Hi there;


I've recently moved from Dallas/Fort Worth to Vancouver,Washington, in Texas and other parts of the east coast they have rail trails, abandoned rail lines, that are being used for bicycling and hiking.

Are there such things in the pacific northwest?

I'd like to find trails, with no cars, just bicycles and hikers,,

Just a quick addition, I ride a TREK SU100, it has 26X1.5 tires, so I'm not a mountain bike guy, I'd prefer gravel or easy riding trails, not mountain goat style

Welcome! Have you tried the WA Rails to Trails site?
https://www.trails.com/stateactivity.aspx?area=14385

The Banks-Vernonia trail is one of the best in the NW!

I just wish it were a bit longer than 21 miles.

Nice trails,, this is what I was looking for..

Thanks,

Welcome to The 'Couv, Phil. We'll have you growing moss between your toes in no time.

I'd recommend joining the Vancouver Bike Club's (https://www.vbc-usa.com/) rides, particularly an edition of the Two Bridge Loop. This'll get you used to going across the Columbia, and access to Portland's network of bike paths. You can do quite a few miles without getting off the path by heading south and riding the Springwater Trail east or west.

Here's a PDF of the Vancouver bike lane/path map:
https://www.cityofvancouver.us/upload...ined_Final.pdf

For the most part, rail-to-trails tend to be paved, not gravel, around here. Once it starts raining, gravel or limestone paths tend to get muddy.

There's a couple off-street paths through Vancouver. The newest is the Burnt Bridge path, that goes from the Burton neighborhood out to Fruit Valley Road. There's also some paths that connect Vancouver Lake Park with Frenchman's Bar Park west of town, but I find that area is quiet enough that riding on the road is no problem.

In a couple years, the Chelatchie Prairie Rail-with-Trail should be finished, which will give us 33 miles of riding from close to downtown to well into the foothills of Mt. St. Helens: https://www.clark.wa.gov/chelatchie/D..._map_final.pdf

We have some rail to trail up here. First the John Wayne trail which starts at Rattlesnake lake outside of North Bend and goes to vantage on the Columbia River. It continues on from there but is not maintained the entire way. The bad news is that all the tunnels are closed right now so you really can only ride segments of it now. Tar stretch from Rattlesnake Lake up to the west entrance of the Snoqualmie pass tunnel is great. My favorite stretch is the Hyak to Easton stretch. Another favorite is Ellensburg to Cle Elum.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wayne_Pioneer_Trail

There is the Snoqualmie Valley Trail that runs from Duvall to Rattlesnake Lake.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snoqual...Regional_Trail

Then the Centennial Trail that now runs from Snohomish to Arlington though they just started to work on the last section, which will take it all the way to Skagit County.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snohomi...ntennial_Trail

The White Horse trail that will connect Arlington with Darington is still being worked on. Watch for it in the future.

These are just a quick three there are tons more in this state.

I've ridden it once and would suggest taking a bike that can do well off road as well. Quite a few sections are unpaved and one part requires some mountain climbing abilities. I used a cross bike with 700x32's and it worked well. Have lunch in Vernonia.

There apparently is a nice trail in Forest Park, but haven't ridden that yet.

The Spruce Railroad Trail on the north side of Lake Crescent in the Olympic Peninsula in WA is a fun, if short trail ride with beautiful scenes of the lake all along the way. Start at either end and plan to ride both ways. Take a plunge in the crystal blue waters if you get hot along the way. Keep an eye on the uphill side so as not to miss the railway tunnels that are abandoned. The trail goes around the headlands where the rail tunnels originally cut through the mountainsides. Its a pretty fun excursion if you are in the area.

The OP's bike (Trek su100) seems well enough for the job.

We've got them, but not in the profusion you see back east. The Portlanders can tell you about all the neat trails they have. They have a bunch.

Check out the Rails to Trails Conservancy map site at

<https://www.traillink.com/>

This is a great source for trail information. You can see photos and read reviews there of every trail I mention.

Done the Banks-Vernonia. Nice project. Paved with the exception of the Tophill Trestle segment. The wooden Buxton Trestle is a must do.
Done the Row River out of Cottage Grove. Great trail.
Done the Mosier Tunnels out of Hood River. You will love the tunnels.
Looked at the Klickitat across the river. Between fire closures and goat head thorns, gave it a pass. Not quite ready for prime time, which is a pity.

If you want to travel, try the Seattle area. Loads of trails there in Snohomish, King and Pierce counties. On my list for next season - the Foothills Trail and the John Wayne. Every time I get neat that trail, it brings on rain.

In Snohomish County is the delightful 16 mile Centennial Trail. Skagit County, where I live (in the summer, thank you) we have the Cascade. They need to whack the vines back.

If you have a week and want a serious Destination Trail - hop over to the Coeur d'Alene area and ride the 72 mile Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes and the Route of the Hiawatha. That is what I was doing in late September. What delights! I'm going back in 2010. You can check out the pix on traillink. Also in that area:

North Idaho Centennial Trail
Columbia Plateau Trail (Northern Section) (Get to Tri Cities - try the lower section on the Snake.)
Spokane River Centennial Trail
Old Milwaukee Road

Have fun with the trails...

Then the Centennial Trail that now runs from Snohomish to Arlington though they just started to work on the last section, which will take it all the way to Skagit County.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snohomi...ntennial_Trail

The White Horse trail that will connect Arlington with Darington is still being worked on. Watch for it in the future.

@@@

Did I miss something this summer? I was up and down Rt 9 and doing trail mapping in Arlington and did not see building. Of course, if the trail runs inland, I would not see it. There are some cleared traces to the east of Rt 9, but my map sez - power line, pipe line. It shows the RR up to Darrington and the word is that the county owns the right of way.

Love to have the link up to Skagit. Of course, if Skagit County can't maintain the Cascade Trail, what will they do with a new one? Who has the money these days? Over in Spokane, the Fish Lake looks like it will be a 6 mill tproject - but they are blacktopping another 4.x miles. It will take an overpass to bring in into Fish Lake Trailhead over an active RR line.

I think Snohomish Cty can do it better. More population. More $$. Skagit Parks is a non-mandated agency (funding: bake sales, etc.) The Centennial is a great trail. Arlington would benefit from being at the end of two trails - Centennial and Whitehorse. Why, the Yuppie latte and micro brew sales alone... They need to bring the Centennial into town and eliminate that lethal bit of road gap by the airport.

Then the Centennial Trail that now runs from Snohomish to Arlington though they just started to work on the last section, which will take it all the way to Skagit County.

@@@

Your note sent me googling for data. I love the Information Age. Twenty years back I would not be sitting in my office in Newport Beach, reading Washington State RCO agenda items.

Looks like we can expect something to happen by next season. Found this document on line from the State Recreation and Conservation Office. Quite a list of permits and such. The project is funded. They estimate an $8 mil price tag for the extension.

The Arlington Gap issue remains. They were looking for a grant. Wanted to go halfzies with the State RCO and pay their share from 09, 10 budgets. Anyone hear if they got funded? $1.8 mil. The Centennial from Snohomish thru to Arlington is very attractive. Love to park in Arlington and ride down to Machias and back.

FWIW - Spokane is using stimulus money for the paving on the Fish Lake Trail.

Excerpt:

Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends approval of a time extension through March 31, 2011 for the Centennial Trail project via Resolution #2009-03.

Background
The Centennial Trail is a 44-mile non-motorized recreational trail that extends from the King/Snohomish county line to the Snohomish/Skagit county line, connecting urban and rural areas. Using Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program trails category grants, Snohomish County acquired the Burlington-Northern abandoned railroad right-of way that parallels state
route 9 and developed more than 30 miles of multi-use trail.

In May 2005, the board approved funding for development of the Arlington North segment. This
segment adds nine miles of 12-foot wide hard surface trail and a parallel 6-foot wide soft surface
equestrian trail on right-of-way between the city of Arlington and a 100-acre trailhead property at the Skagit County line, connecting with Skagit County's Centennial Trail.

Status
The trail project is on schedule. The architecture and engineering process is complete, plans and
specifications are complete, and permits are in-hand from the Washington Department of
Transportation and the city of Arlington. The county submitted the Army Corps of Engineers permit application a year ago with concurrent review underway by the Department of Ecology. The county submitted the hydraulics project approval, county shoreline, grading, drainage, critical areas, and building permits in 2006, and anticipates final approval after issuance of the Corps permit.

Snohomish County expects to have all permits in-hand by June 2009, and to execute the construction contract by August 2009. The construction phase of the project will take eighteen months because of the time required to fabricate the steel bridge for the Pilchuck Creek crossing and the decking for the bridge and the trestle over the Stilliguamish River.














In May 2005, the board approved funding for development of the Arlington North segment. This
segment adds nine miles of 12-foot wide hard surface trail and a parallel 6-foot wide soft surface