Trail:Kachess

From Evergreen Trail Guide

Trail Overview

Tough Forest Road climb to the top, a bit of hike a bike and then all downhill to the cars.

How to find it

Take I-90 East until exit #70. Turn left and cross over the highway. Now take another left on Kachess Dam Road. Follow this for 0.6 miles and turn right (also labeled Kachess Dam Road). After 0.1 miles, the pavement turns to dirt and the road becomes road 4818 -- park at the powerlines (about 1/3 mile).

Typical Conditions

This trail is typically not rideable until June or July due to snow on the ridge, however by riding up the singletrack you can avoid this section.

You cross several creeks on the way down, and early season they can be flowing pretty good. Prepare to get your feet wet!

The switchbacks near the end of the trail are quite loose. Take your time and try not to make them worse by skidding!

Current Conditions

2010

Road is totally clear from snow. Snow starts before saddle, walked our bikes 1/4 mile to the saddle and a little ways after, kicking steps in the steeper spots where a slip would send you into tree wells. After the first very muddy meadow, many snow patches in the trees kept us off our bikes with frequency much farther down the trail than we would have liked. Lots of meltwater made for mud and high creeks to wade across. It can be done, but really rough on the meadows to be riding now. At least a few weeks of warm & dry weather needed for the trail to come into riding condition IMO. July 1, 2010

The road is clear from snow up to 4100', and at that point it's barely there. There is one blow down about a mile from the top. The saddle is snow covered at this time. If you want to see pictures of the saddle go to Adventures of Scatman Scatman Get out there! June 27th

Turn-By-Turn Guide

Ride up road 4818 for 6 miles of flat rocky riding and look for road 4824 on the right. Here's where the climbing starts. From here to Kachess Ridge trail is about 5 miles of up. In a mile keep to the main road. You will pass a gate on this road and a little over a mile from the gate stay right. When you come to a plateau look to the left for the easy to miss trail. Sort of looks like a spur road to camping spot to trail kind of thing all in about 50 feet.

This trail descends immediately (lots of people walk this) to a T. Go right here. The object is to follow the trail to the pass ahead. You will go down then begin a steep climb/push to the pass. From here follow the trail down down down. Steeps, roots, rocks, rivers, streams, meadows, hairy switchbacks, and more.

When you finally come to the end of the trail go straight out the road aiming for the powerlines. then go right(?) about a mile back to the car. You've just completed the 18.5 mile loop!

Here is an external link with more detailed directions and a map

Local Points of Interest

Here you might list nearby places to get a bite to eat, nearby bike shops, etc.

Misc. Information

Here you mention anything that doesn't fit in the other categories.

Advocacy Information

This is for information about the trail's history with respect to mountain biking, the land owner, etc.

Photos

Historical Conditions

2010

8-21-2010 No snow, trail was dry & loose & dusty

2009

No snow on road on the way up. Significant snow at the top saddle. There are kick-steps so it's not too bad. You'll have to carry/hike your bike for this part. Patches of snow most of the way down, but most are short enough that you can at least try to make it over. Lots of water covering trail in upper meadows. Not too many down trees. Overall: it is rideable & enjoyable. - Cshtauralrets June 29, 2009

2008

Trail Clear, no longer need to get off bike, but there are some very large mud puddles. Hawkens 18:59, 28 August 2008 (PDT)

Major avalanche has blocked part of the trail about 2-3 miles down (estimate, someone clarify). Currently need to find your way around it and scramble. Blockage is about 500 feet or so in length. Following this one, there is another smaller one. Certainly some bad damage on the trail, interrupting the sweet flow. --Joiner 15:00, 27 July 2008 (PDT)

The road up was clear and although it was not raining, the temperature was chilly. Pack warm clothes for any day. We were sharing the trail with 100 racers completing a 100 mile run. They were 88 miles into it by the time we came across them - in other words, they were completely knackered. The trail was in excellent shape the entire way down. All stream crossings were rideable. Make sure you check your brake pads before decending! --Darkgoo 14:48, 27 August 2007 (PDT)

Oct 30 - snow falling at the top but wasn't sticking, temp was right around freezing, bring your fleece!

July 20, 2008 - There are still some large snow sections through out much of the trail but they are passable as a bike and hike. There was a lot of trees down throughout the trail. However, a half mile section of the trail has been completely blown out by what appears to have been an avalanche. This required a long hike a bike with considerable bushwacking to get around all the down trees and disruption. This is a gem of trail normally and one of my local faves but a without a fix to this section, the trail in almost unusable.