HIKING & TRAILS
Fresh air, breathtaking views, and adventure abound! You don’t have to be an expert outdoorsperson to enjoy the hiking in Central Washington. Kittitas County is home to great outdoor escapes including trails that range from beginner to advanced and have varying in terrain, elevation, incline, and length.
For more information on the hikes and trails below, click the green Trail Guide button to be taken to the Washington Trails Association website for in-depth info by the people who frequent them! This is also a great place to find the status of the trails – whether they are currently open, closed, or under construction.
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Most moderate-hard level trails in our region are best used from June- October.
The trail is 13 miles long and is a tough hike to the top.
Driving directions – From Highway 970 east of Cle Elum, drive north on Teanaway River Road. The road becomes Forest Service Rd # 9737 at 29 Pines Campground. Continue about 6 miles to Spur Road 112, just before Beverly Creek. Turn right and drive to the Beverly Turnpike Trailhead.
Length: 9.0 miles, roundtrip
- Difficulty rating: Blue
- Trail type: Singletrack
- Bike type: XC
- Trail Usage: Multi-use
- Direction: Both Directions
- Climb Difficulty: Blue
- Physical rating: Moderate
Some beginner friendly motorcycle trails can be found at Taneum Junction & Icewater Creek Campgrounds. Manastach Campground has a novice friendly ATV loop.
Driving Directions — From Highway 970 heading east from Cle Elum drive to Teanaway River Road and turn left. Drive about seven miles and turn left on West Fork Teanaway River Road. Continue about a mile to the Middle Fork Teanaway River Road, which turns right, but stay straight and drive about a quarter-mile farther to the road end and obvious parking. The trail begins at Carlson Canyon at the West Fork Teanaway River. Cross the bridge and hike the main road southeast along the river past the old campground. You will pass Bible Rock and another 1/4 mile to a junction. Continue straight along main road. The road will crest a small hill. Look for a trail going left uphill, it is an old road. The trail is about 6 miles roundtrip and gains 1200 feet elevation.
A walk on the trail affords visitors a firsthand look at the coal-mining heritage through the remains of Roslyn’s mines, at the railroad depot site and barn, and at Powder House Road where dynamite was stored. You may also view the Coal Mines Memorial located in Roslyn. The official trail is charted at 4.7 miles from Flagpole Park to Ronald with opportunity to explore various spur trails, as well as going to the ethnic Roslyn cemetery where many of the miners are buried. The “easy” trail is open for multi-use, including trekkers, horses, bicyclists, cross-country skiers, sled dogs, and snowmobilers. It is closed to all motorized vehicles except for snowmobiles in the winter.
This medium difficulty trail offers no expansive views and doesn’t explore any wildflower meadows or high alpine country. But it does track alongside a beautiful mountain river that sports a healthy population of hungry trout. It also provides ample opportunity to practice your bird-watching, as a number of avian species thrive here, including the river-loving water ouzel and the fish-loving kingfisher. The trip can be done as a one-way hike by shuttling vehicles or by hitching a ride back down the road from Cooper Lake. The trail follows the pretty Cooper River valley upstream to Cooper Lake. The trail stays on the north side of the creek, and at times the valley narrows enough for you to hear (and possibly see) traffic on the road that runs on the other side of the valley. Ignore that interruption as you explore the dense old-growth forest around you.
Driving Directions — Off of I-90 take Exit 80 toward Roslyn. Travel north through Roslyn and Ronald. Continue to the Last Resort and just beyond is a sign for Beaver Creek. Continue a bit beyond Beaver Creek and turn right onto Forest Service Road # 4305. It is less than 1/2 mile from the Last Resort. Drive about two miles and you’ll see a sign for Sasse Mountain and Road # 118 going left. Continue on the main road for another couple of miles to the Corral Creek trailhead. Parking is along the road. The trail is 7 miles roundtrip with a gain of 2000 feet.
Take I-90 east to Exit 80. Turn left through the towns. At the Salmon La Sac Guard Station, turn right onto Road # 4330 and continue about 1.7 miles to the large parking area for Paris Creek/Davis Peak on the left, elevation. Another parking area is down a rough road, turn left onto the gravel road # 34 beside the trailhead and continue downhill about 1/4 mile to another parking area for Davis Peak trailhead.
Difficulty level- Technical: 3, Strenuous: 2
High Point: 6,260 ft
Land Manager: Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forests
Parking Permit Required: Northwest Forest Pass
Required to pay a fee or have a Northwest Forest Pass.
For hikers beginning at Forest Service Road 4308-115, you will find a steep trail climbing away from the trailside parking lot for three miles, reaching a summit of French Cabin Mountain.
The Knox Creek Trail climbs quickly out of the meadow through an alpine forest into open rocky outcrops. In about 1 1/4 miles it joins the Kachess Ridge Trail. It then turns north and continues along the ridge with minor ups and downs to a viewpoint above Thorp Lake. Opportunities abound for hikers include photography, wildflowers and picturesque views of the surrounding area. The Thorp Mountain Lookout is also accessible from the Kachess Trail.
Follow I-90, take Exit 80 (a.k.a. Roslyn exit). Head north for approximately three miles to a roundabout. Go around the roundabout and continue heading north. After approximately one more mile, enter Roslyn. Continue straight through town along the main road. The road bends at several locations. The road then goes through the small town of Ronald, and becomes known as Salmon La Sac Road soon after passing through town. After approximately 12.5 miles from Roslyn, turn left onto French Cabin Creek Road #4308. Follow this road for approximately 3.2 miles to a road intersection for Thorp Lake. Continue straight at the junction to the Knox Creek Trail. For more information click here.
This region displays the beauty of the valley from a different perspective. This area north of town offers a variety of opportunities for those with outdoor interests including hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, and off-road vehicles. For hiking, take Reecer Creek road west and north to the end of the county road and continue north on FS Road 35, climbing onto Table Mountain. At the end of the asphalt surface, go east on FS Road 3521 about 3 miles to Trail #1371. It crosses the road here, and there is no trailhead. The moderate trail is 6.5 miles in length. This is also a special place for rockhounders to search for the renowned Ellensburg blue agates. Please call Rock’n Tomahawk Ranch at 962-2403 for more information on rock-hounding in this area.
- Difficulty rating: Green
- Bike type: XC
- Trail Usage: Biking Primary
- Direction: Both Directions
- Climb Difficulty: Green
- Physical rating: Moderate
There are two options of exploration for this city park. Immediately on your left when you pull into the park entrance there is a parking lot. Park here to relax and enjoy the Yakima River. There is an easy trail that follows along the river and will wrap around to the other side of Carey Lake. This trail is used by cross-country skiers during the winter. The second option is to drive straight at the park entrance on a narrow but paved road to the lawned park area along Carey Lake. Here you may enjoy a peaceful picnic, wade or swim in the lake, take an inner tube out in the pond, or just enjoy a little sunbathing. This is a great spot for all ages as well as for bird watching (check out the First Saturday Birdwalk at 8am each month) and biking. Other amenities include a boat landing, sand volleyball, picnic and barbecue facilities, hiking/biking trails, and grass areas.
Take Main Street South until it turns into Canyon Road. Take a left at Umptanum Road (there is a Subway, & McDonalds at this intersection.) After about a mile, the park entrance will be on the right.
A sign at the small, unimproved trailhead indicates that it is for two trails: 1212 and 1315. Walk a mere 250 feet to the unmarked junction of those two trails. Go left, where an official sign for trail Kachess Ridge Trail #1315 welcomes you. Start steeply up into open forest on broad tread, rising above Silver Creek on your right, and progressing generally north-northeast for nearly a mile.
The Knox Creek Wildflower Trail begins on a hillside meadow bursting with wildflowers. It climbs quickly out of the meadow through patchy sub-alpine forest onto open rocky outcrops-a surprising amount of diverse habitat in such a short distance. Opportunities along the trail abound for plant identification, photography, drawing or any other activity wildflowers inspire.
With over 50,000 acres of land, there are boundless recreational opportunities including hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, camping, sightseeing, picnicking, photography, ATV / Quad vehicle use (Green Dot road system), hunting and fishing, sledding and watching the annual elk feeding in winter. (Feed is generally put out at 8:00 a.m., but elk are visible throughout the day). The landscape rises from sagebrush steppe hillsides to dense stands of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir and is home to a large elk herd, mule deer, bear, spotted owls, northern goshawk, golden eagles, pileated woodpeckers, salmon, migratory and local birds, beaver, and other small mammals.
Take the Thorp Exit from Interstate 90 (exit 101); Turn left on the Thorp Highway, cross over I-90 and proceed about 3/4 mile to Thorp Cemetery road and turn right (one mile south of the exit); travel west for 2.5 miles and turn left on Watt Canyon Road. During the winter, the elk feeding site is located one mile past the turn. Parking is available at the site. The gates at Robinson and Joe Watt Canyon are closed to all public use from late November-early December each year and re-open on May 1st. For more information call 509-925-6746. A free map of the L.T. Murray Wildlife Area is available at the Ellensburg Chamber of Commerce or the Dept. of Fish & Wildlife in Ellensburg.
The trail follows along Lake Kachess, close to Snoqualmie Pass. It is also a great cross country ski trail in winter. It follows along a 9.2 miles trail round trip, with a gain of 1,000 feet and a lot of up and downs.
Driving Directions — Follow I-90 to exit 62. Drive northwest 6 miles to Kachess Campground. The trailhead is at the north end of campground.
Tucked in the mile-high basalt plateau are many pretty meadows and even a few glacier-carved lakes such as Lost Lake and Manastash Lake.
The first mile or so the trail climbs steadily, but gently, through forested land. About 1.5 miles in, the trail reaches Lost Lake elevation. The trail then levels out for a while and continues climbing until descending to Manastash Lake. The trail is in good shape during the drier parts of the year, though eroded from motorized traffic.
From I-90 near Ellensburg, take exit 106. Follow the road north until you reach Umptantum Road and take a left at McDonalds. Follow Umptantum Rd. until you reach Manashtash Road. Turn right on Manastash Road. Follow this until it turns into Forest Road 31. As you approach Buck Meadows, 17 miles from Ellensburg, there will be a sign on your left for road 114, leading to the Manastash Lake trailhead parking lot. Northwest Forest Pass required.
This expert difficulty wildflower-rich hike is in the hills southwest of Ellensburg and has become popular for locals as well as visitors. This hike provides enough elevation gain to qualify as a workout, but wildflower enthusiasts will want to dawdle. The hike is considered difficult, however some trails are less steep than others. Manastash Ridge has several side trails. Stay to the right throughout your hike. Weather can fluctuate quickly, with much warmer and drier temperatures at the trailhead. It is a six-mile roundtrip hike from the trail head to the top and back.
There are two main trails to the top, the Westburg Trail, named after a popular Ellensburg coach and the Boy Scout Trail, accessed further to the west after hiking along an irrigation ditch. There is a log book at the top. The Manastash Observatory is located high on the south ridge and Buck Meadows is approximately 15 miles further up on Manastash Road where there are horse trails available for horseback riding. In winter, trails for cross-country skiing are available at the end of Cove Road.
From eastbound Interstate 90, exit 101 (Thorp Highway). Right off the exit, two miles, right on Cove Road, past two stop signs, parking is on the right just after the second stop sign.
The Domerie Peak trail takes you steeply up mountainsides on the dry side of Snoqualmie Pass. Once at the summit, hike a ridgeline traverse with views of Lake Cle Elum and the foothills below.
Naneum Wilson Trail is a hiking trail in Kittitas County, Washington. It is within Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. It is 6.4 miles long and begins at 5,413 feet altitude. Traveling the entire trail is 12.9 miles with a total elevation gain of 3,000 feet. This trail connects with the following: W315, Owl Creek Trail #1371.2, Drop Creek Spur Trail #1371.1 and Naneum Meadows Trail #1389.
The park is contiguous with a rail trail that crosses Snoqualmie Pass. The trail is located within the former right-of-way of The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad. Most of the right-of-way between Cedar Falls and the Idaho border was acquired by the state, through a quitclaim deed, as a result of the railroad’s 1977 bankruptcy. As part of the reorganization of the company, the railroad embargoed its lines west of Miles City, MT in 1980 and ceased service in Washington.
The state acquired the land in the early 1980s and eventually converted the right of way west of the Columbia River into 110 miles (177 km) of hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding trail. The trail, formerly called Iron Horse Park is now known as the Palouse to Cascades State Park Trail.
These two popular trails are nestled in the Cle Elum area of the Wenatchee National Forest just north of Roslyn. The trail follows the pretty Cooper River valley upstream to Cooper Lake. The trail splits 0.7 mile from the trailhead, but continue to the left, staying close to the river. If you’re an angler keep an eye out for likely fishing holes. About 2 miles from the trailhead the valley broadens a bit and the river begins to meander side-to-side. At 3 miles you’ll encounter the Cooper Lake Road, which crosses Cooper River just below the lake outlet. If you cross the road bridge you will access the road leading back down to Salmon la Sac.
On I-90 take Exit 80 toward Roslyn Turn North on Bullfrog Road and drive approximately four miles to Hwy 903. Continue North for 21 miles passing through Roslyn and past Cle Elum Lake to Salmon la Sac. At the Y in the road near the Salmon la Sac Campground, take the left branch toward the campground. Cross the Cle Elum River bridge and turn right, away from the campground. You will reach the trailhead parking area in another 0.5 mile.
Salmon Spawning Viewing Trail
In the Enchantments, nature has carved one of the magnificent places of this world–an alpine paradise of granite worn smooth by glaciers, larches manicured by wind and cold, and crystal blue lakes strung together by a creek that tumbles and thunders between them.
There are three ways to experience the Enchantments, none easy. The absolute minimum price of admission here is a hike of not less than seven miles gaining at least 4,400 feet in elevation in order to make it to even just one of the lakes in the Upper Enchantments. If you’re lucky enough to get an overnight permit, you can backpack at your leisure via the Snow Lakes or Stuart Lake trailheads.
This popular summer trail offers a wonderful place to learn about woodland ecosystems with 25 different interpretive stops. Wandering just under three miles through woods and meadows near the summit of Blewett Pass, With five log benches throughout providing fascinating views. It also gives insight into an area recovering after a burn towards the end of the trail.
A multitude of flowers greet hikers in the springtime, and on clear days Mount Rainier, Mount Stuart, and the peaks of the Enchantments decorate the panorama as you hike this relatively flat, educational trail just 32 miles outside of Ellensburg or 25 miles from Cle Elum. A family friendly afternoon trip for ages 5 and older.
Too often hikers forget the wild, remote country south of Interstate 90 in the Cle Elum area-perhaps because this is unprotected forest land, open to motorized recreation. But that’s no excuse to miss out on the rugged beauty of this region. Majestic pine forests fill the valleys of the Taneum basin, and vast herds of Rocky Mountain elk (wapiti) roam far and wide through the region. This trail explores some of that picturesque country, taking you into the heart of the wapiti rangelands.
Start this hike on the North Fork Taneum Creek route, but once you hit that bridge at 4 miles, keep trekking up the valley. You may encounter motorcycles here, but it’s more likely you’ll see nothing more than a bicycle-and, if you are lucky, some elk or big mule deer.
For hikers beginning at Forest Service Road 4308-115, you will find a steep trail climbing away from the trailside parking lot for three miles, reaching a summit of French Cabin Mountain.
A favorite low impact high desert trail is Umtanum Creek, located south of Ellensburg inside the Yakima Canyon. The trail is listed as an important bird area by the Washington State Audubon Society.
The Old Umtanum Stagecoach Route Drive to Yakima is a scenic sagebrush road that meanders up onto the foothills surrounding the southern boundary of the valley, which leads to the Umptanum Falls trailhead.
The smaller and hidden waterfall is a pleasant surprise in what is otherwise a desert area. The falls are surrounded on three sides by dark basalt formations where the water pours into the punch bowl 40 feet below. The trail continues around the basalt walls where you may hike down to its base. The Umtanum Ridge is just west of the trailhead to Umtanum Falls where cross-country skiing is available during the winter.
Park at the BLM’s Umtanum Recreation Site and cross the river via the suspension bridge and follow the Umtanum Creek trail (4 miles RT) up the valley past beaver dams and old fruit trees that mark the sites of old homesteads. Or, you may climb cross-country to one or several of the high points along Umptanum Ridge (6 miles RT).
The Wild Horse Wind Farm, which sits atop the Whiskey Dick Mountain, is just a few miles from Ellensburg on high open range tops. Built by Puget Sound Energy, it consists of 149 wind turbines. Wild Horse takes advantage of the region’s strong, consistent winds and abundant sunshine to produce clean, renewable energy.
The visitor center and solar facility is open daily from April through November. On a clear day views of the entire valley are prevalent of the Kittitas Valley, from the Stuart Range to the Columbia Plateau to the east. The Renewable Energy Center is free and offers Wild Horse visitors a first-hand look at how energy can be made from the wind and the sun.
Take Main Street south until it turns into Canyon Road. Turn right on to Umtanum Road (at the Subway & McDonalds) and follow for about 5 miles. Turn left on to the unpaved, and historic Jacob Durr Road. Proceed across the high plateau and commence the steep, narrow, rough descent to the floor of Umtanum Canyon. At 4.1 miles from Umtanum Road is the ford of Umtanum Creek. A 3-mile climb, for a total 12.1 miles from Canyon road, culminates at the North Trailhead — elevation 3375. A day hike out along the Umtanum Ridge from Jacob Durr Road is an easy picnic for children. Backpacking and mountain biking is also popular with cross-country skiing opportunities in the winter. Th e South Trailhead is about 10 miles from the Damman Elementary School.