Hiking chic on Broadway (Image: King County Metro)
The Capitol Hill trail to Mt Si reopens Memorial Day weekend. King County Metro’s Trailhead Direct service returns with rides to the county’s most popular trails starting Saturday.
Broadway will again be the start point for weekend and holiday service every 30 minutes connecting Capitol Hill Station to Mount Si, Little Si, and Mount Teneriffe. You can also hop on or off at stops downtown at 4th and Spring, at the Eastgate Freeway Station, or at the North Bend park-and-ride.
Metro says 2022’s Trailhead Direct service has been pared back to only the more popular Capitol Hill to mountains loop, cutting a second route through the Mount Baker Transit Center launched last year.
The service provided access to some 5,000 hikes last year, Metro says.
(Image: King County Metro)
The summer routes began in 2018 as an initiative to connect more people to outdoor recreation activities and to address sometimes insanely overcrowded conditions at parking areas near the popular trailheads.
The 14 and 32-seat buses serving the route typically have plenty of room though you may want to plan your trip for off-peak times if you want to score space in the bike rack. Standard Metro fares apply. And, yes, trail dogs are welcome on the bus “at the discretion of the operator” though, as usual, larger dogs require a fare and all good dogs must remain on the floor or your lap. Good dogs are not allowed on the seats.
Service from Capitol Hill to Mt. Si and beyond will run through September 11th.
You can learn more at trailheaddirect.org.
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I appreciate the intention but adding busloads of hikers to Mt Si on a weekend seems counterproductive. Wasn’t the problem already crowding?I’d be more likely to use if there was a rotation of lesser used trailheads or an Olympic Peninsula option.
Have you SEEN those parking lots? Yeah, it would be better and IS better to be on less crowded trails (last time I went to Little Si it was a zoo) it’s best that people get out there without cars.
Nah – nobody using lesser known trailheads wants to see a freaking bus pull up. Absolutely awful.
A rotation of 3-5 lesser used trailheads is a great idea. Each week will be something new for people who don’t normally get out there.
Pretty much abandoned hiking since the pandemic started due to crowds and am happily riding my bike all over the place. Fewer people, easier to get away from them and increased gas prizes don’t really affect me. In addition, while I think Metro’s trailhead service is a great idea, I wouldn’t be caught dead on one of those busses w/o an enforced mask mandate.