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Trip Report    

Bikepack - Cascade Trail

An overnight, off-pavement bikepacking tour of the Cascade Trail from Sedro Wooley to Concrete with camping at Rasar State Park Campground.

Dave Bryan Dave Bryan
November 16, 2022
  • Road suitable for all vehicles

  • The trail tread was in good condition for nearly the full route. Much of the trail was covered in a blanket of fall leaves, and it was a smooth ride on our gravel and mountain bikes. Recent windstorms had left one blowdown blocking the trail which required a hike-a-bike to navigate around and over, and other blowdowns that partially blocked the trail were straightforward to ride around. Near mile 11, there is small bridge crossing a creek that is off its foundations, that required hike-a-bike to safely cross. The trail exits to a quiet road near mile 12 to cross a pond, and briefly to SR20 to cross Grandy Creek at mile 16. There were two short sections of trail where water damage had recently occurred during heavy rains. Water water was still flowing flowing over the trail surface, and the trail tread was muddy. The first was near mile 6, and the second near mile 20. Most of the group rode over the sections, and those that chose to hike-a-bike them did not experience difficulty in doing so. Overall, the trail is wide, rideable and easily shared with other cyclists and hikers. 

The trailhead does not support overnight parking, so we parked on the street by Sedro-Woolley high school. Ten of us rode from Sedro-Woolley to Concrete, enjoying just a little adventure on the trail in a few places where the trail needed some improvement and recent heavy rains contributed to seasonal creek drainage across the trail. The outbound leg of our journey ended at 5b's Bakery in Concrete where we found a copious selection of sweet and savory baked items. Some of our group even stocked up on cheesecake for their next morning's breakfast.

From Concrete, we reversed course on the trail to setup camp at Rasar State Park where we pitched our tents in two shared campsites. Tucked along the Skagit River, Rasar State Park has forested campgrounds, which provided a surprising level of protection from the dropping nighttime temperatures. Much of our group then rode to the nearby Birdsview Brewing Company for dinner and enjoyed a brief respite from the evening chill and a warm meal. Following a brisk return ride to the campground, we arrived to a warm fire, where we circled for stimulating conversation prior to a night of cold-weather sleeping.
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In the morning, we shared cheesecake and analyses of how our cold weather gear worked, as we ate and drank our coffee. After packing up our bikepacking gear, we rode a sun-bathed trail on the return trip to Sedro-Woolley.