Troy Hopwood has local legend status for developing the Cross Washington bikepacking route, and organizing the annual Cross-Washington Bikepacking Grand Depart (also known as XWA) held every May.
Check out Annie Bilotta’s and Keri Bergere’s interview with Troy at the 2024 edition.
Troy has a background in road cycling, and cross-country style mountain bike racing. The Cross-Washington route came into being while training for Tour Divide. He needed routes close to home that he could do over a weekend or long weekend that simulated Tour Divide’s terrain. He pieced together a route that crosses Washington.
Like the other riders creating gravel routes in the PNW, Troy is attracted by the blank areas on bike route heat maps, and is motivated by the activity of the others, especially Quinn Dusenberry.
In turn, the Cross-Washington Bikepacking and Washington Hi-Lite communities have grown significantly over the years, complete with an entire remote fan base who “dot watch” the online event tracker.
In addition to the Cross Washington and Hi-Lite routes, he “rather randomly” developed the Elbe Instant Classic which gets lots of activity in the July through early September timeframe.
What goes into good route creation?
“It depends on whether the route is intended for a single day or multiple days.”
“Good single-day routes need to have a full day of riding, destination-worthy viewpoints, be a loop (rather than an out-and-back), water sources, and be doable on a gravel bike.”
“Developing multi-day routes is a balancing act. I try to include a mix of both difficult and recovery sections. There need to be places to resupply. The Palouse section of the Cross-Washington route is mentally boring, so I’ve tried to add some twists and turns to keep it interesting.”
Especially for the multi-day routes, important details can change.
“During original development of XWA the Beverly Bridge didn’t exist. I decided not to change the route because riding the easiest route wasn’t the point.”
Troy is currently working on a new route east of the Mt Vernon-Arlington area that includes a Pilchuk Tree Farm to Lake Cavanaugh loop and ties to the Centennial Trail.
Troy’s Recommendations
—Ride with GPS Gravel Collection
–The Elbe Instant Classic is a must for anyone who can do a full day–it has views of Mt Rainier, Adams, St Helens from one spot.
–Campbell Global Commercial Forest is local, but requires a permit
—Our Mother the Mountain
—Dirty Free Hub is really helpful if you don’t have local knowledge
Browse Troy’s YouTube bikepacking gear review channel, Troy on Trails.
