Willapa Hills Trail
- Kati Cooke
- Mar 22
- 5 min read
If you know me at all, you likely know about my obsession with rail-to-trail bike paths. I have biked and ran on the Banks-Vernonia Trail - read more about that here - at least 150 times over the past 6 years. I plan road trips with the sole intention to bike on a new rail trail, and I really thought I had explored all of them in a 3-hour driving radius.
A few months ago my husband and I drove up to Centralia WA so I could get coffee with a friend. While I was spending time with her, my husband explored the town. He found a few cool parks, but was most intrigued by something called the Willapa Hills Trail. He obviously knows about my rail trail obsession, and was so proud that he found a new trail I had never heard about!
This past sunny March weekend, we celebrated the end of winter and months of darkness by driving up to Centralia and biking 32 miles on the Willapa Hills Trail. I can't believe I had never heard of it, and we were shocked at how few people we ran into on the trail. This is a must-see for any biking or distance running enthusiast in Portland (yes, it's worth the drive)!
Parking and Trailheads
Parking can be a little confusing, and there are several trailheads to choose from (the trail itself is 56-miles long each way). You can find a wonderful map here. The Discover Pass is required for parking, but I did find a loophole. This is ethically questionable, but I do own an annual Discover Pass, I had just left it in our other car... If you must avoid the $10 day pass fee, you can park just outside the Chehalis Trailhead, at the end of SW Hillburger Road. It's very obvious where the gated fee area begins.
Willapa Hills Trail Overview
The trail stretches 56 miles from Chehalis to South Bend, which is essentially on the Coast. This would be an amazing multi-day bikepacking trip! The map (linked here) shows which sections of the trail are paved, gravel, or more rustic.
We started at the Chehalis Trailhead, biked to Rainbow Falls, and back, for a total of 32-miles. The trail is very gently graded. Strava told me that I gained about 250 feet of elevation on the ride out to Rainbow Falls. We felt the elevation a little bit, and it was definitely nice to have an ever-so-slight downhill for the ride back.
The first 5-ish miles heading west from Chehalis were beautifully paved! There was one very short section of incline to get on a bridge over Highway 6 in Littell. After Adna, the path switches to gravel and dirt. I think most bikes would be able to handle the gravel, as it was very tightly packed and there weren't any large rocks. It was way nicer than the Leif Erickson Trail in Portland, actually. I have no idea what the "unfinished" sections of the trail would be like, but I wouldn't recommend taking a road bike out there.
The terrain changes as you head through the trail. It starts out with a lot of farmland, turns into marshy wetlands, and ends up in the classic deep PNW woods - complete with ferns, mossy trees, and evergreens. I'm kind of obsessed with Pennsylvania-esque farmland (I lived there for a year and miss it everyday), so I was in love with the red barns, green rolling hills, and cattle pastures. Oh yes, you will ride past cattle! A few of them gave me a startle, but you'll smell them before you see them.
Rainbow Falls State Park
We didn't have a mileage goal in mind, as this was our first biking trip of the year and no amount of Peloton rides can prepare my muscles for actual outdoor cycling. We decided Rainbow Falls State Park would be a perfect snack break and turnaround point. There is a very clearly marked turn-off on the Willapa Hills Trail showing you where to turn for Rainbow Falls.
To the left of the turn-off, there is an odd spot called Dryad's Rest. It's private property, so we didn't explore further, but there is a statue of a dragon, an old boat, and a few mannequins out in a marshy wetland. I researched it a little and found a defunct Facebook page, a pin on Google maps, and this scathing blog post. It appears there also used to be a separate town called Dryad near Chehalis, so now I have a new rabbit hole to go down (starting with this YouTube video).
Rainbow Falls State Park is a very cute little campground, but it's not a place I'd visit on its own. There is a large open field with some shelters for events. There were lots of horse trailers in the parking lot, but I'm not sure where the horseback riding paths were. There is a nice bathroom with flush toilets and a sink, which was a nice surprise.
The Falls itself is underwhelming, more of a rapid, but still a pretty view. There is a nice ranger cabin, and the remnants of a phone booth. We ate our snacks, enjoyed the view, took a few pictures, and started the ride back.
Fast Facts
Willapa Falls Trail is the true definition of a hidden gem - just 90 minutes from Portland, and somehow still under the radar. It is the perfect easy bike ride, felt completely safe (I was with my husband but I'd be very comfortable biking here alone), and was not crowded at all on a sunny Saturday.
Start at the Chehalis Trailhead here
Discover Pass required for parking (unless you know my secret spot) - $10 for a day pass or $45 annually. There was a payment kiosk at the Chehalis Trailhead.
Dogs allowed!
Verizon cell service was spotty further out
Pit toilets at the Chehalis Trailhead, flush toilets and drinking fountains at Rainbow Falls State Park
Trail is 56 miles total with a 2% maximum grade, and reaches the Washington Coast
For more information, check out the links below:
Trail map
Washington State Parks information on Willapa Hills
Washington Trails Association page
Washington State Parks information on Rainbow Falls
This was the absolute best way to kick off the 2026 biking season! I think if more people knew about rail to trail bike paths, the world would be a lot happier and better. If you check out Willapa Hills Trail, let me know! And of course, let me know your favorite rail to trail - I can't get enough of them.
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