Take a bus to the trailhead
Posted by
Andrew Engelson
at
Apr 20, 2006 05:00 PM
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Okay, I have this new obsession: getting to trailheads by transit.
Tomorrow, April 22, is Earth Day, and in the spirit of reducing
tailpipe emissions, I wanted to recommend some hikes you can take
without a car.
Trouble is, it's tough. In the Cascade foothills outside Pugetopolis, bus service is relatively slow, and trailheads are generally a hefty walk from the nearest bus stop. And on weekends service generally gets worse. If you're willing to bike and hike, all King County Metro buses are fitted with bike racks.
It's shame that transit services ignore the interests of weekend recreation. One would think that summer tourists, too would want a way to get to places like Rattlesnake Ledge in North Bend or even Cougar Mountain in Issaquah. That there is no longer any public transportation to Snoqualmie Pass is a shame. One would hope that the proposed expansion of Metro service would at least include couple runs on summer weekends. WTA and its members could help promote and encourage folks to use the service.
Think how cool it would be to take Metro to the the Pacific Crest Trail and Kendall Catwalk north of Snoqualmie Pass! The benefits would be enormous: reducing packed parking lots at trailheads, reducing greenhouse emissions and helping alleviate the "weekend warrior" traffic jams on I-90 each Sunday afternoon. And heck, why not fit the buses with ski racks and let skiers take the bus from a Park & Ride somewhere in the Puget Sound area?
Okay, enough dreaming...you're looking for a hike you can take this weekend. I have two. One, at Squak Mountain, is for folks in the Seattle area, and one, to Wallace Falls is for those who live in Everett.
Have success stories of getting to trailheads by bus? Post a comment or e-mail me.
Photo of Metro Bus by Ned Ahrens.
Trouble is, it's tough. In the Cascade foothills outside Pugetopolis, bus service is relatively slow, and trailheads are generally a hefty walk from the nearest bus stop. And on weekends service generally gets worse. If you're willing to bike and hike, all King County Metro buses are fitted with bike racks.
It's shame that transit services ignore the interests of weekend recreation. One would think that summer tourists, too would want a way to get to places like Rattlesnake Ledge in North Bend or even Cougar Mountain in Issaquah. That there is no longer any public transportation to Snoqualmie Pass is a shame. One would hope that the proposed expansion of Metro service would at least include couple runs on summer weekends. WTA and its members could help promote and encourage folks to use the service.
Think how cool it would be to take Metro to the the Pacific Crest Trail and Kendall Catwalk north of Snoqualmie Pass! The benefits would be enormous: reducing packed parking lots at trailheads, reducing greenhouse emissions and helping alleviate the "weekend warrior" traffic jams on I-90 each Sunday afternoon. And heck, why not fit the buses with ski racks and let skiers take the bus from a Park & Ride somewhere in the Puget Sound area?
Okay, enough dreaming...you're looking for a hike you can take this weekend. I have two. One, at Squak Mountain, is for folks in the Seattle area, and one, to Wallace Falls is for those who live in Everett.
Have success stories of getting to trailheads by bus? Post a comment or e-mail me.
Photo of Metro Bus by Ned Ahrens.
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