The Top 5 Mountain Bike Destinations For Beginners and Pros Near Seattle Washington in 2025
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If you are planning on traveling to Washington for a mountain biking trip then you are going to want to read below to plan out your rides! The 5 BEST MTB locations near Seattle broken down by what to expect for parking, the climb, trails and routes by skill/ endurance level, and where to grab some food and drinks after the ride is over.
Raging River- Check it out on Trailforks
Raging River is likely a destination you have heard of before or perhaps you are consistently seeing it pop up in your quest to find the best trails to ride in Washington. But I assure you, its for good reason its at the top of the list! There is something for everyone and every skill level here and there is loads of amazing food and beverage for after your ride! It is located about 10 minutes form Snoqualmie/ North Bend and offers some steep, rooty, flowchunk goodness on trails like Physical Therapy (PT), Reverence, and Ferdinand The Bull or flowy jump trails such as Executive Decision and Poppin Tops/ Flow State. It is worth noting these trails are exceptionally well developed and maintained by Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. Please go support them and their mission to build and maintain the most amazing trail networks around!
Parking: Quite a bit of road parking on a hill that is free. To park in the designated lot requires a NW Forest Pass that you can acquire HERE if needed.
Toilets: 2 Pit toilets in main lot and 2 flushing toilets a short walk onto the east side of the park (can see on Trail Forks)
The Climb: Realistically, you have 2 options. A gravel road or the designated climb trail named Upward Mobility. This is a mostly mellow grade with a couple slightly steeper sections and switchbacks. Overall I think the "“Green” rating is very accurate. If you are planning to ride PT, Reverence, CCDH, or really any of the trails above Poppin Tops, I recommend climbing the road from “The Dash” or the top of Lower Poppin tops. The road is more exposed to the sun, but the grade isn’t bad and I find it to be quicker to access these other trails. Plus you don’t have to worry about riders bombing it down Raging Ridge (technically a 2 way trail). There is one brutal hill on the road but after that it is really quite easy to get anywhere else.
Recommended Routes by Skill/ Endurance level:
-Beginner: Poppin Tops Upper through Flow State
-Beginner (+):: Ferdinand The Bull to Poppin Tops Lower and down through Flow State.
-Intermediate: There are so many good routes but… CCDH to Poppin Tops Upper and down through Flow State. Technically not to difficult, but may require a stronger endurance base.
-Advanced: Reverence to Ferdinand The Bull to Poppin Tops Lower and down through Flow State.
-Personal Favorite Route: Reverence to Ferdinand The Bull to Poppin Tops Upper (via the road) and down through Flow State. This ride will give you a bit of everything from chunky goodness and big drops to fast and playful flow.
It is very easy to add some extra trails into your ride without adding crazy amounts of milage here or even run a couple laps on specific sections of Poppin tops/ Flow State.
Post Ride Food and Brews:
Volition is my personal favorite brewery in the area. Super fun vibes with some outdoor seating and fires located in the heart of North Bend. Lots of food options around such as Iron Duck or Cascadia Pizza. They also have a rotating Food Truck available. Can bring outside food in as well. No Boat Brewing is also a neat brewery in Snoqualmie withe plenty of food options around it as well. Typically about 10-15 minute drive from trailhead.
Tiger Mountain- Check it out on Trailforks
Tiger Mountain is likely the other trail destination that you constantly hear about when looking for mountain biking trails in Central Washington. Also for fantastic reasons! Most of what you will find here is classic PNW steeps, roots, and beautiful technical goodness. The exception is Side Hustle that is arguably one of the most amazing jump/ flow trails you will ever find yourself riding. It is seriously so much fun and recently rebuilt! There is Nothing at Tiger I would consider a true beginner friendly trail. Side Hustle is probably the closest thing simply because it is a smooth flow trail, but given the speed and jumps you will find on it, beginners should use caution. I think Intermediate riders and above will have the most fun here. Beginners can certainly still have an incredible day here but may need to exercise some extra caution is all! It is worth noting these trails are exceptionally well developed and maintained by Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. Please go support them and their mission to build and maintain the most amazing trail networks around!
Parking: Large parking lot just off of highway. Some road parking as you head to the upper lot, and an upper lot with minimal parking. Lots of potholes in the parking areas. To park in the designated lot requires a NW Forest Pass that you can acquire HERE if needed. At the time of this articles release, there is a major parking expansion currently ongoing that will expand parking to about 170 spots. In the meantime, the lower lot is the only available parking. Construction underway June 9 to November 1, 2025.
Toilets: 2 Pit toilets in main lot
The Climb: Realistically, you have 2 options. A gravel road or the designated climb trail named Master Link and Power Link. Personally, this climb trail is great and I do not think climbing the road is at all worth it unless you are on an Ebike. The grade is manageable but feels slightly steeper than the climb at Raging River in my opinion. Power Link is without question steeper and more difficult. We typically take the road to the top from the end of Master Link. If you descend down the backside of the mountain, I would advise against climbing out on Preston RR Grade unless technical climbing is something you love. Although a 2 way trail, it is a technical grueling climb for the first 75% of the trail. The grade is not hard but tons of roots and rocks to go up for 3 miles.
Recommended Routes by Skill/ Endurance level:
-Beginner: East Tiger Summit to Side Hustle to Iverson to Parking Lot. Fair amount of mileage, but probably the most beginner friendly descent. Can cut some of the climb out if you start at the first road intersection on East Tiger. This is a great route for any skill level to be honest!
-Intermediate: East Tiger to NOTG to Atlas to Parking Lot (lots of miles but worth it!)
-Advanced: NOTG to Predator to Parking Lot
-Personal Favorite Route: East Tiger to NOTG to Atlas to Parking Lot. East tiger is very playful and smile having. NOTG is thrilling and fun. Atlas is some of the best tech flow around with some steeper sections yet is playful and fast.
Post Ride Food and Brews:
Volition is my personal favorite brewery in the area. Super fun vibes with some outdoor seating and fires located in the heart of North Bend. Lots of food options around such as Iron Duck or Cascadia Pizza. They also have a rotating Food Truck available. Can bring outside food in as well. No Boat Brewing is also a neat brewery in Snoqualmie. Typically about 10-15 minute drive from trailhead.
North Slope Trails- Check it on TrailForks
If you are on the hunt for somewhere to ride that is steep, loose, fast, amazing views, and chunky then this is it! If you are looking for somewhere with big jump lines, this aint it (with the exception of a short section on Slick Jimmy). North Slopes is a classic PNW loamy and rooty steeps location. Best part is it is a very easy location to do some shuttle rides if you have a buddy! This is where my wife, Claire, was able to make some massive amounts of improvement on her bike and greatly improve her confidence. It is a fantastic location for progression for beginners and experienced riders alike. It is also where I filmed my first ever attempt at a silent MTB film called “Mr. Bones”. Go watch on YouTube or read about my lessons learned from it! Friends Of Capital Forest (FOCF) maintains and builds the trails here and also host shuttle days here once or twice a year. They also put on the famous Free For All race here on Wednesday nights during the summer and the Capitol Forest Festival in early August in the Capitol Forest Trails. Go check them out! Lastly, Capitol Forest Trails are also amazing and are on the opposite side of this forest. You actually can access them via a long(ish) drive through some gravel roads (if you don’t want to take paved roads) and are managed by FOCF as well. Also a fantastic place to ride and certainly more beginner friendly. Greenline is one of my favorite rides in the area for a scenic day! Capitol Forest trails are smoother, longer, and more of a trail ride where as North Slopes is catered to downhillers. Read more about their story HERE!
Parking: There is a lot at the bottom as you enter from the highway. Also quite a few pull-offs to park alongside the gravel road as you climb the mountain and one small lot at the top by Living The Dream. Parking is not an issue here really.
Toilets: 1 Porta Potty at bottom lot
The Climb: The primary way to climb here is via the gravel road that connects to all the trails here. It is a pretty mellow pedal for the most part with 1 notable hill right before getting to the top of Living The Dream. From here, the pedal to Down N Roudy is fairly mellow with 1 more notable hill towards the end. The view form this hill is amazing though! If you are going to the backside, there is also a gravel road to climb to the trails but it is quite a bit steeper. I have not pedaled the backside myself. Claire and i typically just shuttle each other. There is a climb trail for Down N Roudy, but I have found the road to not be all that bad so I have never taken this trail.
Recommended Routes by Skill/ Endurance level:
Most people come here for a shuttle day I would say. Due to this, expect the difficulty to be slightly elevated for the trails here. If you do shuttle it, just ride all the trails. They are all great! Living the dream, Scoby, and Mr. Bones are my 3 favorites with Down N Rowdy trialing close behind. But I am going to pretend you are visiting and only have 1 car available and so you cannot shuttle this.
-Beginner: Park at bottom and pedal road up to Living The Dream. Continue across road at first road intersection. At next trail split, If wanting a bit more chunky rooty, keep left at the split to head to the road and ride Stormy to parking lot. If wanting a smoother bermier way to the car, keep right at the split.
-Intermediate: Park at bottom and pedal up road to Living the Dream. Continue across road at first road intersection. Keep left at trail intersection and go to road and pedal back up to Scoby and follow to parking lot. If felling good, pedal halfway up and ride Stormy back down. Definitely worth it if you got the legs left.
-Advanced: Park at Bottom and pedal up road to Down N Roudy and follow to parking lot. Pedal up again for a Scoby lap and keep left at the black/ double black split and follow to parking lot.
-Personal Favorite Route: The intermediate loop is definitely a go to route if not shuttling. However, if legs are fresh and weather is nice, the Advanced loop gets you more bang for your buck. But neither is going to leave you disappointed. If shuttling and a confident rider, Mr. Bones and Slick Jimmy are AMAZING!
Post Ride Food and Brews: Head to downtown Olympia. Do be sure to lock your bikes up before leaving them however and I would recommend attempting to park somewhere within eyesight. Not a dangerous area, but you are in the state capitol and it is better to be safe than sorry. Well 80 is my personal favorite in the area for a beer and appetizer. They have food and good beer and vibes are neat. They have lots of old commercials playing from the Olympic Beer days and a neat mural to match. There are tons of really neat places to grab a drink or eat near the water here. Expect a very artistic scene.
Summit at Snoqualmie DH Park- Check out on TrailForks
Not much needs to be said here apart from it is a downhill, lift assisted MTB park! They have some neat trails, lodge with food, stellar views, and live music (depending on the day). They have a bit of everything here for all skill levels. Full day passes are $46- $65 and afternoon tickets are $33-$55. Check out their website for more information and reserve tickets. Be sure to check the park is open. They usually start operations around the end of June.
Parking: Parking lot and overflow lot
Toilets: Full service Lodge
The Climb: Hop on a Chair Lift
Recommended Routes by Skill/ Endurance level:
You are at a downhill park so the route doesn’t matter. Probably smart to warm up on something easier though and work your way up in difficulty. But here are my favorites to ride in order by favorites:
-Lost and Found is the best trail in the park no doubt
-Green Party is just super fun and playful and the only green trail at the park (at least at the time of writing this)
-Silver Fir DH is insanely fun with some STEEP rollers and technical sections
-Bermy Lomax is great with some big jumps and high speeds into Berms (obviously lol)
Post Ride Food and Brews: Dru Bru is an AWESOME Brewery! I won a Keg toss here actually lol. Great beer and fun outdoor seating with some incredible views. Food truck called Squatch Box is co-located that has amazing wieners and chicken tenders.
Roslyn Urban Forest- Check out on TrailForks
Roslyn has a different feel than a lot of other areas on this list. It is much sandier and rockier with a forest that feels more open. Feels more like Eastern Washington or even Bend Oregon if you are familiar with either of those. There is supposedly some neat rock slabs somewhere out here, but I have yet to find these fabled rocks. This is our least explored location of this list, but we had such an amazing time here, that it had to be added to the list! If you are here in the Spring, the wildflowers are absolutely popping here! This is probably at the top of the list for beginners looking for a trail destination. But, there are some amazing hidden gyms for all skill levels and most trails have multiple line choices to cater to all different skills. To top things off, the town of Roslyn is incredibly vibrant and fun and everyone is riding around on mountain bikes or taking their horses through the drive through. Some amazing food and ice cream here too!
Parking: Park at the Coal Mine Trail lot in Roslyn.
Toilets: None at parking lot, but you have to ride through town to access the trails so plenty of places to “go”
The Climb: Frankly, there are tons of ways to get around so your expiernce will depend on the route. First you will pedal through town and see how neat this small town is. We used the Ewok climb for each ride we did and found the climb both beautiful and fairly mild. When comparing this climb trail to Tiger Mountain or Raging River, this is definitely more mild than both of them. Once at the top, the gravel road is the easiest option to go either direction in my opinion, but Paul’s trail is a 2 way trail that can be used and definitely more shaded. Amazing views from the top on a clear day!
Recommended Routes by Skill/ Endurance level:
-Beginner: Ewok Climb to 4th of July. The Grotto to Lower Beer Can to parking lot. Mostly smooth and sandy. Can go as fast or slow as you want.
-Intermediate/ Advanced: Ewok Climb to Main Road to Brass Monkey. There are numerous various line choices on this trail. Depending on how you ride the trail dictates how difficult it is. Some big drops, rock rolls, and gap jumps that can all be avoided. Hence this is a mixed difficulty. Follow the Coal Mines trail back to town.
-Personal Favorite Route: The Brass Monkey route is so much fun. We were grinning the entire time. Claire avoided a lot of the big features and I road most of them. A perfect example of how this trail can be super fun for groups of mixed skill levels! Everyone will have fun riding this.
Post Ride Food and Brews: I unfortunately did not catch the name, but there is a Mexican food tent in a small grassy park between The Brick Saloon and Basecamp Books and Bites that is FANTASTIC. I would not pass this food up if it is there! There are numerous food trucks in this same area, but I assume this outdoor eating is weather dependent. The Roslyn Candy Company has some great ice cream inside a converted old bank.
