Old Robe Historic Trail
| Distance: | 0 miles | |
| Time: | 0 hours | |
| Elevation Gain: | 0ft | |
| Rating: |    |
Description:
The trail begins by wandering through a clearcut with views down to an alluvial terrace. Rebuilt in 1996 by volunteers, the route switchbacks down to the railroad grade. This section replaces the original trail built by a Lake Stevens Boy Scout troop several years ago. The troop has worked on the trail for many years.
The trail is level and easy to follow until it meets the river. Then the fun begins. At 1.2 miles the river becomes wild where the old railroad route was engineered through the canyon. This is where the rock was chiseled out to hold the railroad ties. Tunnel No. 6 is at 1.4 miles and Tunnel No. 5 at 1.7 miles, the end of the maintained trail.
Tunnel No. 4 beyond the landslide was removed by the railroad company and is now a cut with a rock slide at the western end. Beyond is a rock retaining wall built up from the river to support the railway, but the area has eroded, leaving a steep, exposed gully without good handholds. Just beyond the retaining wall is Tunnel No. 3, which is unsafe to enter.
Tunnel No. 2 was through-cut in 1911 in an attempt to solve the problem of slides blocking the tunnel entrances.
Directions:
Drive the Mountain Loop Highway east from Granite Falls 7 miles to the top of a long hill. On your left is Forest Service Road 41 and on the right is parking for the Old Robe Historic Trail.
