Wynoochee Lake
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General
Wynoochee Lakeshore Trail is a 13 or 16.5 mile loop depending on whether you decide to ford the river or follow the trail the extra 2 miles each way to the bridge. There's lots of smooth single track here reminicent of the Lewis River Trail but also lots of ups and downs, excessive brush, and washouts. It's pretty much in the middle of nowhere and should be considered a real adventure trail. That said, there is a campground and swimming beach at the lake and logging roads close by to most of the trail. Thing is, people boat and swim here but don't hike more than the first few miles of the trail in each direction from the campground.
This trail has a little of everything. Much like the Lewis River trail, it has lots of ups and down getting around creeks flowing into the lake. It is hard to get current info on most of the trail. You can try this link: http://www.fs.usda.gov/recmain/olympic/recreation#cond or call (360) 765-2200. The west side is slightly more rugged than the east but both have lots of fast and smooth sections.
WTA has been doing trail work now and then but seems to be concentrating on the parts nearest the campground.
Water is available at the picnic area. There is a campground here as well (Coho Campground). You can do the entire loop right from your campsite.
Lots of people do the first side of the ride (about 6 miles) as an out and back.
Historical Information:
- HistoryLink.org: Tacoma City Light taps Wynoochee River for power in 1994
- HistoryLink.org: Wild Man of the Wynoochee A good read before heading out into the woods.
Ride Reports
Yes, it's a 2+ hour drive from my house and cost me $55 for a lift ticket, but damn did I get a lot of riding in! It's amazing how much you can ride, when the uphill is a 10 minute lift ride. Weather was chilly, spitting rain and occasional wind so the lift rides were a bit chilly, but I warmed u...
I came to the Coho Campground at 9:30 at it was apocalyptically empty. My goal was to ride the loop around the Wynoochee Lake by my mountain bike so I found the trailhead and went clockwise. The trail looked really unpopular. There were lots of fallen trees and couple of minor washouts. It starte...