Chilling out fun in the winter
Published 1:30 am Sunday, December 4, 2016
Winter’s no reason for putting your hiking boots away. It’s just another time for a walk in the woods, and an old-growth forest is the perfect place.
Imagine walking through trees whose ages can be measured in centuries and experiencing the natural world with a guide.
You can do just that through the annual Deep Forest Experience at Rockport State Park on Highway 20 in Skagit County. Experience 670 acres of forest with Douglas fir, red cedar, hemlock and maple trees, some 250 feet tall and more than 300 years old, including “Grandmother Cedar.”
Staff and volunteer guides lead the curious on family-friendly 30- to 45-minute walks at 11 a.m., noon, 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays starting Dec. 9 through February 2017. The timing is perfect because during those months, eagles are searching the Skagit River for salmon.
Chilled? Go to the Discovery Center, especially if you have children. Enjoy refreshments and a hot woodstove, explore interactive displays, watch nature videos, make crafts and create a puppet show.
If you want to go beyond the guided experience, take the 3-mile Evergreen Trail. It’s mostly an easy grade although there’s a bit of a climb near the high point of the loop at the foot of Sauk Mountain.
The park also offers an ADA-accessible trail. A $10 day-use pass or $30 annual Discover Pass is required for parking at Rockport State Park and can be purchased at the park office or Discovery Center.
Dress for cold, wet, winter weather with footwear suitable for very wet trails. For more information, contact Amos Almy, interpretive specialist, 360-853-8461 or email rockport@parks.wa.gov. Rockport is just off the North Cascades Highway (Highway 20), 37 miles east of I-5.
Outdoors indoors. The Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour brings the spirit of outdoor adventures to the Historic Everett Theater at 7 p.m. Dec. 6. Tickets are $20 plus service fee.
Planning trails. A trail-planning process is starting for the Morning Star Natural Resources Conservation Area that extends from Mount Pilchuck east to Gothic Basin and southeast to Spada Reservoir, and includes Boulder and Greider lakes.
The state Department of Environmental Resources plans to work with government agencies, recreational users and other to create a sustainable trails plan for low-impact use.
Interested? Attend a 6:30 p.m. Dec. 16 meeting at Cavelero Mid High School’s cafeteria, 8220 24th St. SE, Lake Stevens.
Morning Star’s existent trail network will be evaluated for traditional and cultural use, renovation and/or potential expansion, and desired hiking, backcountry camping, and scenic vistas and viewpoints.
Emphasis will focus on the restoration of current impacts to environmentally sensitive areas and redevelopment of existing popular trails.
Following the public meeting, DNR will form a public trail-planning committee that will work with the department to develop priorities. Committee meetings are expected to occur periodically for about a year starting early in 2017 and a trail plan should be finalized in 2018.
Gift time. Puzzled at what to give the outdoors person in your life?
Consider the Washington State Parks 2017 calendar that includes a waterfall at Olallie State Park, an unusual view of the mud flats of Bay View State Park, an aerial view of Stewart Island Marine State Park in the San Juans, and a winter scene at Lime Kiln State Park.
The cost is $18.99 plus tax and is available for purchase online. Visit myprint.wa.gov and enter “calendar” in the search field. Order by Dec. 16 for delivery by Christmas.
Go to the snow. Outdoors Northwest magazine’s annual snow guide is out, along with its digital version. This is a great place to see resort reports, winter festivals and new-gear reports. Go to www.outdoorsnw.com.
Cut a tree. Yes, you can, at least in a national forest. Go to www.fs.usda.gov/mbs.
Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964.
