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Carbon River - Hwy 165

Average Rating - This road has been rated by 1 visitors

State: Washington
Date Submitted: September 1, 2008
Submitted by: Cruisinskipper
Motorcycle Road Length: 37 Miles

Written Directions

The route starts in Sumner, Pierce County. Take Hwy 410 east. Take a right on to South Prairie Road and head southeast. In South Prairie, hang a left on to Hwy 162 (head east) and shortly after that you will come up to Hwy 165 where you want to take a right (head south). Take this past Carbonado, take the left fork (staying on hwy 165) to Carbon River Ranger Station.

Scenery  

This route starts in Sumner and follows Hwy 410 on to Hwy 165. The route is very scenic through the Orting valley, running beside and crisscrossing the Carbon river and ending at the Ranger Station. It passes through small logging towns of Wilkeson, and Carbonado. Hwy 165 forks past the town of Carbonado and goes into the Mt. Rainier National Park ending at Mowich Lake but this road is pretty steep and unpaved, gravelly and very dusty. The left fork runs beside Carbon river and in the spring the river can be running full from the melting snow. There is a beautiful bridge that crosses a deep ravine and is worth stopping at.

Road Quality  

The road is both straight and windy and has hills and flats. The road is a single lane well paved road. When I road it last month (Aug 2008), it was in good condition most of the way. Near the end, one side of the road has washed away and barriers and signs are up to direct traffic in a single direction at a time.

Roadside Amenities  

Wilkenson and Carbonado are the two small towns on the way. Wilkenson has a nice coffee shop / deli. There is a gas station on the way. You can camp at Carbon Ranger Station but need to get a permit.

Additional Info

Nickname (optional) Cruisinskipper

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Reviewed by Guest on July 15, 2010 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)

Creator: Cindy Mc

motorcycle_year: 2001

motorcycle_make: Harley-Davidson

motorcycle_type: Cruiser

Comment: We love to take a ride up to the Carbon River bridge around the first weekend in November (first picture). We do an annual dropping of the pumpkins from the bridge (it hits the water, breaks up and feeds the local deer etc). We all look very interesting with pumpkins attached to the back of our bikes! The Carbonado Saloon has been closed for a year or more but recently opened and is a great historical place to stop for lunch!

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