Sequim’s neighbors to the east are helping establish a key link toward completing a popular regional trail.
On Nov. 16, Jefferson County commissioners agreed to fund a feasibility study toward establishing the Olympic Discovery Trail route between the Larry Scott Memorial Trail and U.S. Highway 101 and bypassing State Route 20, what trail advocates call a key step toward completing a vital missing ODT link.
Commissioners voted unanimously to authorize the study to establish the route for the Olympic Discovery Trail/Eaglemount Trail, bypassing SR 20 from Four Corners Road to Highway 101 at the head of Discovery Bay, adding the study project to the county’s Transportation Improvement Plan.
Jeff Selby, vice president of the Peninsula Trails Coalition, said the next step is to fund the study. His organization hopes to accomplish that soon, with the goal of completing the study within four months so that grant funding to build the first section or sections may be applied for in May 2016.
“The schedule is tight, but now that this crucial first step has been taken by Commissioners Johnson, Kler and Sullivan, we can move ahead — after working toward this for 25 years,” Selby said.
At its completion, the Olympic Discovery Trail will be a 126-mile multipurpose non-motorized trail running from Port Townsend to the Pacific Ocean via Discovery Bay Village, Gardiner, Blyn, Sequim and Port Angeles.
About 70 miles of the trail have been built, with a large section on the north side of Lake Crescent nearing completion.
The six-mile Eaglemount section is the longest part of the trail not yet planned, according to the Peninsula Trails Coalition, largely because of topographical challenges.
Jefferson County, the City of Port Townsend and Port of Port Townsend have completed the Larry Scott Memorial Trail from Port Townsend to Discovery Road and the county is about to begin construction of the Discovery Bay South Trail from Old Gardiner Road to Snow Creek at the head of Discovery Bay.
But the connection between those two trails has remained undeveloped. That leaving hikers, cyclists and other trail enthusiasts to use the highway.
In September, Sgt. John Ryan of Washington State Patrol’s Port Angeles Detachment, wrote to Jefferson County concerning the dangers of bicyclists, hikers and other pedestrians using the highway.
“My troopers regularly patrol SR 20, often observing cars, logging trucks, loaded chip trucks, motorhomes, trucks with trailers, etc., trying to navigate SR 20 over Eaglemount while dealing with bicyclers and hikers and oncoming traffic,” Ryan wrote. “I myself was assigned to Jefferson County from 1999-2003 and patrolled
SR 20 often, so I know firsthand how dangerous it is. For the safety of everyone — both motorists and non-motorists — we encourage inclusion of a feasibility study of a recreational trail alternative in the county’s TIP (Transportation Improvement Plan).”
The Olympic Discovery Trail shares the Eaglemount section with the federal Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail, the newest addition to the National Scenic Trails network.
