(Image: CHS)

The hike from Capitol Hill to the Cascade Range gets easier starting Saturday, June 5th as the Metro’s Trailhead Direct service returns after a yearlong hiatus.

The Broadway start point will again offer weekend and holiday service every 20 minutes connecting Capitol Hill Station to Mount Si, Little Si, and Mount Teneriffe.

You can also hop on or off at stops on First Hill, the Eastgate Freeway Station, and at the North Bend park-and-ride.

The service launched in 2018 before sitting out 2020 during COVID-19 restrictions. Metro is also restoring service of its second route connecting Mount Baker Transit Center with service every 30 minutes to Squak Mountain State Park and Tiger Mountain. Launched as a pilot project, Trailhead Direct is now part of Metro’s regular service and budgeted for increased service hours as part of the transit agency’s 2021 restructuring.

Metro says public health and responsible recreation guidelines were taken into account when designing this season’s service:

• Masks are required onboard and while waiting for your Trailhead Direct vehicle at transit centers.
• Please ensure you wear your mask over your nose and mouth and keep it on for the duration of your trip. Help us protect the vehicle operators and one another while en route to the trailheads.
• Respect the passenger limits onboard Trailhead Direct vehicles, and please observe the signage onboard to block seats to support physical distancing.
• King County Metro is disinfecting vehicles daily, and has installed safety partitions.

In past seasons, Trailhead Direct has included 19 and 27-seat vans with capacity for two bicycles for each trip. Passengers pay Metro’s standard off-peak adult fare.

While increasing access to the area’s natural resources is a major goal of the program, county officials are also desperately trying to manage soaring demand and the swollen parking lots at the area’s most popular trailheads.

The service continues through September 26th.

You can learn more at trailheaddirect.org.

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