hwy 26 until Othello where you turn left on 1st Ave, then right onto Main street. Othello has numerous services and is quite a large town; there are hotels and parks.  When I attempted to contact the city regarding camping in the parks I did not hear back, but I would imagine you would be able to camp in the parks.

Trail angels: A sweet family offered to let us sleep under their balcony to shelter from the storm when we arrived in Lind.  As we rode out of Lind a sweet gentleman asked if we needed help; Jeff at Tires West and Napa auto parts people let us use the bathroom and tried to help Sandy with her chain in Warden.

Memorable moments: Smells of wheat ripening, wet fields, chemicals, mint, thunderstorms. Sounds of machines and trucks roaring by, the wind in the wheat.  Land of sage, sun and sand. Rainbow over Lind. Circle farming, crop duster, combines; old farmstead.  Mama fell in the sand, Rachel fell into a tumbleweed and on a rock (gaining her the trail name "Tumbalina").  Encountered our first locked gates, combo worked on West end, but due to double lock and no correct codes we had to do a gate lift-over on the East end.

Wildlife sightings: 2 lizards, one was a horned lizard; crazy insects - butterflies, moths, ground hornets, DRAGONFLIES!! (translucent wings with black bars and black bodies); amazing owl (?) nest/hunting/eating spot; two covey of quail families - one had chick's that were teenagers and the other had chick's the size of silver dollars; 2 coyotes; 1 rabbit; amazing raptors - family of red tailed hawks hunting; white bird with black wing tips - not ID'd; saw 1 hit and dead Kestrel and a sparrow or Finch.

Vital stats:
5 bridges, 30 canyon cut-throughs, 8 trestle bypasses
45.09 miles
ATM = 6:01:54
MXS = 27.8 mph
AVS = 7.4 mph

My mom's bike computer:
45.26 miles
ATM = 5:38:29
MXS = 22.9 mph
AVS = 8 mph


JWPT Day 5

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 4

Probably the hottest, most rugged portion of the trail thus far.  The Yakima Training Center is a barren, stunningly beautiful place.  According to Wikipedia, "It comprises 327,000 acres (132,332 hectares) of land, most of which consists of shrub-steppe, making it one of the largest areas of shrub-steppe habitat remaining in Washington state."  While day 4 definitely did not let up on us, we finally started to hit our stride and really sink into the trail.

Trail riding notes: As you first enter the Training Center you need to fill out the permit paperwork for riding across the reserve.  It is important to sign-in and once you have ridden across you will need to turn in your permit showing you have completed the reserve.  Once you are on the reserve you are not allowed to stop and camp overnight, so be prepared to ride the distance.

A ways onto the reserve is a massive tunnel and canyon.  You could choose to ride through this canyon and tunnel, however, there was a cave-in several years ago and the tunnel is NOT safe to ride through.  There is a bypass that will take you up and over the tunnel; while it is a very heavy basalt to ride through (I did end up walking some more), this is the safest route.

When you ride this section you MUST carry extra water. It is extremely hot and dry with very little shelter from the sun.  It is also profoundly windy - gusts up to 40 mph may hit the trail.  There were definitely sections we walked due to the ferocity of the wind. The distance is about 22 miles on the reserve and while there is a pit toilet about half way across, there is no available water until about 3/4 of the way through.  You can then ride a side road where there is another pit toilet and potable water.  If you are running low on water you should definitely utilize this spot to refill as the next section on Huntzinger Road is extremely hot and dry.

Huntzinger Road is a road/risk you can take to ride to Wanapum State Park for a night of camping at the bike sites ($12 for the night) where you will have access to water, showers and lovely shaded camp sites.  This road is extremely narrow, winding and undulating; it is often driven by cars going extremely fast.  If you choose to ride this road, make sure you are visible and take your time.  Along the way there is a fishing spot where you can pause for a rest near the restrooms and be in the shade. You could also choose to have someone pick you up in Doris (the 'town' at the end of the Eastern side of the reserve).

There is a beautiful old trestle, Beverly Bridge, that crosses the Columbia River, however, you may not cross as there is no decking to the trestle and it is closed due to fire damage.  You can choose to ride Huntzinger Road and then have a support vehicle pick you up to transport you across I-90 and down to Beverly on the eastern side of the Columbia River and where the JWPT continues.  This is the option we chose as it was the safest.  We did start to ride down Huntzinger Road, but when we reached the fishing spot we decided it was unwise to continue.  We had my husband, Nick, pick us up there and transport us across the river to Beverly.  After a heart-felt conversation and realizing we were too exhausted to jump on the trail again, Nick kindly drove us to a campsite near Warden, cutting off about 40 miles of the trail.  For us, this was the best decision; I had needed to walk about 7 miles of the trail due to how deep the sand and gravel were at the beginning of the reserve and we were utterly exhausted.  It was hard to cut off this section of trail, but we intended to return in the future and try again.

While this information may be worrying, the reserve is an utterly spectacular portion of this trail and I highly recommend riding it!  My intention is to provide realistic expectations of what the trail holds. If you were riding with fat tires, this portion would be much easier!

Here's our journal entry for the day...

Rode from military base west end to east end ~23-25 miles.  Restroom pit toilet about half way; potable water, toilet and potential side road (?) at around 3/4 way through.  Horrifying deep and, large rock ballast, ended up walking ~7-8 miles; terrifying crosswinds and occasional headwind.  Had to walk with our bikes leaned over just to not be blown off the trail.  Rode with Dan for quite a ways. Found his flags, didn't get to say goodbye.
Tunnel was bypassed and canyon was insanely deep; couldn't even see the bottom!
Rode part of the way down Huntzinger (scary!); Nick picked us up at a fishing spot on the road at a pit toilet.
Drove to Beverly, nowhere to camp, exhausted, no desire to continue on trail.  Had Nick drive us to outside Othello and camped at Scooteney campground.  Did laundry at a spigot and reloaded gear for the Eastern part of our ride. Did not ride ~37 miles of the trail.

Memorable moments: No injuries! A few gear mishaps from all the rough terrain, sand and wind. Sandy left her tent poles at Huntzinger fishing spot. Smells of dust, ancient rock, grasslands, sage baking in the sun. The canyon cut-throughs howl with the wind and the grasslands sound like wood flutes playing; listening to bats as we fell asleep.

Wildlife sightings: Amazing red tailed hawk swooping out of canyon; bones and owl pellet; lots of tracks - scrub elk, mountain goat (super sweet to spot baby tracks alongside adult) and coyote; sweet canyon birds; bats at campground.

Vital stats:
4 trestles
15-20 canyon cut-throughs
Fitbit says = 30,096 steps; 12.46 miles
Rachel's bike computer says -

• 21.59 miles
• ATM = 3:29:15
• MXS = 17.9 mph
• AVS = 6.1 mph

My mom's bike computer says -

• 23.26 miles
• ATM = 3:21:07
• MXS = 18.6 mph
• AVS = 6.9 mph

JWPT Day 4

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 3

Day 3 was when we started to notice the trail terrain really changing - mix of sand and heavy river rock.  With my narrow tires there were moments I had to do quite a bit of walking and just sheer muscling of my bike down the trail.  Day 3 for many people is the hardest, whether hiking or biking or doing any physical activity.  Day 3 is often the day your muscles are the most sore, your emotions are really struggling for balance, your mental exhaustion may be peaking, your calorie burn is really starting to hit, etc.  It is a hard day and remembering to be gentle with yourself, push to your comfort level and taking breaks is so very important. So many lessons were learned on day 3 - when a detour is suggested, you should probably take it; when lost, ask for directions; when needing help, be willing to knock on doors; lean into the discomfort, fear, anger, frustration and journey; be open...

Trail riding notes: The trail can be a little tricky when you reach Ellensburg.  At the  old depot in Ellensburg, cross the road and continue on the trail for a short ways where it leads directly into W 14th Avenue; turn left onto 14th and follow through the CWU campus.  The road becomes E 14th Avenue and then E Dean Nicholson Blvd, when you reach N Alder St. turn right and follow until a 4-way stop light.  Continue through the stop-light and you will begin to ride onto the Ellensburg fairgrounds; rejoin the trail to the left where the brown trail sign indicates.  The trail continues on out of Ellensburg and through the small township of Kittitas.  As you leave Kittitas the trail will begin to gradually climb until you reach Prater Road (there is a large alfalfa farm to the right of the trail with very large hay stacks).  This is the detour around the closed trestle that crosses I-90, approximately 3 miles down the trail - take the detour!  Turn right on Prater Road, left on Boylston Road which will come to a 'dead-end' T at Stevens Road; there is a road sign and trail sign to follow.  Turn right onto Stevens Road and ride up onto the Yakima Training Center reserve.  If you choose to wait a day to begin riding the reserve early the next morning, there is a pit toilet and you can camp at the primitive West entry of the reserve. This is a dry camp and there is no water.

Trail angels: Brad King, CWU (Central Washington University) police, helped us re-find the trail after we got lost in Ellensburg.  No water at the campsite, so we went up the road and met a sweet ranching lady who let us fill up with her garden hose while her sweet dogs made sure we were welcome visitors.

Wildlife sightings: 1 milk snake, rabbits, mama Killdeer guarding her eggs, beautiful bird sightings - hawks pair hunting, Red Tail Hawk swooping, Turkey vultures, funny quail!!

Memorable moments: Didn't take a detour, went 6 miles out of the way; endured hiking up and down a 45 or more degree slope - I screamed at the top, "I did this!!! YES!!!!"  Sobbing, so brutalized.  Rode back ~3 miles in a wicked headwind.  Rachel got a tire puncture, heard a pop, saw white spray and then rolled forward so Stan's stuff sealed; never had to add air or anything.  Did some major hills and by the time we got to the military base we couldn't go any further.  Camped in a crazy windswept plain and planned to get up at 4am to try again.  Smells of dust, grass, sagebrush.

Vital stats:

33 bridges/trestles

28.76 miles

ATM = 3:47:50

MXS = 27.5 mph

AVS = 7.5 mph

JWPT Day 3

"There is a sacredness in tears.  They are not the mark of weakness, but of power.  They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues.  They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love." ~Washington Irving

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 2

During my training and riding I had decided I would ride my Specialized cross bike with touring size tires, 4 panniers (2 small, 2 large) and a handlebar bag.  I also ended up adding a backpack to carry extra water in that was lashed between my two large, rear panniers.  Day 2 is when the trail started to reveal the level of different terrains we'd be facing - some heavier river rock, deep gravel and super rugged areas over multi-use sections in Cle Elum.  These are sections of the trail where ATV's are allowed to also use the trail.  I have lots of different feelings about mixed-use trails, but I'll talk about that in another post...

Trail riding notes: We were not able to make Hyak on our first day of riding, but on my ride in the fall we were able to do so.  When you reach Hyak, the tunnel is very dark and cold; be sure to have adequate headlights/headlamps and you might want to add a jacket or layer.  Water drips from the ceiling and the sides of the trail through the tunnel drop off to keep water off the trail.  Be sure to ride towards the middle of the tunnel rather than the sides as you risk falling when you ride on the sides. The tunnel can also be crowded at times with other riders and lots of walkers. Once you reach the other side of the tunnel there are primitive campsites a little ways past Hyak; at Hyak there are restrooms and showers to use (you need coinage to operate the shower).  The trail continues on from Hyak with no detours and is slightly downhill (a welcome respite after your climb!!).  There are several camp sites and pit toilets along the way between Hyak and Thorp, including the sweet Iron Horse Inn B&B in Cle Elum.  There are several gates prior to gravel road crossings that you can ride or walk around; make sure you close, re-chain and/or lock any gates you go through.  As you approach Thorp you will ride through several tunnels.  These tunnels have been repaired and are safe to ride through; some you will need lights for and others just be sure to take your sunglasses off. 😉 When you reach Thorp, ride a short ways past the fruit/antique stand to the trestle that crosses the Yakima River. Directly before the trestle, down to the right is a very sweet riverside campsite.  Easy river access, lovely sandy spot, flat-ish campsite area, trees to hang clothes on and wonderful place of rest. Please keep this place clean and well kept for future trail users!

Here's our day 2 entry...

Wildlife settings: 3 Douglas squirrels, 3 rabbits, lots of birds, 1 bull snake, 1 lizard, at the last tunnel going into Thorp we saw bats in the tunnel, saw our first livestock - cows

Trail people met: Byron with Bike Hugger, Greg with The Starving Cyclist, Dan on his way to Cle Elum (he helped us unlock Sandy's chain and was our first Trail Angel)

Memorable Moments: Epic ecological transitions, Sandy's chain bent and got stuck, Rachel stabbed herself in the leg with her large bike gear.  So windy on the East side!!  Thank goodness for tail wind!! Set up camp next to the Yakima river at a sweet little spot and bathed in the river.  Smells of dust, smoke and Pine.

Vital Stats:
26 bridges/trestles
5 tunnels (1 was the epic long Snoqualmie/Hyak tunnel)
2 sets of chained gates - no locks
Lots of road crossings
2 railroad crossings
57.4 miles
ATM = 6:46:24
MXS = 34.7 mph
AVS = 8.4 mph

JWPT Day 2

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 1

In order to keep track of each day we established a lovely ritual to end each day.  We would sit in our tents and call out our memorable moments, what we saw/smelled/tasted/heard, and record our stats. It was a wonderful way to end each day and remember all that we had accomplished.  At first I wrote everything in my journal, but that was quickly filling up with plant specimens I was gathering to make an herbarium for an Ethnobotany class I was taking.  I started using my cell phone to record our day in a Keep note.  One thing that helped pass the time was counting how many bridges/trestles we crossed, tunnels we went through and canyon cut-throughs we rode in.

Trail riding notes: We didn't immediately start on the JWPT, because we began our ride in Duvall and thus began on the Snoqualmie Valley Trail. Duvall is technically the beginning of the Milwaukee railbed trail and leads directly into the JWPT. The SVT is an "easy" ride with a lovely gravel bed and gentle elevation gain that begins around the town of Carnation.  The scenery is lush trees, vegetation, wild flowers, rivers/streams, and only a couple of road crossings that are fairly easy.  After you cross the Tokul Trestle, the trail ends approximately one mile later when you reach the Tokul tunnel. Climb the steep stairs or steep trail up onto Tokul road; follow the road to the round-about where you can either ride into Snoqualmie or you can continue around the round-about onto Mill Pond Road. Directions for riding through Snoqualmie: continue off the round-about and cross the Snoqualmie River, there is a small bike trail that runs along the right side of the road to the old Snoqualmie train depot where there is a HUGE old growth stump. At this point you need to move to riding on the road for a short distance, turn left on SE River Street, road makes a natural curve to the right and becomes Park Ave SE; follow until you see the Mount Si Golf Course on the left; turn left into the driveway to the golf course and then turn right onto the JWPT. Directions for riding Mill Pond Road: proceed around the round-about and take Mill Pond Road; when you reach the stop sign, turn left onto SE Reinig Road; you will see the trestle on the right side of the road.  Proceed up the stairs and onto the trestle to continue on the trail. When the trail reaches Rattlesnake Lake, stay on the trail as it narrows and curves around to the left of the road.  You will reach several picnic tables that are perfect for a lunching spot and there are pit toilets to use.  Proceed past the picnic tables and follow the clearly marked signs through the narrow, short, winding trail that will lead you up and around to Iron Horse State Park and the JWPT.  Turn left onto the JWPT and begin your climbing!  The trail gains approximately 1,800 feet of elevation as it climbs to the Hyak tunnel over the next 21 miles.  There are several primitive camping spots along the way with pit toilets, water access and dry camp sites.  A couple of waterfalls lend themselves to water filtering and refilling water.

Here's the entry...

Super late start as we figured out gear and worked through issues.  Excruciating ride! Towards the end there was no break from the grade.  So many plants and filled my journal with several.  Gorged ourselves on thimble berries and salmon berries.  Running low on water when we found a beautiful waterfall to refill from and a short ways up the trail found a flattish spot to setup camp off the side of the trail. Unsure of exact location, ~9 miles from Hyak. Smells of berries ripening in the sun, Hemlock and Douglas Fir pitch.

Wildlife sightings: 7 garter snakes, 2 Douglas squirrels - one with its mouth stuffed with vegetation

Memorable moments:

• Sandy fell, no injury - she earned the trail name of Princess Buttercup as she fell into a patch of buttercups!
• My mom's front bag kept falling off
• Sandy's side bag came loose and had to be retightened
• Stopped to take lots of pictures, pick flowers/plants and eat berries

Vital stats:

33 trestle/bridge crossings

1 tunnel

43.91 miles

ATM (actual time moving) = 6:03:20

MXS (max speed) = 19.3 mph

AVS (average speed) = 7.2 mph

JWPT Day 1

2016 John Wayne Pioneer Trail - Day 0

Day before our ride was filled with much packing, loading gear, organizing, attempting to fit everything I needed into 4 panniers and a handlebar bag; making sure we had all our permits, maps and paperwork.

My mom, Mary Lynn, and our family friend, Sandy, had to travel over the Cascade mountains from Eastern WA to begin our journey so their day involved a bit more strain as they had quite a few miles to drive along with all their packing, organizing and gear loading.

It was definitely a late night for us all and we had set a plan to start pretty early the next morning but needed to bump our time out a bit due to our late bedtime.  So much excitement for the next day!

JWPT Day 0