Dosewallips State Park - Steam Donkey Trail
Dosewallips State Park provides an interesting convergence of forest with a saltwater delta. The park is best known for its shellfish beds and campground, but it offers some nice hiking too. The 3.5 mile Steam Donkey Loop Trail is an especially good choice in spring, with lots of creeklets, views of the Dosewallips River and silent forest. There is a strong chance that you will see wildlife in winter and spring. An elk herd resides in the area. And with the estuary so close, the area is rife with bird-life. As an added bonus for fall hikers, you can search for and pick chantrelle mushrooms.
The trail is well-built, easy to follow and good for beginning hikers. Benches placed at strategic spots along the trail provide a chance to eat a snack or enjoy the roar of the river. The park also boasts a short trail that leads out to the delta overlooking Hood Canal. It is possible see whales and seals from the observation area.
Driving Directions:
Dosewallips State Park is on Highway 101 along Hood Canal and just north of the town of Brinnon at milepost 307. To reach the park, drive 40 miles north from Shelton or 20 miles south from Highway 104 and follow the signs. Recent Trip Reports
Hiked here recently?
Submit a trip report!
There are
17
trip reports for this hike.
See all trip reports for this hike.
Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
Great photo opportunities today at the park. No issues to report! Awesome campground with plenty of ...
Great photo opportunities today at the park. No issues to report! Awesome campground with plenty of room and spots open. About 25% full Easter weekend.
Day hike
Issues:
Mud/Rockslide
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
Four women and a small, furry, mostly backpack-dwelling dog found fun and adventure on this trail af...
Four women and a small, furry, mostly backpack-dwelling dog found fun and adventure on this trail after discovering too many blowdowns and snow on the Dosewallips River trail. The Steam Donkey trail is in good condition, though we did encounter a few muddy spots. The bridges and wooden steps were slippery but manageable, and we were pleased as punch that the unfortunately named crossing did not claim any new victims from our group. We enjoyed a few vigorous downpours and were able to test our rain jackets, but never got cold or uncomfortable. There were no stunning vistas, but the local fungi, moss, slime molds, and lichen kept our band of science enthusiasts enamored all the same. This trail has a nice blend of climbs and easy terrain and we felt sufficiently worked out at the end of our day.
Day hike
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
One of the things that made this hike very enjoyable was how subtle this trail was. This isn’t to ...
One of the things that made this hike very enjoyable was how subtle this trail was. This isn’t to say that the trail wasn’t well maintained, but rather it fit into the scenery amazingly well. There were many times that I forgot I was even on a trail and just felt as if I had wandered off into a gorgeous green landscape.
For more pictures and details check out my blog about this hike: http://www.aimlesswonderers.com/[…]/dosewallips-state-park Day hike
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
For those of you taking WTA's suggestion to check out Dosewallips State Park this season, the trails...
For those of you taking WTA's suggestion to check out Dosewallips State Park this season, the trails got some improvement today. One team put turnpikes in on the Steam Donkey Trail while another replaced a culvert with a bridge after the rains proved too much for the first fix.
You can check out the culvert-to-bridge project at: http://www.flickr.com/[…]/, or better yet, go check it out yourself (without even getting your feet wet)! Remember your Discover Pass. Day hike
Features:
Wildflowers blooming
Expand report text
Hide report text
Read full report
with photos
This was my (our group's as well) first time on this trail system. It was a real treat to find so m...
This was my (our group's as well) first time on this trail system. It was a real treat to find so many miles (well 4 to be exact) of new trails to be hiked in an area I had bypassed until yesterday.
We did the "Steam Donkey" loop but missed several other recently built trails. The state park is a real gem with walks on the Hood Canal beach as well as our stroll through the forest and along the Dosewallips river. There were artifacts along the trail including what looked like a small dam and a rail from the 'Steam Donkey' train bed. The park trails are all in good shape but some were a bit muddy, particularly the ones near the tide flats. We had a great time and even the ferries were not too crowded on the way back (we had a two {2} ferry wait which allowed us to get good coffee in Kingston). |
 Dosewallips State Park. Photo copyright Craig Romano.
2010, 2011, 2012
Map it
|
Document Actions
- Email this page
- Print this
- Share
