North Fork Snoqualmie Road

Lotta Potholes, campsites were a bit muddy, but great day-trip. End of the trail has multiple trails going deeper, some these trails seemed much more difficult.

Been coming here for years but my first time leaving a review. This is probably the worst I've seen this trail with potholes. I recommend airing down before coming if your suspension is a bit stiffer. Also, about a mile or so before hitting the riverbank campsites, there are two back to back 15-20ft long dips filled with water that take up the entire width of the trail. I didn't measure the depth but I was wearing muck boots and the water came about 2 or 3in from the top of the boot. If you're in a regular car or crossover then I'd be cautious here. Was fine in my D21 truck with 31in A/T. Good trail can't wait to come back and use it as a jumping point to other trails around

cool views, trashed

Most of the year, this trail is just a gravel road. Once it gets some snow though, it's absolutely awesome! Today it had a few inches of snow at the start, and maybe a little over a foot (at most in some spots) towards the end. It also has some awesome views! The only reason for the 4 star review is the massive amount of potholes. They become less of an issue when there's more snow, but even today they were quite annoying.

Trail is closed for the time being due to the wildfire. The forest ranger at the trailhead suggested this would be closed for a while.

Didn't make it the full way because the pot holes were so bad I was getting motion sickness (first time ever!). Next time I'll bring my air compressor and try airing down and see if it's any better.

Really heavily potholed basically from the start. Lots of fun though. With decent suspension, only minimal line selection is really necessary on the rutted out and puddle-filled sections. As you get further up into the mountains, the trail becomes more grown over and narrower, but I had zero issues getting through with my full-size pickup. There's a few spots where growth has narrowed the aperture of the road, but it brushes aside easily without leaving pinstripes. Plenty of dispersed campsites adjacent to and just off the road. Hiking offsides is hit or miss, but check the WTA for more. Pro tip: Bring some trash bags and help pack out the debris and litter at the shooting pit. The place is a literal dump right now and even just a bag or two packed out makes a difference over time.

My brother and I had a blast making our way up this trail. Although it was littered with potholes the majority of the way, it was still nice to be out there enjoying the scenery. We did run into any snow at all on our way.

Great first outing of the year, made it all the way to lennox creek and had a nice fire and some steaks by the water. There was a bit of snow at the very end, but wasnt much trouble. Should be mostly all snow free in a couple weeks.

Is this trail still open?

It seems the land was bought by Campbell Global so the trees can be harvested. Here is their website: https://www.campbellglobal.com/ Further, they were bought out by none-other than J.P. Morgan at the end of 2021: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/jp-morgan-enters-timber-industry-acquires-giant-campbell-global

Replying to review below, trail is open! I just did it a week ago. These signs are referring to the private property along the first few miles of the road. Confirmed with forest service, I answered a similar concern a while back in the comments.

Looks like this trail is closed to motorized vehicles. This large sign is posted at the trail head. Very disappointed, was really looking forward to exploring it with my daughter.

Easy gravel road all the way up. Can be washed out with pot holes in places. Lots of cool side spots to camp or explore. Little river crossing at the top and cool riverside camping.

Easy driving in the rain, but beyond the end of this trail the side tralls were starting to get washed out. Day after Thanksgiving and there was light traffic.

Great view. 2wd is enough.

I got cocky and did this in 2WD with no traction control - no problems going all the way to the Lennox Creek turnoff / shooting pit and back. It was raining all day and some of the puddles made for good tire washers. I saw a BMW 3 series up there as well as a few probably-unmodded Subarus at the shooting pit (kudos to them for organizing a trash pickup). The potholes were unavoidable in some spots but nothing that seemed like it would eat tires. I will probably do this again on a sunny day to find out what the views are like.

There are some good views out here but most of what you’re find is hiking trails and shooting pits in the back before the road dead ends. Though sometime during a good snowfall it can be fun. I’ve ran into people with flat tires back here and they didn’t have any cell service so just make sure you have all the basic essentials.

Easy trail not technical at all - but still a fun day trip - some decent camp spots along the way

My first trail on my Rubicon 4xe. Trail was in good condition and it was pretty easy to handle. Great trail to listen to an audiobook while riding it.

very easy trail, great for beginners. the trail continues to lennox creek where we decide to camp

Went back up to see the trail without snow, and on a clear day. Super easy trail, and the views are stunning.

Did this trail today! Directions/waypoints were spot on. No access issues, as stated some of the off-shoot roads are private but as listed here the trail was perfectly accesible. Awesome beginners trail!

I contacted the forest service to clarify accessibility to this road, as there is a new sign saying permits with campbell global are needed. If you do not deviate from the trail before the forest boundary (near lennox creek) you do not need a permit. See response from snoqualmie ranger district: "Correct, NF-57 is a public road. Before the Forest boundry it is County Road 250, or N. Fork Rd SE. All the gated roads that spur off before you cross the Forest boundary are privately managed by Campbell Global, https://sqrecreation.com and do require a permit."

Looks like the trail now requires a special permit.

Beautiful road with lots of great views along the way. Road was completely clear of snow and could be traveled by a low clearance vehicle. Some large potholes in areas, but nothing that would require higher clearance or 4wd. Not much in terms of side trails as most of this road goes through private logging lands, but the very end puts you in National Forest where there does seem to be quite a few little side trails you could explore. Still looks like there is a lot of snow on many of roads beyond the end of this road.

Very fun beginners trail. Took my 2020 4Runner Venture Addition and had no troubles at all. Trail is full of potholes and puddles so anything with a little ground clearance can go here. There are some awesome views for photos and such. Most of the trail is owned by a logging company so these views are only really good at the beginning and end of the trail. At the beginning is a great vista view of the local mountains and the end is a close up of the mountains sheer side. There is left over garbage from shooters and campers but I think thats gonna be an issue anywhere you go. Highly recommend for the simple fact of accessibility and easy difficulty.

Fun afternoon of backroads. The last half of the drive was pretty snowy, but nothing my FWD with ATW's couldn't handle. Can't wait to come back in the summer to see the mountains without cloud cover. Lots of potholes and a few drivers going 35-40 down these roads, so be alert. (I'm pretty sure I followed the dude in the white Sequoia a few reviews down)

Nice, easy trail. Lots of snow starting half way but still passable.

Probably one of the closest trails if you live in Seattle or on the Eastside. It’s a fun first trail to test your vehicle’s light off-road capabilities without it being too taxing or having to worry about getting stuck. There are a lot of potholes though so expect a bumpy ride. It’s too bad campers and shooters haven’t picked up the trash they left behind because it’s a pretty forest with some cool views of Mt. Si on the way in and out. Didn’t get all the way to the end but will probably come back to check out the rest and find a good place by the river to hang out for the day.

Went up yesterday (Sunday the 17th, 21) just for a quick drive out in the fresh air and green trees and the sounds of the river! The road is actually in pretty decent shape-no washboard which is always nice. As of Sunday it was passable with all blowdowns cleared enough to fit a full sized pickup. Very light snowfall accumulation at the far end of a few offshoots. One of the offshoots was blocked off by a trailhead due to a large tree...I forgot to mark it down but if I remember correctly it was the Bare Mountain trailhead. While there are a lot of potholes, the road is still manageable through all sections....a sedan would be frustrating due to the potholes but if you have a little extra clearance there would be no issues. There are a few campsites, but honestly, they are all in need of a deep clean. Tons of refuse from shooters, trees shot up in multiple locations, beer cans and left over wrappers in most all firepits, left over used TP to sides of campsite and in one spot-even left behind panties. There are some nice views on the ride, but they will mostly come as you are departing..not a dig on this particular set of roads, just a reminder to keep looking for views EVEN when you are heading home. All in all--this road will be saved for the time when all other roads in wa are closed...there just isn't enough of a payoff in terms of beautiful scenery or even technical driving to keep your interest for long.

I live in North Bend so go exploring out the north fork often. Just after crossing into the national forest And past Lenox creek are some sizable old growth-some right of the main road. The drive up Lenox creek is very scenic. The north fork branch is less exciting but has explorable side roads. Recently I found a fairly intact old mining cabin-enjoy!

First time using this site and off road with a new SUV. Nice long easy drive. Potholes got a little bigger towards the end. Saw perhaps a dozen other visitors in 30 miles of trails. Will come back for sure.

Great scenery, but just a little unwelcoming. There are quite a few trash dumps and shooting areas with lots of trash and debris along the route. And there is a whole host of "do not enter, private property" signs around the trail. But other than that, I had a great time. It seems there's been trail maintenance to fix all of the potholes based on the grader I was stuck behind for a while. The first two-thirds of the trail is now well-maintained gravel road, but the potholes come back a little bit before that red bridge. They'll probably continue grading further, though. If you go, I'd recommend you keep going past the marked end of the trail. NF57 at the end was a pretty scenic drive!

Mostly dry today until just before waypoint 5, where you start seeing some large washed out puddles. Lots of potholes, but aired down so it wasn't that bad. Would probably not have attempted the rest of the trail in anything other than a 4x4 or AWD SUV or Truck. Pretty empty considering it was a nice Saturday afternoon, although be careful of the distance to the edge of the road when passing, (the gravel on the side of the roadway gave way as I moved over to make room for someone passing) and I ended up off the shoulder, with no traction. To add insult to injury, I was low on fuel so as soon as I was in that position, my engine died. Thankfully a very nice gentleman by the name of Anthony, in his Tacoma drove by and was able to give me a tow out. Thanks again mate.

There a number of spacious camp sites just after crossing into the National Forest. The first problem is that the last few visitors left as complete mess. Toilet paper, bottles, cans. Just everywhere. The next problem is that the first camp sites are too close to the shooting range. After setting up camp, several hours after dark, a party started target practice on the range (around 10PM), and kept going, continuously through out the night, while we packed up at 8AM. This would have been a scenic and serene spot otherwise. The first few miles of the North Fork Rd are fine for any modern car. After about 10 miles, sedans will have to go slow and pick their lines carefully. I would not attempt this in a Model S or Model 3, or a Miata.

Dry, lots of potholes. 4wd not required but probably more comfortable. Easy 16 miles down and back with some great areas for river access.

Trail is in fine shape, plenty of potholes so don't get complacent -- you'll get bounced out of your seat! The camping spots were all filled up this afternoon and the river was low.

Not an off-road trail by any means but it does have good views and connections to some hiking spots. Just a forest roads that eventually dead ends at the pit.

Check out North Fork Snoqualmie Road if you want an easy trail to test your rigs. I honestly never off road before besides going to camp sites, and this 15.97 miles was fun for me and the kids. It basically parallels with Snoqualmie River. The trail is super easy, and any stock 4runner will blast through with ease. There's a camp site if you wanna spend the night, and there's shooting range at the end of trail. Guess it's pretty popular if you own some 🔫 🔫 🔫 🔫. Anyways, I can officially upgrade my status from Mall Crawler to Trail crawler.

Trails have fun potholes and puddles to splash through. Great views in the beginning of what I believe is Mt. Si? Large puddle between point 12 and 13 that made me think for a minute before risking it. Saw maybe 5-6 cars pass by or parked on my way to the destination. Lots of dispersed camping, some with refreshing views next to the river.

This was an easy, and fun, drive through the forest. A great way to escape the city without having to get out very far! Out past the shooting range, it connects to another road (NF-5731 as the previous reviewer mentioned) which was fantastic. It runs right along the river for a stretch with some water falls and a few little side trails that lead right down to the river. The road itself is easy and wide (for those who don't want to collect pin-stripes). NF-5731 gets a bit more narrow, but is still in good shape. There are some nice puddles to splash through, and a never-ending number of small potholes to go over / around.

Like many have commented - easy drive with many water filled potholes to splash through. There are some semi-long straightaways if you like to open it up some as well. Overall a very fun drive with some nice scenery along the way. Once you get to the end of the road, if you turn left onto NF-5730 (at the shooting pit), then a quick right onto NF-5731, there are some amazing waterfalls to see along the way up the trail. Would recommend this trail if you're looking for a nice drive with some good scenery.

This was a fun trail. It's not super technical or really challenging, but the pot holes start go get a bit much towards the end of the trail. We did it in a stock 4Runner without any issues. The trails ends in a camp site which is a bit gross (lot of bullet shells, used TP, etc) which is kind of sad, but the campsite at the river edge is quite relaxing. There were a fair number of folks along the trail making a campfire, painting and a person even playing guitar along the river, which was nice to see. Road is realistically one lane most of the way, so expect some shoulder parking/passing. One little thing we found, the right before the last right turn of the trail goes along a more rapid part of the river. We stopped at the turnout and just hung out by the river there for a bit, the river was loud but meditative. I would certainly come back and recommend it!

Very fun trail. There are more harder routes that go off which are very interesting to go back to which I will. Overall the trail is easy, get a pass or you will get stopped by a ranger. I was lucky because he was dealing with someone else and i drove past him. Lots of potholes so be careful it was a pain to go through sometimes. There’s more road past the camp I believe.

No heavy offroading, but this road is a fun drive especially if you enjoy splashing through puddles. As this road follows the river there are lots of spots to stop and hang out by the water. There are several roads that continue on from the end of this route that go up in elevation and are more challenging with some snow.