Grit & Dirt

Washington State’s trails are legendary. From the world- class singletrack of Galbraith Mountain to the quiet river canyons east of the Cascades, we ride with the people who know these places best and discover why this corner of the Pacific Northwest has become a global destination for mountain bikers. This is where the locals play.

We hurtle down the blue-graded flow trail named Unemployment Line, rounding the high berms and building up speed. It begins auspiciously. A metal sculpture of a fantastical giant creature that could have been pulled from the movie Labyrinth, or perhaps an iron pterodactyl, holds up the sign: Unemployment Line. It’s one of many amazing metal sculptures across Galbraith Mountain. The first drop is deep and steep, a wooden bridge that plunges you into 15km of park berms and more than 40 jumps. Doubles, booters, tables, rhythm sections. This trail has been nurtured and loved for years. It was rebuilt in 2015 and has since become the most famous of the trails on Galbraith Mountain, in Washington overall, and globally in fact.

‘The trails here are unique and world-class,’ says our guide – Ike Bancroft of the brilliantly-named Dig Deep Mountain Bike Tours, a company he started in 2022. ‘You have raw trails with rock rolls, more backcountry-style riding, and longer routes. And then you’ve got everything from complete beginner trails to 50ft gaps.’

We’re trepidatious; Ike isn’t. With the advice on one of the websites being ‘if it doesn’t look rollable, it probably isn’t’, we decide to leave with our collarbones un-fractured and take it easy, but it’s super flowy. Ike takes on the jumps with ease, and we stop, wonder and take photos.

At one spot, with a see-saw frankly more terrifying than any of the trails, there’s a break in the forest of Douglas fir, western hemlock, and western red cedar. Below us is Lake Whatcom, named for the Lummi word for ‘loud water’. Lummi is a dialect of the North Straits Salish language traditionally spoken by the Lummi People of Washington state. Ahead is a classic Pacific Northwest view: expansive, forested, bodies of water with white lines churned up by fishing boats and leisure cruises. Beyond that, the nearest town of Bellingham. It’s the kind of town where you’ll see Toyota Land Cruisers with kayak and mountain bike on the roof, where if you research deep enough there’s probably a ‘more breweries per capita’ type of statistic… and, well, put it this way: Death Cab for Cutie, Washington’s indie darlings, are from here.

There are plenty of options for mountain biking around Bellingham – Chuckanut, East Lake Whatcom, Blanchard Mountain – but it’s Galbraith that gets the plaudits.

‘The dirt is amazing,’ Ike says. ‘The rest of the year it’s really tacky. It’s sought after around the world, specifically for the dirt.’

But it is not just soil that makes this place what it is. ‘The basis of it is that we’ve had a really unique trail building culture here for a long time, with a lot of strong, unique trail builders. There’s a very strong grassroots volunteer aspect. That’s a huge part of what makes all this happen. They solicited donations for this parking lot. They built it as part of the agreement with the city and the logging company for the easement.

‘When I first moved here, it was a much smaller community, but everyone was involved. Everyone worked on trails. And that’s been the way for a long time.’

In the car park where we meet, there are vans from nearby British Columbia, cars from Seattle, number plates from further afield still. ‘It’s sought after by people all around the world.’

Explaining the name, Ike says, ‘Dig Deep is about going below the surface, digging deeper. It’s also a play on pedalling up a hill when you’re tired and you have to dig deep for extra energy.
‘I love the human aspect of guiding. With lessons, you’re focused on technique; with mechanics, you’re focused on the bike. Guiding is about the human experience. It’s about exploring an area, working through fear, pushing yourself over the course of a day and maybe progressing. It feels like the extreme opposite of gatekeeping. It’s opening your arms and saying, come and get a taste of what’s so great about this place.’

We’ve come to Washington to discover the landscapes and the activities, the wildlife and the people. We’re here to discover where the locals play, from the people who know these hills and mountains, lakes and coastlines better than anyone else. Over four articles, we’ll pass on that knowledge: where to mountain bike on some of the best trails anywhere, where to hike and spot wildlife in some of the best place anywhere, where to kayak and see whales and sea life in some of the best places… you get the drift. Washington State has it all. In the time we’ve spent here, we’ve run trails with views our eyes couldn’t quite comprehend, seen bald eagles and humpback whales, walked through deserts and dense forest, climbed mountains and kayaked serene bays. We’ve eaten delicious steaks and drunk some of the best beer in the world. Those classic three ‘C’ IPA hops of Cascade, Columbus, and Centennial that make a modern IPA? Well, you’ll find them in the Yakima Valley, Washington.

It’s also where we find Shannon Mahre, the founder of Girls With Grit. Washington State has many faces. The moss-heavy forests of the Olympic Peninsula, the rain-splashed streets of Seattle, island chains. But as we drive east of the Cascades, the air dries, the land opens, and basalt replaces cedar. It’s hot and dusty.

We meet Shannon outside a brewery late morning, load our bikes on the rack, and jump in her pickup. We drive along the Naches and Tieton Rivers to her favourite mountain-biking location. We’d heard plenty about Shannon before we got there: writer and photographer, daughter of a famous skiing family, proficient ultrarunner, respected fly-fishing guide, founder of a guiding company aimed at women. But mostly, I think, she’s so well known because she’s so lovely. A ready smile, a quick joke and endless positive energy. We like Shannon.

As we head farther along the Tieton River, she points out her favourite spot. ‘It’s low right now but really good for fly fishing,’ she told us. ‘Right here, there are lakes within a mile or two of the highway in each direction, beautiful alpine lakes. The wildflowers right now are fantastic.

‘It’s crazy to have it be this beautiful, with this many cool activities and trails and rivers, and not to see that many people.’

It’s a commitment to get here from Seattle, she points out, and that has limited the numbers significantly, despite the fact that the Pacific Crest Trail passes nearby.

‘I grew up on the ocean, and I actually love the river more. We paddle the river, we fish, and we swim with the kids every day. In fact, my first date with my husband was mountain biking on that trail in October, and I was like, I want to live here.’

Being out here, you’re committed to the seasons, and as a guide, Shannon enjoys the variety that brings.

‘It’s hotter here, but you adapt. You figure out what you’re going to do at certain times to cool off. I get up before 4.00am to train, but I love having the four seasons. We have a distinct spring, a summer, a fall, a winter, and they’re full-on. I’m always ready for the next season of activities. Ski season is my busy season and I love it, but I’m always ready to start guiding on the river. Then I’m ready for biking. It keeps moving.’

We stop along Highway 12 just before Rimrock, unrack the bikes, and cycle up a dusty forest path. She’s an impressive guide, effortlessly offering confidence and advice in equal measures.
As we climb the forest roads, she tells us about her guiding company.

‘I started Girls with Grit about 11 years ago. It started as a mountain bike coaching company for women. It was just a passion project. Besides being a mother, there’s nothing that makes me happier than helping women get over their fears and learn these skills. It’s about baby steps. Breaking it down in a way they feel safe. Getting over fear mentally while learning physically.

‘Bringing your ego into learning can hinder your journey. When you fall in the river, we laugh. That’s part of it. If you have to pee, go pee. I just want to create an environment where people can be themselves.’

We begin our descent around the dusty trails, the berms, the jumps. Shannon is effortless, a natural; we are not. But she’s always encouraging, always positive. It’s good vibes. Shannon explains that, alongside being a business, Girls with Grit has also made her friends, it’s built a community. And there are endless places to explore and fulfil her many passions. Soup Creek, White Pass, and the Skyline Trail (‘Probably my favourite trail in Yakima. It’s a nine-mile loop above the Yakima River Canyon. It’s phenomenal.’). And then there’s the Snoqualmie Pass, ‘the most beautiful pass in Washington’.

That is our next destination, and as we leave Shannon with a big hug, we reflect on the positivity that people like Shannon and Ike bring to the experience. This may be all about where the locals play (and what a playground), but we’re also learning from them too.