Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance constructs new trail on Rattlesnake Hill

LEAVENWORTH – A new trail on Rattlesnake Hill, located behind Icicle River Middle School and Cascade High School, is being built by the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance (EMBA) Central Chapter. The trail crew hopes to complete construction by the end of August.

“We are halfway up that hillside right now, so that is amazing, and it's neat to see this process finally started,” said James Munly, a head trail builder for EMBA.

For years, Rattlesnake Hill has been utilized for educational and recreational purposes by classrooms, sports teams, and dog walkers. Through this use, a system of narrow, haphazard paths has been etched into the steep hillside. However, no trail had been permanently established.

“It became this thing that was getting so much use, that it just made sense to have a designated, legitimate trail,” said EMBA Central Chapter President Tony Feeney.

Once finished, the trail will cover about three-quarters of a mile in switchbacks to the top. The trail will be marked with signage, widened, flattened, and laid with gravel.

“Now there's [going to be] a little safer trail to run on than the old, historical little trail that's kind of just been there for years…So I'm excited to see more people up there using this hillside,” said Munly.

While a potential trail has been speculated for many years, the idea came to life when Munly and Cascade School District’s Brett Johnson drew up plans and started seeking funding about six to seven years ago.

According to Feeney, EMBA garnered about $35,000 for the project through a combination of partnerships and funding from key players such as Cascade School District, City of Leavenworth, and Chelan-Douglas Land Trust.

“There was a lot of thought and work and planning that kind of went into just getting something as simple as a three-quarter mile trail up here,” said Feeney.

Construction started on July 8. As Munly excavates the trail, fellow trail builder Tom Ford sculpts and refines the path. Throughout the process, the crew has run into some challenges, such as adhering to fire danger restrictions when operating machinery, as well as removing many granite boulders.

Due to the risk of fallen rock and debris during construction, EMBA requests that the public stay off the hill until the trail officially opens.

“We want to make sure that we're building this trail safely, and that nobody gets hurt in the process,” said Munly.

The trail will be located on the south face of the hill, which is owned by Cascade School District. Eventually, EMBA hopes to add an outdoor education space at the top of the hill for classrooms. 

“That really is going to be a great tool for the schools to get up there with all the kids. You know, if Biology wants to get up there, and they want to go look at plants and different animals that are up there, or the art department wants to go up there and paint pine cones. And the P.E. department wants to be able to run up there,” said Munly.

Plans have also been drawn for additional trails on other sides of the hill. However, agreements must be made with landowners before they are pursued. EMBA is hopeful landowners will be interested in adding trails once the main stem is complete

“Once it's already up here, it makes it a lot easier to have that conversation,” said Feeney.

Taylor Caldwell: 509-433-7276 or taylor@ward.media