Project will rebuild, reroute trail that's been "loved to death"

The West Tiger No. 3 hiking trail, one of the most popular in the state, will be rebuilt and partially relocated over the next few months.

The 2-½-mile trail that winds up Tiger Mountain near Issaquah attracts tens of thousands of people a year. The trail is close to Seattle, doesn't get snowed over in the winter and is moderate enough to attract everyone from families to the after-work crowd.

But all those users take a toll, and the trail needs to be rebuilt, state officials said.

"Really it's been loved to death," said Kelly Heintz, natural-areas manager for the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which maintains the state-owned trail.

The trail is too narrow in some sections and so eroded that rainwater flows through a trench down the middle of the path. The upper half of the trail is too steep, has too many switchbacks and crosses an older trail, which confuses some hikers.

Beginning this month, the trail will be rebuilt and widened to about four feet, and the upper half will be rerouted. Most of the major work will be finished by June, with some plantings and other improvements stretching into the fall.

The state has hired the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust to complete the $175,000 project, with $100,000 coming from a state gas-tax grant and $75,000 from the DNR capital budget.

The trail will remain open throughout construction. Users may see an excavator or an army of volunteers working on the trail, Heintz said.

When hikers get to the top, they'll still have the same expansive views of Mount Rainier and the Bellevue and Seattle skylines, said Doug Schindler, director of field programs for the Greenway Trust.

"It's this great, easily accessible ... top-of-a-peak experience," he said.

To reach the trail, get off Interstate 90 at Exit 20, turn south and then take a quick turn right on Southeast 79th Street. The High Point Trailhead is at the end of the road.

The trailhead, with its proximity to Seattle and access to several trails, is the busiest in the state, attracting more than 250,000 people a year.

Ashley Bach: 206-464-2567 or abach@seattletimes.com