Pacific Northwest - Iron Horse State Park / John Wayne Pioneer Trail, probably best avoided.

I spent most of the Columbus day weekend in Easton, Washington near the center of the Iron Horse State Park (http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=Iron%20Horse). Google maps will point you close to exit 74 off I90 for the park.

With regard to accommodation there are a few places above $600 a night :rolleyes: I chose the cheapest I could find at $75 a night in Easton, exit 71 off I90.

I was planning on riding part of the 100-mile-long John Wayne Pioneer Trail. Maybe I chose a bad place to start, but after trying to ride 200 yards I had to concede that it was looking ridiculous.

The trail (and park) pretty much parallels I90 from exit 31 to 101, it is a converted rail track. The conversion may be better in other areas, but near Easton, I would only recommend it to riders of mountain bikes with 2 inch or bigger tires combined with good suspension. Not because there might be jumps but simply because the trail is so rough. Loose gravel is never enjoyable.

I was riding a Trek Single Track 950 with 1.25 inch, fairly high pressure, tires and no suspension. It was not enjoyable. A road bike with sub 1 inch tires at over 100 psi would have been a nightmare.

The weather on Sunday afternoon was great and traffic was very light, riding the roads south between Cle Elum and Easton was a joy. As always the primary challenge is finding good routes and navigation. After getting home and checking Google Maps again, I found better routes. Maybe it is time to invest in good maps and/or a GPS system for the bike.

Has anyone else ridden other parts of the John Wayne Pioneer Trail and had a better experience?

i've heard it's pretty loose, but that >32mm tires would be ok.. maybe not.

I have ridden it from the start at Rattlesnake lake to Cle Elum on a cyclo-cross and Mt bike. I would agree that some of it is pretty loose gravel but most of the trail is easy to navigate with skinnier cross tires. Maybe a little less psi on your tires might make it more enjoyable. It is a beautiful place to ride and the surrounding area is also worth investigating as far road riding goes. Jim

I've ridden from downtown Seattle to Cle Elum a couple of times in a day on 32mm tires on the iron horse trail. I thought it was just fine. 35mm are a bit nicer, but it's a totally acceptable ride on a 700c rigid bike.

This past June my wife and I rode from Rattlesnake Lake to the Snoqualmie Tunnel, and parts of the trail east of the tunnel (starting in Cle Elum, heading west past Easton). The western portion (Rattlesnake to the tunnel) was much less rough than the eastern portion.

through the tunnel is fun from there to northbend is a better surface big gravel in places(on the bridges) i did it on a mtn bike with no problems

We live off of exit 32 and a little side track goes thru our neighborhood and on up to the trail at Rattlesnake lake. I run and bike that trail year around.

Done a lot of miles on it with 23mm Gatorskins on my Cross bike and fixie, mostly have used 30mm or 35mm Cross tires. I find the trail fine, you do need to pick your path in spots and yes on some of the bridges there are larger and looser rocks to deal with. All easy enough though. There are also side trails you can head off too, many sections are realy hiking trails, so I'll shoulder the Cross bike and jog the too steep parts.

magiccx, we must be neighbors (cedar village)! I wonder if we have crossed paths before. You have described the trail condition west of the tunnel accurately.


We are fortunate to have the snoqualmie valley + iron horse trails right outside our front doors. I usually ride those trails with a rigid MTB (on 1.9's) but have ridden them on my Road bike with 23mm tires when it's dry and I'm looking for a change of pace - it's not as comfortable or controllable as the MTB and that is why I normally choose the MTB. It's the right tool for the job.

Northbend,we're currently in Riverbend, so ya pretty near each other! I'm usually riding the trail on a green Redline Conquest. Pulling a Chariot Trailer now and then too. Or a steel colored Raleigh fixie.

We're waiting till our house sells and then moving down the road to the Ridge. I'll still hit the trail, just have a bit longer path and a killer hill home! :)

S ridge hill isn't so bad! If you want a bar-bender, you can get to backside of S ridge from Fall City via the Lake Alice road..now thatsa hill! You have some nice singletrack to look forward to from the ridge as well which can connect you to the preston trail. Best of luck to you selling your house. I usually ride the trail on a purple Yo Eddy mtn bike with rigid titanium fork. PM me if you'd like a ride partner sometime.

This past August I rode from Easton to my home in Seattle (Wallingford). I rode the Ironhorse trail to Rattlesnake Lake, then hopped on the Snohomish Valley, Tolt-Pipeline, Sammamish, Burke-Gilman. It was an awesome ride and the trail conditions were excellent. I was on a 650b Rivendell Bleriot with cushy 36mm tires (PERFECT for this type of ride) but I've also ridden from the Summit to North Bend on my road bike with 28mm tires (did have a couple flats on that ride). Here's a few pics of my trip...

http://flickr.com/photos/77502424@N00/sets/72157606938106215/

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3235/2792757803_9c4bb5ccc1_b.jpg

The further east you go, the looser and rougher the trail becomes.

I've gone as far east as the Kittitas trailhead (east of Ellensburg) on a Mountain Bike. East of Cle Elum, I would generally recommend a Mountain Bike, East of Thorp, defintely a Mountain Bike.

BTW, the trail through the Upper Yakima River Canyon, between Cle Elum and Thorp is a really nice ride. It's 18 miles from the S. Cle Elum trailhead to the Thorp trailhead. There are two tunnels in the canyon - not very long ones - but long enough that you will want to bring a light.

I rode the Iron Horse Trail one afternoon last August on a weekday (very few riders-hikers) at the trailhead at the park on the west side. I didn't make it to the tunnel but I found the ride very enjoyable with those railroad trestle vistas. Scenic views looking to the north Cascades..Granite Mountain etc. The trail parallels I-90 so you do have some traffic noise but I found the ride very scenic. There are existing relics from the railroad.....rusting bridge frames and original glass telephone/telegraph wire insulators along the way. The uphill grade was so gradual I forgot I was climbing and I have a heavy Gary Fisher Solstice hybrid. According to my Garmin GPS I did a very leisurly 16 miles round trip but topped off my ride with a spill in deep sand with a no big deal scraped leg but all in all this is a wonderful ride. :)

OP - Mountains, rocks, trees, creeks, debri, avalanche fields, flowers, birds and the occasional bee. If you have tried it once and don't like it, there are many other rides to enjoy. Do not fret over the one that wasn't for you. Cheers!!

OP - Mountains, rocks, trees, creeks, debri, avalanche fields, flowers, birds and the occasional bee. If you have tried it once and don't like it, there are many other rides to enjoy. Do not fret over the one that wasn't for you. Cheers!!

Great possibility of seeing deer and elk, too!

Do bring LOTS of water. There are no facilities anywhere along the stretch we were on for refilling bottles, although you could divert off the trail and into some of the towns if necessary.

East Hill