I'm so happy I finally decided to check this place out! With all of the snow in the mountains and avalanche danger, I decided to keep it lowkey this weekend and visit the Refuge - what a delight! 

I went in the mid-afternoon and it sprinkled a little bit while I was there, but it wasn't bad. The trails and boardwalks are in great condition (good for little ones too!), and if you like birds, this place is heaven! I look forward to coming back in other seasons to see what new critters I'll come across!

Bottom line: Good hike for a rainy day with misty views from a relatively dry elevated boardwalk, which itself provides several shelters to get out of the rain along its length. The walk has a seasonal closure just before the viewing platform at its end, but this does not really impact the trip, and views of the Olympics, Mt Rainier and Puget Sound islands would have been non-existent today anyway.

Stats

• Distance: 4-1/2 miles
• Duration: 2 hours
• Vertical: 52 ft
• Weather: Rainy, but otherwise still, glassy waters
• Takeaway: Wonderful, moody walk on the Nisqually Estuary Boardwalk trail, extending way out on the Nisqually delta with many different birds (bring binoculars!) which likely vary by season. Due to the rain, I did not bring my zoom lens, so mostly distance shots in this report. Perfect trail for the rain and chill of an early December day, although I might feel differently had there been wind. I do love the ocean in heavy rain without even a whisper of wind (especially when diving) - the whole trail I was thinking about having my kayak (tide was relatively high). Appropriate gear is a must for the rain, but this is a trail where you could actually carry an umbrella. Definitely kid friendly :)
• Trail: High and dry, but note the warning signs about straying onto the mud flats which can be dangerous due to their quicksand properties; for families the trail is well setup making it difficult to directly access the mud flats as you travel the boardwalk above them

Headed down past Tacoma and some traffic congestion (whoa) to the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. It was raining pretty heavily, so I was a little concerned as we got closer to the site. But for a rainy day, this is kind of an ideal trail.

There was plenty of parking, a $3 (cash) fee to park, or something like an America the Beautiful national pass, and open restrooms adjacent to the closed visitor center (that closure is no worry as there are plenty of interesting information boards throughout the trail sharing the history and wildlife of the area, all in excellent shape). We used heavy-duty rain shells - top and bottom - and we were dry and warm (definitely soaked on the outside with some driving horizontal rain at times). 

The trail starts with boardwalks through the woods which I did not expect (bonus!), then a gravel dike-top road out to the start of the Nisqually Estuary Boardwalk trail. The boardwalk is truly splendid with 360-degree views of the estuary, a walking-on-water perspective (the tide was relative high covering the mud flats and channels) and surrounded by activity with all kinds of birds and waterfowl (grebes, loons, ducks, geese, hawks, and many stoic blue herons who sat quietly observing all the action, and me). We did not see any mammals (e.g. mink) or seals today, but this is a place where every visit is different and interesting. Today, the rain made the trail uniquely interesting - it was a good choice (at least while I am caught flat-footed without snow tires on my car yet).

Note: On the return, a detour of I5 via 705 west, and then along the Port of Tacoma waterfront eventually back to I5, allowed us to bypass most of the congestion ;)

First trip to this beautiful natural tidal-lands:

• Easy walking on amazing elevated boardwalks, and/or wide gravel paths
• Greeted by friendly Coyote, followed by  a steady parade of birds
• Bring at least a 600mm lens if you don't want to feel out of place :)
• Parking lot on sunny Sunday 10:30am ~70% full, ~90% full when we left
• Last 700' feet of boardwalk closed for hunting season
• Will return again, maybe at high tide next time

I woke up this morning planning to head up to Twin Falls after seeing reports of the raging water yesterday, but ultimately didn't feel like driving the hour and a half from Olympia. So, off to old faithful it was! I wanted to check out the river level and found that the Nisqually is running very high, and very fast! 

Wildlife: I started off spotting a coyote while pulling into the parking lot! I managed to snag a pic of it before parking and heading out on the boardwalk. I was treated to a chorus of frogs entire walk to the river, but I never actually saw any. There were plenty of geese and ducks, particularly at a flooded section of the grasslands between the visitor center and the barns.  

Trail: The boardwalk was slippery after so much rain, but it wasn't too bad - just be careful! The end of the boardwalk is closed for hunting season. Between that and intermittent gunshots, I decided to keep to the boardwalk trails around the wetlands instead of going out over the estuary.

Fall Foliage: There are still some last leaves hanging on the trees, but they definitely past their prime. It's still a pretty walk with all of the leaves on the boardwalk!

On a final note, be sure to bring patience with you! There were multiple families getting photos taken and blocking the trails. It was a nice reminder to come early in the morning to avoid the crowds! 

Pretty standard Fall day. Went on a weekday and there were no crowds and plenty of parking. Trails are all flat and easily accessible. Weather held out with only a little bit of rain, so I could enjoy the Fall colors in the woods and a particularly high tide out on the boardwalk.