Galbraith stands out as a mountain biker's dream come true

WHATCOM COUNTY — To say that it's easy to get lost mountain-biking on Bellingham's Galbraith Mountain is like saying that Northwest winters are a mite cloudy. Or that Seattleites enjoy a spot of coffee now and again. Or that Microsoft retains a lawyer or two. It's understating the obvious.

And what's obvious is this: So many trails, fire and logging roads crisscross this hump of mixed forest and clearcut that you're never quite sure which direction you're riding.

But what's really weird is that on a Galbraith trail like the Intestine — so named because it's just one muddy hairpin turn after another, a slalom through trees spaced almost too close to squeeze between — is that it's just as easy to lose all sense of time.

On a winter Saturday, I'm finding this out as I pedal the Intestine with some friends. I'm following three Clarks — Darren, his cousin John, and John's son Cody — and am just ahead of two Rogers, Leischner and St. Clair, all of Bellingham.

A few minutes into the Intestine, the Clarks are maybe 50 yards farther along the winding root- and rock-hopping single track. I can hear them talking, whooping and hollering, but the trees here in this dark, circa-1970s forest are so dense that I can't see them at all. The trees have shut out the sky.

Behind me, Leischner must be reading my thoughts.

"The trees are so thick in here that if it's cloudy at all, it's like it's night out — you can't see anything," he says. "You practically need lights."

He's right. Though it's noon on a somewhat sunny day, the deeper we ride into the bowels of the Intestine (ahem), it's like someone keeps turning down the sun with a dimmer switch.

"Yeah, you gotta have guts to ride the Intestine," I want to reply, but don't. I'm not sure he'd be able to stomach it.

Also known as Lookout Mountain, Galbraith Mountain is just east of Bellingham between I-5 and Lake Whatcom. Though not as high — it tops out at about 1,800 feet — it takes up about as much space on the map as West Tiger Mountain near Issaquah.

A joint effort

It's a vast, roughly 10-square-mile mix of public and private lands that, over the decades, has been beloved by off-road users of every stripe — motorcyclists, ATV riders, equestrians, hikers, runners and mountain bikers.

Though there are untold miles of trails that have been built by users — and untold numbers who have used those trails — until recently, public access to Galbraith's private lands was never officially granted. That changed last year when Trillium Corp., a local developer, became the major landowner on Galbraith and laid down the law. It banned motorized vehicles from the mountain, but gave mountain bikers the green light to ride on. (Mountain bikers did, however, have to dismantle the extreme-riding structures — teeter-totters, ladders and high bridges, etc. — that had sprung up in recent years.)

Trillium even named the Whatcom Independent Mountain Pedalers (WHIMPs), a local mountain-biking club, the official stewards of Galbraith Mountain. The developer now works with the club to determine where trails can and can't be built, and notifies club members about upcoming logging projects so that the WHIMPs can build alternate and detour trails.

A wealth of trails

The Clarks, Rogers and I begin our ride on one of those alternate trails, the Miranda, which replaced the northernmost section of what used to be the Lower Ridge Trail. New homes are slated for the land now. After a couple steep switchbacking sections and a fair amount of rocks, roots and fallen logs thrown in for fun, we make it to the Middle Ridge Trail.

"After the Interurban, I've heard that this is the second-most-used trail in Bellingham," says John Clark.

Roger St. Clair and Roger Leischner ride the Ridge Trail. Galbraith Mountain is criss-crossed with miles of trails and dirt road for riding. (MIKE MCQUAIDE)

The recent clear-cutting gives it a kind of post-apocalyptic, "Mad Max" feel, but the easy Galbraith access and sweeping views make it easy to see why the Ridge is popular. We're still low on the mountain — only about 900 feet — but to our right (west), we can look down onto downtown Bellingham and Bellingham Bay. Lummi Island rises high up out of the water like some gatekeeper to the other San Juan Islands.

To our left (east), practically all of Galbraith's folds, nooks and crannies are spread out before us. We see Arsenio, an island of standing trees in a sea of clear-cut, so named because it looks like the box haircut that the former talk-show host used to wear. (That gives you some idea of how long people have been riding and naming trails here.) Just beyond, one of the three communication towers that crown the mountain's summit peers over a forested hump. The towers are the destination for those who want a lung-busting, thigh-crunching ride.

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We continue along the Ridge, and then pop out onto an old jeep road where, after pedaling to a shoulder, we stop to figure out where we want to head next. The options seem limitless.

Galbraith truly has trails or dirt roads for riders of all abilities. For those who don't necessarily want a technical ride, but still want to enjoy some off-road pedaling, the dirt roads are the best option. They reach into the mountain's every corner — and lead to the towers if that's where you want to go — offer some great views and will keep a rider busy for days.

We head for the Intestine and after some dark riding, I say goodbye to the others and head for the towers. I need some light.

A few minutes later, I'm riding through a logging area that doesn't look familiar and I'm lost. I think. Soon enough, though, the road dips, the view opens up to the right and I'm back on track. Such is riding on Galbraith. It's an ever-evolving playground.

About a mile farther, just shy of the towers, I stop to admire the views. It's sunny. It's bright. All seems well with the world.

I don't need the towers today; I've sweated enough. So I point my bike down and let 'er rip.

If you go

Getting there: Galbraith Mountain has two main access points: a north entrance at the end of Bellingham's Birch Street near Whatcom Falls Park, and a south one from Galbraith Lane about a mile east of Lake Padden.

North entrance: Take Interstate 5 to Exit 253 in Bellingham and go east on Lakeway Boulevard for about 1.5 miles to Electric Avenue. Turn left and follow the sign for Whatcom Falls Park, which is about a quarter-mile ahead on your left. Park here. On your bike, ride out the park entrance and cross Electric Avenue onto Birch Street. Continue south, crossing Lakeway about 100 yards ahead, and follow the residential street for about another 300 yards to the end and the Miranda Trail entrance. Reach the Ridge Trail in about a mile.

South entrance: Take Interstate 5 to Exit 246 and go northwest on Samish Way for about 1.4 miles to Galbraith Lane on your right. An unmarked parking lot is just ahead on the left. On your bike, ride Galbraith Lane for about .3 mile and take a right. Just ahead, bear left at a fork, rounding a gate as you do. You're there. This is a good entrance if you want to stay mostly on logging roads and/or if you want the most direct route to the towers.

Best trails, and a map: Some of the trails considered hot spots are Chutes and Ladders, 911, Family Fun Center and Purple Heart, but trails are known by different names to different people. To get the most out of the mountain, ride with someone who's ridden Galbraith before. Or pick up the Galbraith Mountain Local Knowledge Trail Map, available at Bellingham bike shops, including Kulshan Cycles (100 E. Chestnut St.) and Fairhaven Bike and Mountain Sports (1103 11th St.).

More information: For information on the Whatcom Independent Mountain Pedalers (WHIMPs), including organized rides, check out www.whimpsmtb.com. For photos, stories and a somewhat confusing free map, check out www.galbraithmt.com.

Copyright © The Seattle Times Company

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