And Hike-a-Thon begins for me. We stopped at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge for a bit of a leg stretcher on our way to the Mount St. Helens area. I have wanted to see the new boardwalk, and I wanted to share this amazing place with my family who was visiting from land-locked Colorado. The good news is that I got to see the boardwalk, and it is pretty darn cool as it gently winds its way out into the tidal estuary. The bad news is that I did not make it to the end. A certain 2 1/2 year old daughter of mine wanted desperately to "be the leader," but her older brother and cousin were determined to skip on ahead up the wide boardwalks and paths. OH, the horrors of it all! Imagine the toddler screaming, "I want to lead!" and running as fast as her little legs could take her toward the big kids. Splat - down she would go on her face. Crying. Running to catch up again. Splat. Then a plea by parents to the big kids to let her lead. Sulking. "No fair!" More crying. So we cut this delightful outing short and ate our lunch in the grass of the parking lot (since the wildlife refuge has no picnicking area near the visitor center). On our return, we did see a raccoon family, black turtles, a heron and many unidentifiable birds (I am certainly no bird expert). I will return - perhaps with a stroller, and certainly with some additional rules - another day.

Adding up the miles for the hike a thon.

WOW!!! The extensive boardwalk (over 2 miles of it!) and other improvements made at the Refuge since removing the dikes are impressive! What a lovely and leisurely, beautiful place this is. And the wildlife knows it in spades! There are more herons than you can shake a stick at, we saw about 5 species of waterfowl (amny with babies), a frolicking raccoon, amphibians and insects galore, as well as turkey vultures, and your typical songbirds, shorebirds, and tidal critters (shellfish, etc.). This is a fabulous and even wheelchair accessible destination for all ages and types. Enjoy!!! Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/51278183@N05/sets/72157626755531659/detail/

After a day of kayaking, we went to the nwr. We have been before but relized after looking at the trip reports that it was actually listed and thought we would log it in. This is a great walk for anyone wanting to get out and enjoy.