Walked the Mercer Slough loop trails Sunday morning, or rather attempted to. We parked at the Mercer Slough Education Center, (free parking though somewhat limited.) There are currently no open restrooms that I know of along this route. We’d planned to walk down the east side of Mercer Slough, make a quick excursion down EasTrail to Newcastle Beach and come back up the west side of Mercer Slough. However, the Mercer Slough trail is blocked due to construction along the southeast corner. There is no legal route to do the loop currently and the Sweyolocken boat launch is closed and full of construction equipment. That said, there “may” be a hole in the DOT fence just north of the trail that “may” let you walk up along the last bit of offramp to Bellevue Way and “may” have access back to the traditional trail just south of the new lightrail station, but of course I wouldn’t know anything about that.
The trails that are not closed are in great shape - even the bit on the north end around the blueberry fields that have always been a mud pit have had a bunch of new wood chips added so no need to get your tootsies wet anymore. The blueberry fields are currently blazing red with fall color now, pretty amazing. Also don’t miss the neat views of downtown Bellevue skyscrapers seemingly floating off in the distance. A beautiful little walk with lots to see, but be mindful of the current closure.
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