Teneriffe Falls area trail mapping -- let's fix OpenStreetMap!

Note: Please read the section about mapping, and the logistics section!

When we went up to Teneriffe Falls last weekend, it looked like the trail, and in particular, the junction with the new connector trail, and the locations of the viewpoints, had changed. Initially, the connector trail had a very short direct section between the falls trail and the new bridge. But now, the junction is an entire switchback further up, and there is a switchback down from the junction before one gets to the bridge.

Some other parts of the falls trail were unrecognizable. Our former favorite lunch spot is gone entirely, and what seems to be the lower viewpoint is much expanded, and has lots of social trails down into the canyon below the falls.

None of this is on OpenStreetMap (OSM), let alone Google Maps or the official WA DNR map. OSM is used by a number of popular hiking apps and websites, including AllTrails. So if OSM is wrong, so are these other sites. This is Not Good.

Plus, there is another issue. There are, or were, some social trails (i.e. unofficial trails) leading eastward from the falls trail, that connect to the east end of Mt Si Road, and then to assorted Forest Service / CCC roads. We have, for a long time, wanted to see if we could use this to get to the Granite Creek trailhead, where there is access to the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River. About 5 months ago, an OSM mapper marked part of Mt Si Rd, where it connects to old Forest Service roads, as private, meaning, no public access. This area is inside the Mt Si Natural Resources Conservation Area -- presumably not private land. What happened? Did someone put a gate across it? or a "no tresspassing" sign? Can we still get through?

So, I'm proposing that we go up to Teneriffe Falls, while recording GPX tracks, and collect data for mapping the changed trails and junctions, and whatever is safe in the extended viewpoint area, then check out what happened to that "private" section of road / trail.

In more detail:

We would first go directly up to the end of the falls Trail. This is (or used to be) the upper viewpoint, just past where the old Mt Teneriffe trail launches upward. This piece is about 2.8 miles, 2650 ft elevation gain, and the last ~1.3 miles is rough and rocky. Then back down about 0.1 mi to (what seems to be) the lower viewpoint. We can stop here for lunch, and maybe try to collect GPX tracks for some of the more well established paths. (Some of these paths are steep and slippery, though there were folks all over them last weekend. We don't want to do anything unsafe, nor are these important to have in OSM, as all of these are visible from the top of the viewpoint area, and don't go anywhere, so are not needed by search and rescue operations.)

Next we'd head down to where the junction with the Teneriffe Falls connector trail now is, then down at least to the bridge across the falls creek. That bridge, and the rest of the connector, have not moved...it's only the section from the east end of the bridge to the falls trail that is (completely) different. On the way, we can see if anything has survived of our former very nice lunch spot. Down to the bridge from lunch is about 0.6 mi.

Then, we'd return to the falls trail (0.1 mi), and head down to where the eastward social trail starts (about 1 mile, if it's still there...).

There are a number of social trails shown on OSM here, but one heads east most directly. A rough estimate shows about 0.9 mi along the most direct route to the junction with Mt Si Rd, where the "private" segment is.

Instead of retracing our steps, we can instead head west on Mt Si Rd, to where the original Mt Teneriffe trailhead used to be, and head up that trail to the junction with the trail to the new trailhead. That is another 1.8 miles.

If we get blocked at any point prior to reaching the Mt Si Rd, we can just retrace our steps and come down the rest of the falls trail.

This route is about 7.4 miles, 2650 ft elevation gain.

Logistics:

Bring water, lunch, snacks. Recommend bringing 2 liters of water, and electrolytes.

Hiking boots or hiking shoes with good traction are needed. Trekking poles strongly recommended.

Current weather forecast is partly sunny with a high of around 68 deg F. You may want a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen.

Make sure your phone is charged. ;-)

Dogs are welcome, but a caution: It is very much not safe for dogs to go off the trail on the way up to the falls. Recommend having a chest harness, so if your pup slips, you can get them back up on the trail.

Bus riders: Our event starting point is apparently no longer the first stop for the bus, but is easy to find, so we're sticking with it. It is a short distance south of Denny, on the southbound side of Broadway. Folks on the eastside can get on at the new South Bellevue station. The schedule says bay 2, but there was some confusion about this, so watch for the arriving bus, in case you have to run to a different stop.

Drivers: The Mt Teneriffe parking lot fills up, and we'll be starting at peak parking time, so don't expect to get a space. Instead, park at the South Bellevue Link station, and be out at the bay 2 bus stop by 8:20am, or at the North Bend park & ride, and be at the eastbound bus stop by 8:45am, in case the bus is ahead of schedule.

Event start and end times are at Capitol Hill, and assume that we catch the 4:41pm return bus at the Mt Teneriffe trailhead, but no guarantees...

Trailhead direct schedule: https://trailheaddirect.org/mount-si/

Mapping!

Want to help with capturing GPX tracks for mapping? Start here to look at the various phone apps...but navigating the OSM wiki is problematic. What you want are apps that can record GPX tracks.

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Software/Mobile

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/IOS#Track_recording

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Category:Android_apps_that_can_record_GPS_tracks

The two I am most familiar with, that allow capturing GPX tracks and uploading them to OSM are OsmAnd (for Android or iPhone) and Vespucci (Android). I see that Strava can also upload. Warning: OsmAnd has been crashing on my phone, while recording GPX tracks. It does save as it captures, but I have to keep checking to see if it is still working, and restart the capture if it has crashed. So if other folks can also record tracks, that would be good. Strava is commercial, and has some restrictions on use of recorded tracks.

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/OsmAnd

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Vespucci

https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Strava

If you have a hiking app, it may allow capturing GPX tracks and uploading to the associated website, but might not have a way to export the tracks or upload to OSM. If you can export the GPX tracks into a file, there should be a way to upload those. Or, you can send them to me, and I should be able to open them in a desktop map editor.

You'll likely need an OpenStreetMap account to upload tracks -- go to openstreetmap.org to sign up. And once you've got an account, why not learn how to edit the map? An easy and useful thing to do is to add information for local businesses, or map missing buildings from satellite imagery. There is an online editor that can be used directly on the website. There is a much much fancier desktop editor. Here is a good place to get started:

https://learnosm.org/