Welcome, won't you? Here's my Vespa with GPS all set to go, taped to my headset. It's 7am and time to roll! My mileage before the trip. And we're off! To Everett! My first surprise of the day was in the town of Everett. It's a Muffler Man watching down upon me wishing me happy journeys for today. Thanks, Muffler Man! And here's Hewitt Street in Everett. This was the start of the old alignment and my start for the day. Gopher, Everett? The intersection of Broadway and Hewitt was the official start of the road. Here is a map of the next few miles. The original alignment to Cavalero Corner was as it is now - very straight. It then turned right (possibly on Cavaleros Road?) and then to Fobes Hill. A bit of backtracking must be done to find Fobes Road, but it's a nice ride. Here I am perched atop US 2 looking down upon Fobes Road and a lot of fog. I'm at the junction of 83rd Ave SE and Fobes Road. It's a dead end, but take it because that's the original road. It dead ends into US 2. You can even see a road sign. There was a dog around here who really flipped out on me. Fobes Road attaches to Bickford Road and then turns into Ave D into Snohomish. The original route through town was probably lower (Ave D was raised a bit). It then hangs a left on 1st through downtown and a right on Lincoln. Then you're treated to a very spectacular Snohomish's visitor's center. These things are never open when I go through a town. This was on 1st Ave, but a bit off the road. 1st Ave in Snohomish! It's a really nice town and I believe it was my first visit there. In time I'll get to know it better. More of 1st Ave. It's nice to see a very old building looking like it's actually an old building. From 1892. This is a really huge barn on the Snohomish-Monroe Road. The weather was foggy and cold, but it was warming up a bit. Downtown Monroe! Not as quaint as Snohomish, but still really nice. The Owens Road alignment was fun. It was my first time on this road. I believe it to be the earliest road connecting Monroe and Sultan. The current route of US 2 seems swampy and was probably prone to flooding. Along US 2 are several older alignments. Though I didn't mention this, a short segment of Calhoun Road is closed. You have to visit it from both ends. Owen Road, right before the junction with Calhoun Road. And here we are on Owen Road, toward the eastern end of it. I doubled back and took Owen Road to Calhoun Road, a later alignment. Here's the Monroe Motel. And here is a cemetery along both Owen Road (on the northern end) and Calhoun Road (on the southern end - and can be seen in the right of the shot). But poor Calhoun Road ends here. This is what is looks like. I didn't explore it farther. And at the eastern end of the closed segment of Calhoun Road we have this. And this! This is a great sign and it's lucky I was on a scooter and without a trunk. Right where Calhoun Road and modern US 2 meet, we have Reptile Zoo! It's apparently open on Christmas. Guess where I'll be spending my Yule time... At the Reptile Zoo! Ok, this is of no significance to you at all. It's where Sofie Road and modern US 2 meet. This is the only thing I remember from my first trip through here in July of 2008. I rode from Seattle to eastern Washington and it's all a blur except for this spot. Why? No idea. I just took a short break to check something. Anyway, this is Fern Bluff Road, just off of modern US 2. A house... And a barn greet you on this older alignment. Fern Bluff Road curves away from US 2 and then back towards it, crossing it and the rail line then runs alongside it until you're almost in Sultan. The missing Old Sultan-Startup Road is partially on private property. Only the middle section is accessable. Sadly, I didn't know this until later, so I wasn't able to check it out. But this is the This is also part of the Here's a painting made from an old picture looking east down Main Street in Sultan. That bridge is no longer there, but this is the same view. Here's a shot of the bridges from the eastern shore. This is where the old bride entered town. Welcome to Sultan. Main Street, Sultan. Just east of Sultan is an old alignment now called Cascade View Drive. An old Grange is right were it departs from US 2. A Mighty Mouse Dodge van is on that segment as well. Nice, huh? The original road curved towards the east here. We now rejoin US 2, already in progress. As mentioned before, I couldn't find Old Sultan-Startup Road south of US 2, but this is the one to the north. Though I took no pictures in Startup or Gold Bar, they're definitely worth checking out. Here is a great example of how Googlemaps screws up and can really throw you off. Careful! Here is Gunn Road just east of Gold Bar. I'm not sure it's the old road, but it really does seem like it should be. I believe it originally went straight here. It curved north and then crosses US 2. There's nothing left of Gunn Road at that location, but after is crosses US 2, it becomes Reiter Road. Reiter Road was the first road between Gold Bar and Index. The people along Reiter Road clearly appreciate irony. I wish I knew the names of the mountains. If you look at the map, on Reiter Road there's a little loop that has been cut off. This is that loop (I went back and checked it with a GPS). I didn't explore it since the conditions were bad. Though not this bad. This is a 1911 shot of the first car on the And back to Reiter Road. They removed the pavement AND the guard rails making it extra scary on a Vespa. Here is where Reiter Road crosses the tracks. Googlemaps claims this to not exist. And now we're in Index! A nice fixer-upper? How about this 1970ish Bus? Have a seat and look at... This ridiculously amazing view. Mt. Index on the left, Mt. Persis on the right. Or turn your head to look at this. (Mt. Gunn?) How about a peek down the tracks? The Bush House recently closed and it's a shame. It had been opened since 1898. Big saw for cutting granite in Doolittle Town Park. The first child born in Index was in 1891. Here is the new bridge, built in 1999. The road originally only went north to Galina. But we'll head south back to US 2. What a long trip for basically nothing. My speculation is that after leaving Index, the road doubled back onto what is now US 2, took that east to what is now called Mt. Index Road and wound its way back to US 2. By 1927, a bridge was built between the Reiter Road segment and either the US 2 segment or the Mt. Index Road segment (unsure which - but probably US 2). Mt. Index River Road. This was odd and seemed to be trying to get me to believe that this road was a private road. Mt. Index and a strange sign. A bit farther down, still on Mt. Index Road, there was this. But there was also this, Sunset Falls. Googlemaps mistakenly calls this N Riverside Road, but really, it's still Mt. Index Road. This is the continuation of Mt. Index River Road. I rode back there and was given a VERY unhappy and stern look by an unfriendly gentleman. I moved on. The bridge crosses the rail road onto Riverside Road. This Riverside Road (never part of the old road). And the dead end that caused me to turn around. Yeah, thanks. This whole segment was quite a disappointment. In the west, the original road (probably from 1900ish) was completely on private property. At the other end (in red), it was on public land, but was too muddy to pass through. That whole thing, however, was bi-passed in 1912-1915 with the building of a bridge across the South Fork of the Skykomish River. The modern bridge is where the old bridge used to be. This is a VERY fun bridge leading to the old road now on private land. I rode the Vespa over this. And this is what I believe to be the first road through the area. Ahh, good ol' 639th Ave NE! The land is for sale, if you'd like to purchase it for me. On the bridge looking down the river. YES! Back tracking, I headed to US 2 and then east to Old Cascade Highway. The tunnel is on US 2 and the bridge (to the right) replaced the original 1912 bridge. Looking down the 1912 alignment, this is where the old road on private land (639th Ave NE) eventually came out, joining the road east into Skykomish. Let's take the old, old road. Well, I did and I got this far. I probably could have taken the mud no problem, but I wasn't even sure if this was the right road (though I am pretty sure it was) and I was running a bit behind on time. Nifty Forest Service bridge, probably crossing Lowe Creek. The road was mostly like this. It seemed like a riverbed. Another road went west, but it was gated. I'm not sure, but there's a chance that this was the original road and not the one that I was on. Nevertheless, this segment (heading east) was definitely the original road. And we're back to where we started! Old Cascade Highway. Take a right and head into Skykomish! But first a bridge over Miller River. Looking back onto the town of Miller River. And into Skykomish. I crossed the tracks and am looking back on the town from the rail station. Downtown. Quite a bit of work is being done on the town. But all the street signs are cabooses! Here's their library. And back across the tracks onto the Old Cascade Highway, heading east. I'm really not sure about this alignment. It really would be great if Foss River Road was an old alignment. There's some early map evidence that makes me believe it was. However, I can't figure out how it connected back to the US 2 alignment. I was hoping to find out, but no, it's gated. Still, a VERY nice ride. Foss River Road. And a little camp resort place. Cross the Foss River... I love it up here. And down what I hope to be the old road. Along the road I found one of the biggest boulders I've ever seen. And a sign informing me that soon I'll be stopped. But not before a beautiful forest of birch trees. And here's the stopping. Such a shame! I really think I could have figured it out. So I turned around and went back, but not without a detour to see this. If you have time, really explore this area. There's a lot to see and, because of the bridge being out, a lot of backtracking to do, but if you love old roads and trains (and who doesn't?!), you're in for a treat. Old Cascade Highway, just after leaving US 2 Here, a tree did some damage. The last time we were here, we nearly got stuck in a HUGE snow fall. In the winter, the road isn't plowed past this point. Thankfully, it's not yet winter. The old alignment will take you back to US 2. It then follows US 2 (or was probably just to the south of it), passing the Iron Goat Trail visitors center. Across US 2 from the Iron Goat Trail center. Back on the Old Cascade Highway, I'll have to turn around due to the bridge being out. Some of the road is in not so great of shape. But here's the walking/biking bridge. Crossing it, here's a trail to the other side. I turned around, heading up the pass on US 2 and turned left here. Working my way back to the bridge. Let's now head east. The old 1924 alignment climbing up the pass really is a lot of fun. To the left, you can see the traces of the old railroad. To the right (near the same spot) was this. I'm not sure what it was. I suppose it could be modern US 2, but I really don't think so. Could be an older railroad bed. Still climbing. Here's the junction with the road that went to Wellington (now gone). It's where the first Cascade Tunnel (railroad) was built. You can still see it today. This is definitely modern US 2. I'll let you have your modern roads and take this twisty old alignment any day. I see. US 2 is to my front, as is a ski resort. The old road twists its way back to US 2. And here we are at Stevens Pass! The road down Stevens Pass is mostly the original, though there are spots where it clearly is not. White Pine Road may be an old alignment. Due to time and not being even remotely sure where it would take me, this is White Pine Road looking west, back towards the pass. Nason Ridge Road (unmarked) was the original road. A bridge is out, but there's a connector road back to US 2, so you don't have to backtrack. See? This is a HUGE map and for that, I apologize. I hope you can read it somehow. The modern US 2 alignment came early, but was not the first. The ground around there was not even close to being suited for a road. The Before all of that, let's take the Merritt-Winton Road. To do so, you have to hop over the little pile of dirt. Done and done. This is what awaits you. The road to the left goes to Coles Corner. Straight will take you to Winton (which really isn't a town anymore). Winton. Slow. And just after Winton it dead ends, but you can see US 2 from here. This fellow lives in Winton with a couple of mid-80s Rabbits. Coles Corner! Let' head up 207! There's a road that is next to modern 207 that was probably the original road. I didn't take it as much of it is on private land. You can usually see it from today's road. Near Lake Winatchee State Park. This is creepy. Old barn on the Chiwawa Loop. And here is where Beaver Valley Road/209 and the Chiwawa Loop join. 209 is the more prefered road today, but it's not the original road. One is tempting, when looking straight on, to think that the original road went straight and the newer alignment took off to the left. That, according to 1900ish map evidence, is incorrect. The road that goes straight is Camp 12 road. It probably connected to the Chumstick Highway on both ends, but was a camp road of some sort, not the main highway. This is the main highway and is pretty close to the original alignment. Very few changes (if any) have been made. Heading into Leavenworth, the road hung a left (away from town) on North Road. The bridge is out for now, so I had to do some fancy driving. To get here, about 1/2 mile away from where the bridge is out. North road is fun and has a lot of right angles. This is the town of Peshastin. This is the bridge going over the river to US 2. The original road took this bridge as well. Getting off of US 2, the original road is now called Saunders Road. Here, at the junction of Doghouse Road and Saunders Road was (I believe) the actual junction of the road over Blewett Pass and the end of the Stevens Pass Scenic Highway. A right on this road would take you over Blewett Pass to Ellensburg and Cle Elum. Doghouse Road becomes Blewett Cutoff Road, goes under modern US 2... Passes this old gas station... And joins with modern US 97, the road that once was Blewett Cutoff Road. I wanted to be here by 5pm. And what do you know, I was exactly on the dot. As usual. I'm obnoxiously punctual. If you were to explore the rest of Saunders Road, you would find a 1920 Chelan County bridge! Here it is, looking north. And looking south, towards US 2, you'd see some original concrete! This is like porn to the old road buff. I love how desert-like it gets right around here. Ok, and then I took US 2 to the freaky little town of Leavensworth. In 1964, Leavensworth decided to be a Bavarian town. And they really mean it. Really, really mean it. Also, on the way home, I discovered this. What is it? No idea. It's not actually interpretive since there are no signs or pamphlets, etc. Nice, but huh? I did get to see this though. Ok, that's that! Thanks for playing along and I hope you had some fun.

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