Methow Trails

Who we are

Methow Trails connects people, nature, and communities through a world-class trail system. We maintain 200+ miles of interconnected trails in the Methow Valley that provide exceptional Nordic skiing in the winter and mountain biking, trail running, horseback riding, walking, birding, and more in the spring, summer, and fall. You can find us out on the trails twelve months of the year working to make our community trail system the best it can be. Methow Trails is unique in that we connect public and private land, through generous landowner permissions, to allow for a vast and diverse trail network. In the winter, kids 17 and under and seniors 75+ ski for free every day. We groom trails to perfection seven nights a week and offer a variety of events and programs to encourage and support a thriving recreation community. In the spring, summer, and fall, trails are free for all to use and we rely on donations to help fund the extensive maintenance work that is required to keep bridges, trailheads, trail tread, signage, and other amenities in good shape all year long. We are grateful for the continued support of our landowners, land managers, and fellow recreation partners. And we need your help, too!

World-class skiing all winter long with nightly grooming 
 Photo: Early Winters Studios Spring bloom in the Methow Valley is hard to top
Photo: Marshall BalickSummer reflection by a critical piece of infrastructure 
Photo: Gerald SmithFall means final preparations before ski season, and crisp running weather
Photo: Early Winters Studios

If your life is made better by trails in the Methow Valley, please help us support further work. Your donations support critical trail maintenance projects to improve the quality of winter skiing and non-winter trail conditions, free trail access for non-winter months, trailhead infrastructure such as bathroom, parking, and signage, critical bridge and trail tread maintenance, and much more.

What does your donation support?

58% of our annual trail maintenance expenses take place during the spring, summer and fall, when we do not charge for use. Your support will help us maintain this amazing trail system. Here are just some of the recent summer maintenance projects Methow Trails has completed, thanks to your help:

• Redesign and rebuild of the washed out Goat Creek Bridge
• Limbing and thinning to allow for longer ski season and better year-round conditions on popular trails such as Inside Passage, Meadowlark, Little Wolf, Thompson, Beaver Pond, Brown's Farm Loop, Aqualoop, Lower and Upper Fox, Grizzly Mountain Loop, Cedar Creek Loop, Cougar Mountain Loop, Fawn Creek, Sick Joke Hill, Goat Creek, Methow Community Trail, Founders Trail, Basecamp, Sandy Butte, Gunn Ranch, Rendezvous Basin, Cow Creek, Cougar Bait, Cub Creek, Winthrop Trail, Powers Plunge, and more. Trees removed from the trail corridor and bucked, split, and delivered to local residents who need help heating their homes.
• Over 500 engine hours logged on the chipper, which cleans up the trails and helps create an open canopy, healthier forests, longer ski season, and a fire break
• Endless brushing and mowing of trails at Sun Mountain, Winthrop, and Mazama
• Rebuild of bridge on Radar Creek
• Invasive weed management
• New deck and picnic tables at the Chickadee hut   
• Trail signs replaced in the Rendezvous
• Jacks Trail repaired after washout
• Mountain bike rollovers (instead of gates) installed
• New trail connection to avoid road-walking in Wolf Creek
• Re-opening of Aqualoop after 2021 wildfires
• New toilets at Chickadee Trailhead
• New trailhead, parking, and toilets at Winthrop Trailhead
• ...and much, much more! 

Jacks Trail before and after Chipper crew, looking mostly chipperDoing battle with Russian Thistle Feeding the chipperLower Goat Creek Bridge washoutGoat Creek Bridge repairGoat Creek Bridge repair Walls and a roof cost money!

Thank you for your support of trails in the Methow Valley!