If you're planning to ride your bicycle on the John Wayne Pioneer Rail-Trail this holiday weekend, be prepared to rub shoulders with a lot of others with the same idea.
The Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust's 20th anniversary trek set off from Ellensburg Sunday morning for a bicycling and hiking trip for 130 miles, ending next Sunday in Seattle.
A highlight of the 8-day bike-hike will be the grand re-opening of the Snoqualmie Tunnel at 11 a.m. Tuesday in Hyak.
The 2.3-mile tunnel on cross-state rail-to-trail had been closed for a couple of years for renovation due to dangerous conditions inside. Now that the job is complete, the greenway is fairly intact for travel from one side of the Cascades to the other.
Those who want to participate in the Snoqualmie Tunnel portion of the trek should visit the Mountains to Sound registration page. Trucks and shuttles will carry participants gear to that day's start.
For more on the tunnel, see “Snoqualmie Pass Tunnel to reopen in July 2011″ and “Bike shuttle to summit of Snoqualmie Pass launches in July.”
The trek celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Trust's founding. During that time, the group has sought to preserve a 1.5 million acre greenway through the Cascades. One part of that is maintaining a travel corridor for hikers and bicyclists.
See an interactive map of outdoorsy opportunities in the greenway.
Here's the schedule:
Today (July 3) — Bike from Ellensburg to Cle Elum; 26 miles
Monday, July 4 — Bike from Cle Elum to Crystal Springs; 21 miles
Tuesday, July 5 — Bike from Crystal Springs to Rattlesnake Lake; 28 miles
Wednesday, July 6 — Hike from Rattlesnake Lake to Snoqualmie Point; 11 miles
Thursday, July 7 — Hike from Snoqualmie Point to Preston; 7 miles
Friday, July 8 — Hike from Preston to Issaquah; 11 miles
Saturday, July 9 — Hike from Issaquah to Bellevue; 16 miles
Sunday, July 10 — Hike from Bellevue to Seattle waterfront; 10 miles
Interested folks can sign up for any part of the trek. Concerts are scheduled at Snoqualmie Point Park, Issaquah and at the waterfront in Seattle.
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