Riding to Ross Lake

Yesterday I rode Highway 20 from the Silver Star gate on the east side, up and over to the Ross Lake Recreation Area, and then back again. Currently, the road is snow-free and closed to motor vehicles for the entire stretch. I took enough pictures that I decided to write a blog post about it. …

Tour de Methow

The Methow Valley is home to the largest cross-country trail system in North America, and that also includes some pretty great fat biking trails. There is a “Tour of the Methow Valley” route for skiers - but nothing for bikes! On Friday I set out to change that. My route started in Mazama (at the …

Kelley Creek – Johnson Ridge traverse

Last week I "thru-hiked" from the Kelley Creek/Martin Creek trailhead up to Johnson Mountain, and then out to the Johnson Ridge trailhead. From there I biked back to my starting point, creating a fun bike/foot loop. I'm really loving this type of route these days! Traveling across the landscape using multiple forms of human-powered transport. Connecting routes/trails …

The Way Through

Some trips are beautiful in their simplicity. This was not one of those trips. Initially, it sounds simple: walk from Stehekin to Cascade Pass. That's it. Approx 25 miles and a little over 5k of gain with side trips. But anyone who is familiar with the North Cascades knows that it's not quite that simple. …

Crystal Peak Lakes Loop

I recently spent a day going up, down and around Crystal Peak on foot and by bike (GPX file here). Not to be confused with nearby Crystal Mountain ski resort, Crystal Peak is a summit within Mount Rainier National Park. Apparently on a clear day you can see six volcanoes from the top (Rainier, Adams, …

Olympic Adventure Route

Last week I explored the Olympic Adventure Route, a 72-mile bikepacking route that includes the Olympic Adventure Trail (OAT), the Spruce Railroad Trail, and several miles of gravel along Camp David Jr Rd. My exact route, including a GPX file, can be found here. I started at the eastern trailhead of the OAT, which is …

Human-powered Olympic Coast – Attempt #1

My original plan for this trip was to do a human-powered traverse of the Olympic Wilderness coast: walk from Shi Shi Beach to Oil City, using a packraft to cross the Quileute River, and then ride back up the coast via gravel roads to my car. To the best of my knowledge, no one has …

Family bikepacking on the Dosewallips

Last weekend we went on our first ever family bikepacking trip, up the Dosewallips River on the Olympic Peninsula. I'd previewed the trail the week before and knew it would be perfect for our trip. In bikepacking there is something called an S24O, which stands for sub-24 hour overnight. (In other words... an overnighter :D) …

Dreamy day on the Dosewallips

The "goal" for this one-day, human-powered adventure was to get as far into the Olympic Mountains as possible, yet still be home in time to tuck in my daughter. Thanks to my MTB and good trail conditions, I made it approx 30 miles round-trip (14 on bike, 16 on foot) before turning around just a …

Around Baker Lake

Yesterday I completed a human-powered circumnavigation of Baker Lake, which is just a fancy way of saying I ran down the east side of the lake and then biked back to my car along the west side. It was a fun way to avoid an out-and-back on a trail that I already know pretty well. The …