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Middle Fork Snoqualmie
11 reviews
3.45 of 5
Sept. 30th, 2003: The forest service has announced the acceptance of "Alternative E", which had been under review following a period of public comments. Mountain bike access has been reinstated to the following trails for a three year trial period: 1003, 1003.1, 1003.01, 1003.2, and 1002. Access will be from roughly April 15th to November 1st, depending on trail conditions. Mountain bike use will be restricted to odd numbered calendar days only. The forest service decision can be found on-line at: http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/projects/mf_atm/.
The Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie river is based around a deep forest access road which follows The Middle Fork Snoqualmie River The wild natural beauty of the Middle Fork Valley is unsurpassed by other lower elevation recreational areas in Western Washington. The Middle Fork Trail follows the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River all the way to Goldmeyer Hot Springs. the local hiking club has put a lot of gravle and walking path style stair steps in along the way, taking away the real singletrack experance i enjoyd before we where kicked out. they did a great job fixing the wet areas but it just looks like its ready for pavment
from seattle, take I - 90 east to exit 34. its the 3rd and last nortbend exit, turn left at end of off ramp and drive a 1/2 mile and turn right onto SE middle fork rd. at the top of the hill past the gas stations. SE middle fork rd will fork after 1 - 1/2 miles. you can go eather way. the road will turn to dirt. drive 12 miles and park at the huge parking area on the right
Summary: This is probably one of my favorite mtn bike trails near Seattle so far. Incredible scenic as it follows the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River, from rolling second growth forest to technical routes along the river, this trail has a lot to keep you working. Most of the trail is rollercoaster smooth and fast singletrack, though quite often you'll run into a difficult rock garden you'll need to finesse through. Also, there are a lot of long stairs that will need to be climbed, though the 'steps' are quite long and not something you need to dismount for. Quite a few wooden bridges that span various small creeks the trail goes over. Well maintain trail by far, but the bridges can be VERY slippery when it's even a little damp, as it was today.
That said, this was one of the most fun routes I've ridden since moving to Seattle, challenging and beautiful at the same time.
Recommended Route: Start at Middle Fork Trailhead, and either head up the gravel road to another trail head and ride back down the trail. Or do it as an out and back, which is what I did. Even though you are climbing on the way out, there's still a lot of downhills along the way to keep it fun. Flip side is that the ride downhill on the way back is often broken up by a lot of uphills that make you question just how far up you pedalled on the way out :)
Other recommended trails in the same area: Tiger Mountain, or Tolt-McDonald Park.
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Summary: I thought this trail was amazing - had a little bit of everything and was very scenic compared to what I am used to. I did the loop - took the FR56 all the way to Middle Fork trailhead (the first of four possible entry points - and the shortest). Can be fast in some spots with tight turns - the river trail threw me off because it seemed I got more down for how little up I did.
The thing that sucks is some jerk was scoping us out at the beginning of the ride at the parking lot (I thought he was just leaving from a hike or something) in a 90-91 old maroon Legacy wagon and even nodded a hello in our direction as we took off for the FR climb. He circled around the parking lot - which seemed odd - and took off. We came back to see my buddy's rear window smashed. The car was rifled - my wallet - his backpack - and most valuables. I guess now that this trail is open and people are starting to ride it more it is attracting some real losers.
Recommended Route: The next time I do this - I want more time to ride the FR56 all the way up to the hot springs and take the trail down - supposed to be close to a 20+ mile loop that way. Middle Fork is the first entry point and is fun - but can be done in less than 2 hrs.
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Summary: I hit this trail in late June, did not see any signs indicating no Mtn bikes, and enjoyed a mellow cruise through the valley. Maybe I was not supposed to be on the trail, but it was an odd number day, and middle of the week. The trail is designed for hikers and trail runners of all abilities, and really quite nice. Since it was such a sensitive issue about mtn bikes, I took care not to skid, and step aside for the couple of hikers I saw.
The scenery was awesome, enhanced by the thunderstorm that rolled through on my return leg. Got back to the rig just as the rain came down.
I might be moving to North Bend, and was checking out the trails. This would be a great ride to Zen out on.
I'm trying to attach a few photos taken that day.
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Summary: read the nfs web site and had high hopes. but the trail is still closed to bikes (probally too wet). Did not waste the day as the ccc tr. across the road was open, is a 3.2 mi gravel mtb tr. with tight switchbacks and VERY SLIPPERY wooden bridges. I then road 56 up past the hot springs to where they are still repairing the road. (appx 2300') The road past Dingford creek is still open to all vehicles but is 4wd or mtb past that point. Great views from there.
Recommended Route: see www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/projects/mf_atm/.
Other recommended trails in the same area: not from area
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Summary: I was dissapointed with this ride. Thought it was through old growth forest but 90% was second growth and not very scenic. Portions of the trail are fun especially from Dingford Creek on down to the trailhead. The upper valley 'trail' is mostly old overgrown, rocky road grade kind of like Preston Railroad but not nearly as good.
Recommended Route: Just do the ride from Dingford Creek on down either as an out and back or as a loop by riding up the road. The trail stays pretty good to Rock Creek so you might want to go upstream from Dingford for a few miles for a longer ride. The ford(s) at Goldmeyer and Burnt Boot aren't trivial if you decide to do the longer loop like I did today. They were both knee to upper thigh deep today (late August)and I'm 5'10"! Be prepared...
Other recommended trails in the same area: Kachess Ridge would be the closest...
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