Two events on the Palouse to Cascades Trail this summer: Iron Horse Gravel and Summit 2 Sound

I biked a folding bike from Rattlesnake Lake to the Snoqualmie Tunnel with a kid and camping gear. This is from one of the spectacular trestles west of the summit. So you don't NEED a gravel bike to ride this trail, though fatter tires and fewer children would make it a little more comfortable.

Look, folks, that gravel is not going to grind itself.

Two major rides will take to the Palouse to Cascades Trail this summer: The annual Summit 2 Sound by Peace Peloton and Cascade Bicycle Club's new Iron Horse Gravel Ride. Both rides are in August, but they offer very different takes on the experience.

Summit 2 Sound - August 2

Summit 2 Sound does exactly what it says. You start at Hyak at the Snoqualmie summit, then bike through the Snoqualmie Tunnel and all the way to West Seattle's Seacrest Park on Puget Sound. The organizer Peace Peloton even offers a morning shuttle from Seacrest Park to the summit, which is awesome.

There are few better feelings than biking back to Seattle from the summit, then turning around and looking at how far away the mountains are. You will feel like a super hero.

The ride clocks in at 80 miles with 2,000 feet of climbing and an unparalleled 4,500 feet of descending. You won't find many rides with a 2.25 descending to climbing ratio.

Registration costs $150 with the shuttle or $125 without, and proceeds support Peace Peloton's work.

Iron Horse Gravel Ride - August 11 & 12

One of Cascade Bicycle Club's new rides for 2025 starts by traveling the opposite direction from Summit 2 Sound. The Iron Horse Gravel Ride begins in Snoqualmie on a Monday and heads through North Bend and then up the Palouse to Cascades Trail, through the Snoqualmie Tunnel, and along the trail all the way to Cle Elum for an overnight. You can either camp at the Whispering Pines RV Park for $20 (bring your own gear to the start and Cascade will transport it to the endpoint for you) or find your own accommodations.

The next day, riders head back and are finally rewarded with the long descent from the tunnel on their way back to the start.

There are only 200 slots, which is not very many for a Cascade event, so don't wait to register. Ride costs $225 for non-members or $180 for members and does not include the $20 camping fee.