With the amount of thorns guarding the entrance to this trail, you’d think there was a princess hidden in a castle somewhere behind them.
Buckley Gulch is the kind of place a lot of people drive past and think, “Hmm… I wonder what’s down there.” but never actually take the time to find out. It’s so densely forested that even driving over it on the N. 21st St. bridge, you may not even realize you’re on a bridge. The N. Yakima Ave. bridge just north of there allows a deeper view into the gulch but to get the full experience, you have to see it from the bottom.
Garfield gulch exists in a sort of limbo between inaccessible wilderness and managed natural area. Of all the north end gulches, this one’s probably had the roughest history. Not only was it heavily logged like the rest of Tacoma, but a huge portion of it was actually filled in and built over. If you’ve ever wondered why there’s a four block gap in N. 7th St., it’s because that’s where the gulch used to be. The only evidence left is a slight dip in elevation.
You may be asking yourself why anyone would spend so much time and energy planting more trees in the Pacific Northwest. If so, you may be surprised to hear that Tacoma has a tree problem. In spite of its location in the heart of Tree Country USA, our city's tree canopy cover was last measured at only 19%; far less than the national average of 27-33%. Seattle, by contrast, has a 28% canopy cover.
Despite this being a properly maintained trail that actually exists on most maps, it’s still very lightly used compared to other nearby trails in Point Defiance. It’s more of a shortcut than a standalone trail but the shortcut it provides is the real fun part that makes it worth mentioning. Most beach walkers start at the more popular Owen Beach. This puts you out more than half a mile closer to the point.
Of all the trails in this collection, this one is probably the most well known. Nonetheless, you won’t find any useful trail maps online and the park itself is hidden in a neighborhood with no signage on the main road. The land was previously owned by the Kobayashi family who donated it to the city when they moved to Japan. The picnic shelters next to the parking lot are the hollowed out remnants of their home.
Tacoma resident Samantha is far from the only person to take to Point Defiance’s trails with a camera in hand, but she may be alone in bringing a bunny—decidedly not of the cottontail variety—along with her.
It is a crisp fall day in Kobayashi Park. The trees that form a canopy over the rushing waters where Leach Creek flows into Chambers Creek are changing colors and yellow leaves blanket the trail.
“It is the city's responsibility to preserve a place where the people can get recreation, where children from the congested districts can congregate without danger, and where mothers, nurses, and invalids can find a healthful resort during mid-day without being cramped for space or menaced by shows and their consequent temptations...
While most of us think first of The Humane Society when it comes to a lost pet, what's someone in Tacoma to do when they find a more unusual critter in need of help?
Ever have one of those moments when you want to just give it all up and take to the sea? Jim and Stephanie Sutherlin of Life at Six Knots know how you feel. In 2016 they sold their house in California, bought a boat, and started a new life on the Puget Sound.
If you were asked to name five Pacific Northwest animals, what would you come up with? For a lot of us, salmon, bald eagles, and orcas might be at the top of the list. Of course there are many more animals in the evergreen forests all around us, some endemic, some widespread.