The wooden trestle over the Snohomish River has two levels of history. The upper trestle carried the Northern Pacific Railroad. The track below belonged to the Great Northern. A longtime resident and railroad buff told the Snohomish County Tribune that the structure dates to the late 1880s and was long ago the route into town. Both railroads merged into Burlington Northern in 1970, which today is BNSF, and BNSF trains still run on the active line beneath the old upper deck.
The Tribune also noted that the trestle frames a view of the river for scenery photographers. Under the county's current plan, it's also where the next stretch of the Centennial Trail would cross the river.
The first mile of the new trail is a bridge
Snohomish County Parks & Recreation officially launched planning for the Centennial Trail South Extension on July 21, 2026. The plan adds about 12 miles of trail along the former Eastside Rail corridor, from the City of Snohomish to Woodinville. Once it's finished, people could bike, walk and roll the length of Snohomish County and link up with King County's Eastrail network, according to the county's announcement.
The Tribune's July 29 report gave the start point as Snohomish's First Street. It also said the trail would cross the Snohomish River on the former railroad bridge. So the existing Centennial Trail, whose Snohomish trailhead the county lists at 6th Street and Maple Avenue, is planned to keep going south through downtown and over the river on that trestle. Published sources don't yet spell out exactly how the 6th and Maple trailhead connects to a First Street start.
That puts the old bridge at the front of the whole project. Before anyone rides to Woodinville, the trail has to get across the river, and the plan is to do it on a timber structure that's roughly 140 years old.
What May 12 did to that crossing
At sunrise on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, fire destroyed a section of the trestle. The Tribune reported that the burned stretch stood south of the river, directly over the active BNSF track. The fire stopped trains, and Airport Way was closed for an hour and a half so crews could run hoses to a hard-to-reach site. Snohomish County Fire District 4 led the response. The Everett Herald reported mutual aid from four local departments and about 50 firefighters. Crews fought the fire from two locations and used ladder trucks.
Fire District 4's early estimate was 300 feet of trestle burned. A later Tribune report narrowed that down to damage on the lower half of two trestle beams.
Two months later, when the county opened its trail survey, county spokeswoman Meghan Jordan told the Tribune that the county "will be evaluating any damages." As of mid-October 2026, the published sources include no county finding on the trestle's condition after the fire. They also don't say whether the planned crossing would reuse the burned section, repair it or rebuild it.
Why a retired rail line is still standing at all
The trestle survived to become a trail candidate because the corridor spent years in a legal in-between state. Here's how it got from freight line to future trail:
- 2009. BNSF sold the physical line between Woodinville and Snohomish to the Port of Seattle, while a separate operator, GNP, took the freight easement, according to a Surface Transportation Board decision.
- 2012. The Herald described a weekly freight-and-excursion run between Snohomish and Woodinville that was still operating then.
- 2013. The most recent Centennial Trail extension opened, linking the Skagit County line through the City of Snohomish.
- 2016. Snohomish County bought its section of the corridor from the Port of Seattle.
- 2020. The STB decision records the county's statement that rail service ended no later than August 1, 2020.
- 2024. The STB ruled in the county's favor in July, and the corridor was railbanked, which keeps it intact for future trail use.
- 2026. Formal trail planning began July 21, and the online survey ran through August 29.
The trestle went quiet long before the rest of the line did. The Tribune's May 27 report says the retired north-south trestle has been out of service for 20 or so years, while the ground-level east-west line beneath it is still used by BNSF and crosses Airport Way nearby. Railbanking kept the full corridor in one piece, including the trestle.
Why the county says "a decade and beyond"
The river crossing is one of many hard spots on the route. In 2024, Jordan told the Tribune that the 11.9-mile trail would involve "60 culverts, 13 at-grade crossings and 7 elevated crossings," and would cost upwards of $100 million to build.
So far, the county has secured $2 million from Snohomish County and Washington State taxpayers. That money pays for engineering studies and preliminary design for the full corridor, not construction. Measured against the $100 million-plus estimate, it's about one-fiftieth of the cost, and it's for planning only. The county says it will look for more grants for final design and construction.
The county describes the corridor as a run of bridges, trestles, wetlands, sloughs and steep terrain. It says those features create "both a unique recreational experience and significant design and construction challenges," and it expects construction to happen in phases "over the coming decade and beyond." That matches what county planner Emily Griffith told the Snohomish City Council in July 2025, when the Tribune reported that she expected completion to take more than 10 years.
Snohomish County Parks & Recreation Director Sharon Walker put the planning stage this way in the county's launch announcement:
"This planning process gives residents the opportunity to help shape what this next chapter looks like, from trail access and amenities to preserving the natural character of the corridor."
The survey got down to details, asking whether the trail should have benches, portable restrooms, picnic areas and other amenities. Planning and conceptual design are set to continue through 2027.
The Woodinville end is unfinished too
The King County side is still being built. The City of Woodinville plans its Eastrail segment to run from Wilmot Gateway Park north through downtown to the city limits. It's meant to connect with the Sammamish River Trail, the regional Eastrail and the future Centennial Trail extension. Woodinville's project FAQ lists phase completions expected in early 2027, summer 2028 and summer 2029. The goal is interim trail access first, then phased openings as funding allows.
King County's trail connections project list includes Eastrail North work: removing rails and ties along 6.5 miles in Kirkland and Woodinville and building 2.25 miles of interim gravel trail. The page gives no completion date. In July 2025, a King County advisory summary said four trail lines meet in Woodinville, but the connection across the Sammamish River to Woodinville Eastrail was still being worked out. So the planned trail would need a working river crossing at both ends, the Snohomish River here and the Sammamish River in Woodinville.
What hasn't been published yet
As of October 12, 2026, these pieces are still missing from the public record:
- The trestle's post-fire condition. The county said in July it would evaluate the damage. No result has been published.
- Survey results. The survey closed August 29, and no summary has been posted.
- Outreach events. The county said it would announce summer community events later. The sources reviewed don't confirm any dates or locations.
- Access today. The county says plainly that the future extension "is not yet open to the public."
The county says the schedule will keep changing with engineering, environmental review, permitting, funding and community feedback. Updates will appear on the Centennial Trail South project page.
If you own one of the older homes near First Street or the river, the trestle and the trail planned over it are part of your home's story too, and buyers who love Snohomish's history pay attention to stories like that. Kathie Salvadalena has spent nearly two decades helping historic-home owners present that local history well. Whenever you're ready to talk over coffee, request a free seller consultation and home valuation.
