The Olympic Discovery Trail is a designated non-motorized, multi-use trail spanning the north end of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. The route spans 120 miles between Port Townsend, Washington and La Push, Washington. As of 2011[update], 40 miles of this trail are complete between the towns of Blyn and Port Angeles.[1] The remainder of the route can be ridden using a combination of public roads.
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The trail was the brainchild of three area cyclists who formed the Peninsula Trails Coalition for the purpose of developing the trail across a derelict railroad grade. The railroad was sold off fairly quickly so the coalition has been working with a number of agencies to build a cohesive trail system along a similar route.[2]
12 miles of the trail have been adopted by Clallam County[3]
Using public roads and off-street non-motorized trails the trail is a contiguous 120 miles in length. There is an optional adventure route that can be substituted for the west central section of the trail from Elwha River to Lake Crescent.
The trail can be ridden in either direction. A basic outline of the route from east to west includes:
Section | Off-Street Trail | On-Road Temporary | Total |
---|---|---|---|
East | 7.8 mi | 19 mi | 26.8 mi |
East Central | 24.4 mi | 2 mi | 26.4 mi |
West Central | 15.7 mi | 16 mi | 31.7 mi |
West | 1.5 mi | 40.1 mi | 41.6 mi |
The adventure route is an optional adjunct to the west central section of the main route. It routes riders from Elwha River to Lake Crescent using single and double-track unpaved trail. One third of this section is forest roads.[4]