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WOHVA Washington State Off-Highway Catalog:
Colville National Forest:
Twin Sisters (trail # 109)
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Special Notes:
- This trail, along with the Mack/King Mtn trail (# 98) make an excellent one-day
round trip!
- Both trails can be accessed from either the west or east end making back tracking unnecessary!
Page Contents:
Name of trail: Twin Sisters (trail # 109) (Colville National Forest)
Location of trail:
East access: North of Kettle Falls WA
(approximately 75 miles north of the "Y" in Spokane or approximately 80 miles from the intersection of
I-90 and exit 281 [US Hwys 2 and 395])
West access: East of Republic WA
(approximately 25 miles east of Republic WA)
Directions - How To Get There
(also see maps below!):
From the east:
Last chance for fill up is in Kettle Falls!
Follow US Hwy 395 approximately 9.56 miles north of Kettle Falls and
turn left (west) on Deadman Creek Road
WARNING: (August 2006)
There were no advance signs for this intersection! You come upon it without notice!!!!
Continue west approximately 6.76 miles on Deadman Creek Road
(US Forest Service Road [FSR] 9565) – watch for the Colville National Forest signs!
The access road for the Twin Sisters trail is approximately one mile past the Colville National Forest sign
Here you will see an area on both sides of the road wherein you can unload any trailered rigs
Many trails in this area are not marked! You will have to know where you are going!
After the unloading area, continue west on Deadman Creek Road approximately one
mile watching for a trail leading off to the right – this one is marked
(August 2006) with a post and the number 800 thereon -
this is the road that leads to the Twin Sisters trailhead!
Follow FSR 800 approximately 7.63 miles and turn left on FSR 820
Follow FSR 820 approximately 500 feet and turn right on FSR 822
Follow FSR 822 approximately one mile to the quarry
The Twin Sisters trail # 109 departs the quarry from the
north side of the quarry. Don't worry, this one is easy to find - there are two
trails into the quarry - the one you just arrived on and # 109. Trail # 109 is easy to find - it departs
very steeply with two turns whereas the road you drove into the quarry is
almost flat!
From the west:
From downtown Republic (intersection of Clark Ave and 6th Street), take
WA State Hwy 20 south for approximately 21.4 miles.
Turn left onto US Forest Service Road 2030 (Albian Hill
Road).
Continue on US Forest Service Road 2030 (Albian Hill Road) for approximately
4.6 miles to the west end of the trail.
At this intersection, the north trail is the Twin Sisters
trail and the south trail is the Mack/King Mtn
trail.
Mileage/Time to Get There:
From the east (from I-90 exit 281 (Division / US Hwy 2 / US Hwy 395) to Kettle
Falls):
Estimated distance: 80 miles
Estimated travel time: 2 hours
See
"Directions - How To Get There" (above) for directions and mileage
from Kettle Falls to the east access point.
From the west (from Republic; intersection of Clark Ave and 6th Street):
Estimated distance: 26 miles
Estimated travel time: 50 minutes
See
"Directions - How To Get There" (above) for directions and mileage
from Republic to the west access point.
Map showing general location of the Twin Sisters Trail:
(right click and save to your hard drive)
(extracted from the
Motor Vehicle Use Map COLVILLE National Forest West Side)
Season:
Varies, but generally when snow free.
Some of the roads shown on the above map have seasonal restrictions. These restrictions are the result of the
US Forest Service's implementation of their Travel Management Plan.
More information about this plan and the seasonal restrictions are available by clicking on the following link:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/colville/travel-mgt/index.shtml
Hours:
None
Website:
Colville National Forest Home Page
Coordinates (estimated!):
East access point (gravel quarry):
N 48° 42.6604'
W 118° 19.6046'
N 48° 40.8970'
W 118° 26.5694'
Names of any landmarks (mountain, river, etc) the trails are near
(useful for finding on maps):
Twin Sisters Peak, King Mtn, C C Mtn, Hoodoo Mtn
Difficulty rating of the trail(s):
On a scale of 1 to 5, probably a 2-1/2 to 3.
There are a couple of places that would probably be a 3-1/2 due to sharp turns and somewhat steep grade!
If it has recently rained, this rating would be closer to 3-1/2 to 4!
Several portions of these trails would be impassible or require a lot of winching!
Pictures of trail:
Reviews of trail:
August 2006:
It was dusty & narrow and very mean NARROW. It felt like the trail had not been run by trucks or jeeps in
several months. There were a lot of ATV & bike tracks, though. The view from the top of Twin Sisters is
impressive.
The rock quarry was fun, with opportunity to test your rock skills.
The access to the trail is a long (∼7 miles) road and it's easy to get lost!
I think it will make a good run, but keep in mind that it is not as challenging as many other trails. A good
run for those new to the sport or new to eastern WA, with some great views of northern WA.
Any Applicable Fees and Restrictions:
None.
Some of the roads in the Colville National Forest have seasonal restrictions. These restrictions are the result
of the US Forest Service's implementation of their Travel Management Plan.
More information about this plan and the seasonal restrictions are available by clicking on the following link:
http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/colville/travel-mgt/index.shtml
USGS 24k Quadrangle(s) covering these trails (click on filename to download copy):
DeLorme Washington State Gazetteer page(s) covering these trails:
Page 117, (coordinates: C5: west access point; C6: east access point/quarry)
On the Trail Directions:
From east access point (quarry):
Exit the quarry on FSR 109 (north side of quarry).
Continue on FSR 109 approximately 2.78 miles to the Twin Sisters summit -
you will encounter one fork along this trail - take the right fork to get
to the Twin Sisters summit.
Depart Twin Sisters summit by backtracking to the last fork in the trail and turn
right.
Follow FSR 109 approximately 4.43 miles to the intersection of
FSR 2030 (Albian Hill Road).
WARNING: In some places on this portion of the trail the vegetation is
overgrowing the sides of the trail! Rigs WILL receive new pin stripping!
Once at Albian Hill Road (FSR 2030) you can either make a sharp left turn and return via FSR 98 (Mack/King
Mtn Trail) or turn left onto Albian Hill Road (FSR 2030) and follow it to Deadman Creek Road (FSR 9565) and
turn left on Deadman Creek Road (FSR 9565) to get back to the unloading area or US Hwy 395.
From west access point (junction of Albian Hill Road [FSR 2030]):
Follow FSR 109 approximately 4.43 miles until you come to a fork in the trail
and turn left.
WARNING: In some places on this portion of the trail the vegetation is
overgrowing the sides of the trail! Rigs WILL receive new pin stripping!
Follow this trail to the Twin Sisters summit.
Depart Twin Sisters summit by backtracking to the last fork in the trail and turn
left.
Continue on FSR 109 approximately 2.78 miles to the quarry.
You are now at the east access point of this trail.
To get to Deadman Creek Road (FSR 9565) and US Hwy 395, exit the quarry on the south side via
FSR 822.
Follow FSR 822 for approximately one mile to the intersection of
FSR 820 and turn left onto FSR 820.
Follow FSR 820 for approximately 500 feet to the intersection of
FSR 800 and turn right onto FSR 800.
Follow FSR 800 for approximately 7.63 miles to the intersection of
Deadman Creek Road (FSR 9565) and turn left onto
Deadman Creek Road (FSR 9565).
Follow Deadman Creek Road (FSR 9565) back to the loading/unloading area
and eventually US Hwy 395.
Trail Maps:
The following map shows the Twin Sisters (trail # 109):
(right click to view a larger, readable copy!)
The following map shows the waypoints for the Twin Sisters (trail # 109):
(right click to view a larger, readable copy!)
NOTE: This map displays waypoints that have not been "field checked!"
The following diagram shows the profile of the Twin Sisters (trail # 109):
NOTE: Vertical scale is greatly exaggerated!
(right click to view a larger, readable copy!)
Time to Ride Trail:
(unknown as of the date this web page was created)
Downloadable GPS files (these are "unedited" GPS files - they have not
been "field checked"):
GPS Waypoint files:
Table format - left click to open; then right click to save to your hard drive
GPS files (right click and save to your hard drive!):
Twin Sisters.gpx = GPS eXchange format containing waypoints
Don't have the correct format or need one of the above files in a different format?
The following link is to an external website wherein you can convert the above files into a variety of formats!
Weather:
If you have any additional information on these trails, please click on the following link:
Please provide as much information as you can! Thanks!
This page last updated November 9, 2008
