Route of the Hiawatha….

I took my then girlfriend (now wife) on a vacation to Idaho and Montana in 2010. We spent time hiking in Glacier National Park and rode the Route of Hiawatha trail on our way back to Spokane where our flight departed from. The trail is spectacular, taking riders through very rugged country over high trestles and through tunnels. If you are a fan of the Milwaukee Road's Pacific Extension this is a bucket list destination.

I planned the trip ahead of time and knew that we would be riding after the shuttle operating season ended (the weekend after Labor Day). We had hiked the 10.6 mile Grinnell Glacier trail the previous day in Glacier so spent a little more time getting moving the morning of the ride. We arrived at the bicycle shop at Lookout Pass to pick up the rental bicycles around 12:30. I asked the shop employee what time the shop closes and he said at 5 pm. From Lookout Pass we had another 45 minute ride to get to the trailhead at Pearson. We started our ride up to the pass at 1:30 and took a bit to get things warmed up. The first three miles were particularly tough because there were larger ballast stones mixed in with some smaller crushed stone so you couldn't ride very fast. Both pedaling and steering were difficult. After the previous days hike my wife was looking for a leisurely ride up to the pass but I told her the bike shop closed at 5 and we needed to get moving if we were to get up to the pass and through the tunnel and still have enough time to get the bikes back before the store closed.

The ride got smoother after the first few miles and the temperatures warmed up nicely. St. Paul Pass tunnel is 1.7 miles long and filled with fog. The temperature dropped at least 20 degrees by the time you are halfway through. On the way back we coasted the 14.4 miles down the mountain enjoying the view and the warm afternoon temperatures.

Despite the rough start we made the 28.8 mile round trip and arrived back to the bike shop about 10 minutes before it closed. Upon arriving, I found the shop employee tossing bicycle locks on the ground next to the front door. These are for the people who don't make it back in time before the shop closes he said!!

We stayed that night at a Dinner and Bed a little further to the west along route 90 in northern Idaho. The owner asked what we had done during the day and we told him that we rode the Route of the Hiawatha trail, making the round trip up to the tunnel starting from Pearson. He looked at us with surprised look on his face and said that he didn't know you could ride UP the mountain!

In the image below, on our way up to the pass you can see two trestles spanning gaps in the trees to the left of center.

West portal of St. Paul Pass Tunnel.

Andrew

Ghosts of the Milwaukee abound in Western Montana. Of note is the "new" Reed Point bridge on the (former) MRL. After a derailment last summer destroyed the original bridge, MRL cobbled together a new one using segments of old Milwaukee Road girder bridges.