Green to Cedar Rivers Trail
Walk across Maple Valley through a “wilderness” park
Quick Facts:
Location: Maple Valley, WA
Distance: 3.3 miles one way
Contact: King County Parks
Elevation Gain: 250 feet
Notes: Dogs permitted on leash
Trailhead directions: From Seattle follow I-5 to I-405 and take Exit 4 in Renton. Then drive SR 169 south for 11.3 miles turning right onto Witte Road SE and drive 0.8 mile to a traffic circle. Exit circle onto SE 249th Street and continue for 0.3 mile. Then bear right onto Gaffney Road and continue 0.2 mile to trailhead in Lake Wilderness Park.
Transit: King County Metro Line 168 stops at trailhead on SR 516 SE Kent-Kangley Road
Good to Know: Kid-friendly, dog-friendly (leashed), snow-free winter hiking, historic
One of several excellent rail trails in King County, this one isn’t quite as well-known as the Burke-Gilman, Sammamish, Interurban and others closer to Seattle and Bellevue. King County Parks hopes to eventually have this trail which starts from the Cedar River Trail connect with Flaming Geyser State Park on the Green River. But for now it’s a 3.3 mile family-friendly trail that passes through lovely Lake Wilderness Park; home to more trails, a children’s discovery forest, an intriguing arboretum and stunning views of Mount Rainier.
Access the trail from the 42-acre Lake Wilderness Arboretum. Then decide to head north or south. The latter is more scenic and therefore more popular. Heading north pass feeder trails to both the arboretum, and Lake Wilderness Park’s Forest Reserve Trails system on your right. The trail is wide, smooth and well-graded. King County Parks plans to pave it soon, no doubt making it a more popular destination for cyclists. The trail leaves the park, skirts a neighborhood and ducks under Witte Road.
It then comes upon St George Episcopalian Church’s Sanctuary with its Labyrinth. The path then slowly descends coming to the SR 169 underpass. It then skirts some businesses and travels through the SE 231st Street underpass. Soon afterwards it makes a quick descent and terminates at the Cedar River Trail)
Southward from Lake Wilderness Park, the trail passes a couple of side trails before reaching the shoreline of Lake Wilderness. While no longer a wilderness with homes crowding its shores in spots—it’s still a pretty body of water. The trail then slowly ascends a slope of towering timber above the lake before traversing a private park and skirting some homes. The way then passes a couple of side trails before darting under SE 263rd Street. It then travels between neighborhoods and commercial centers before coming to SR 516.
Beyond it continues as a narrow paved path traveling behind shopping plazas and reaching SE 271st Place. It then continues as a rougher corridor paralleling SR 169 and reaching an active rail line just before the Black Diamond Open Space. I would wait for this to be upgraded before traveling it. If you want to do more wandering head back to Lake Wilderness Park and the Arboretum for their miles of quiet wooded trails. The Smith-Mossman Western Azalea Garden at the arboretum contains one of the largest collections of this showy member of the heath family. Plan a visit during the spring bloom.
For more details on this hike and others in and around Maple Valley, pick up a copy of my Urban Trails Tacoma book (Mountaineers Books).
