1.6 hr
Overview
The main section of the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge protects a river delta, bounded by McAllister Creek to the west and the Nisqually River to the east, at the very southern reach of Puget Sound. Historically, this delta was a hunting and wetland resource for the Nisqually Indian tribe; the refuge was the site of the first Indian treaty (1854) signed in what is now Washington State. The land was purchased in 1904 by a Seattle lawyer, Alson Lennon Brown, who then used teams of men to build a 5 ½ mile dike and drain the wetlands for use as farmland. Soon after completion of the dike, Brown filed for bankruptcy, but farming continued until 1974, when the land was purchased by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in order to establish the refuge. In 2009, the dike was removed so that the tidal flats could be returned to their natural state; this has been the largest estuary restoration to date in the Pacific Northwest. A one-mile boardwalk was built, the last 0.6 miles along McAllister Creek following the footprint of the old levee. Combined with the Twin Barns Loop, the boardwalk trail allows for a couple of hours of scenic wildlife viewing with the peaks of the Olympic Mountains and Mount Rainier forming a snowy skyline. The best times to visit the refuge are in spring and fall, when you will catch flocks of migrating waterfowl and shore birds.
Trail Stats
6.6 km
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5 m
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Photos
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