Riding the old railway line, on bikes

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer keeps the theme of the last post (upswing in bike vacations) alive with their report on the scenic bike trip through Iron Horse State Park trail in Washington State.

The 109-mile trail is built on the old railway bed that connected Chicago to the Pacific Northwest and shut down in 1980.

A shuttle service now takes bikers to both ends of the trail near North Bend and Snoqualmie Pass.

"'It's a very friendly ride. The scenery is beautiful and I think my favorite part is the railroad trestles, and looking down on the tops of the trees," said Cynthia McMath of Lynnwood, a friend [of reporter Greg Johnston]. 'I like that as you ride down the trail and approach the creeks, you can feel the temperature change, and you can listen to the creeks as you're passing. The wildflowers are pretty, too.'"

Read the full story: Rolling on the old Milwaukee rail line