 MIKE SIEGEL / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Deception Falls flows under Highway 2 near Stevens Pass. |
Walking trails north of Seattle
Al Borlin / Buck Island Park (Monroe)Located where Woods Creek flows into the Skykomish River, this 90-acre park provides a wonderful year-round outing. Big Four Ice Caves Trail (Silverton) For a short, relatively easy hike, this walk's scenery is stupendous. Deception Falls (Skykomish) Don't miss the lower-loop trail that leads through a beautiful lush forest of Western red cedar, Western hemlock and Douglas fir to wooden observation platforms that flank rapids farther down the river. Gissberg Twin Lakes County Park (Marysville) Sure, this park is a bit noisy, being next to I-5, but it's a better place to stretch your legs than the I-5 rest stop just to the north. Gold Basin Millpond Trail (Snohomish County) Take a fall drive to view the changing leaves and learn about this valley's past. Heirman Wildlife Park at Thomas' Eddy (Snohomish County) This serene, 343-acre preserve along the banks of the Snohomish River includes ponds and wetlands that draw numerous bird species. Jennings Park (Marysville) While oriented mainly toward children, there are so many things to see in this charming 51-acre park that it's easy for everyone to find something intriguing. Keystone Spit (Whidbey Island) Part of the Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve, and just east of the Keystone ferry landing, this long spit is a relative newcomer to Whidbey Island. Meadowdale County Beach Park (Edmonds) The trail sweeps down through forested Lunds Gulch (named after its first settler) to a gravel beach on Puget Sound with views of the Olympic Mountains. Meerkerk Rhododendron Gardens (Whidbey Island) Ten magical acres of rhododendron gardens are set in a serene open forest of second-growth conifers surrounded by a 43-acre woodland preserve. Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (Bay View) The shallow, flat and muddy bay, which is nearly exposed at low tide, is renowned for its nearly 8,000 acres of underwater eelgrass meadows. Sierra Park path for the blind (Edmonds) This intriguing path winds through a serene forest of mature conifers and deciduous trees, with a lush understory of huckleberry, salal and ferns. Silver Lake / Thornton A. Sullivan Park (Everett) This popular 35-acre lakeside park has offered recreation since the 1920s, when swimmers could plunge into the water from a giant water slide. South Whidbey State Park beach trail (Whidbey Island) This 347-acre park occupies a forested hillside that leads down to 4,500 feet of saltwater shoreline on Admiralty Inlet, with views of the Olympic Mountains. Sunset Pond (Bellingham) From its ignoble beginnings as a pit left after dirt and gravel were dug out to construct nearby I-5, and despite its early name of Kmart Pond due to its proximity to a shopping mall, this small lake has become a lovely little spot. Wallace Falls State Park trail (Gold Bar) Portions of this popular but strenuous hike offer a splendid view of the Skykomish River valley. Youth-on-Age Interpretive Trail (Snohomish County) This easy dip into an old-growth forest offers a short walk through 500-year-old Douglas fir, Sitka spruce and western hemlock.  |
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