For those looking for some meaningful outdoor exercise, this is the perfect spot. I spend at least a couple mornings a week here as the hiking season begins to wind down (for me). You could easily walk five or more miles on the boardwalk trails and exploring near the Nisqually River area. If you are a birder, this place is quite alive in this fall season. 

The eagles are often seen fishing off of the estuary boardwalk, as are kingfishers, cormorants and great blue heron. There is a resident great-horned owl and dozens of cedar waxwings plucking the fall berries. Little ones are safe on the boardwalk and can see the native chorus frogs along the brush. It's not surprising to see several species of ducks in the murky ponds, songbirds in the trees and maybe even a weasel along your route. 

Yesterday I watched this heron stalk a snake in the grass, capture him and patiently maneuver it down his throat, swallowing it whole. It is quite a sight to see. A few more photos on my blog linked below on the full trip report. 

https://insearchofthevery.com/2020/10/09/and-the-snake-becomes-the-heron/

The parking lots tend to fill up quickly on the weekends. Bring a bottle of water, your hand sanitizer and your curiosity. 

Add this to Millersylvania St. Park and you’ll get 7 or 8 of the easiest miles in Washington. 
So nice to see blue sky and breathe in the smoke free air! 

Arrived mid to late afternoon and the parking lot was as busy as ever. Did a quick tour out the boardwalk to the dike, over to the first observation platform, then back along the dike to far side boardwalk and back to the lot. Saw a lot of people but almost everyone had a mask. 

On the boardwalk in we managed to see a few interesting species of bird and some frogs. 

Out on the dike, the tide was pretty far in but we managed to see many interesting birds including a heron that had caught a snake and overflow the path at low elevation. Many peeps were seen in the distant flats. 

It's been a very long time since we've been to this nature refuge.  My only previous visits were by sea kayak, decades ago.  We spent a couple hours with friends, hiking the flat trails.  The trails are nice and wide for the most part, making social distancing possible.  Lots of people did not bother with masking but we old folks mostly following the guidelines.  Since it is so flat, I left my crutch in the car and kept up a good pace on the trails, in the warm sun.  It eventually got a bit hot.  We didn't see a wide variety of birds but it was a very pleasant experience.  A link to my photos is below.

The only downside of our day was the drive home, heading up I-5, in lots of traffic and with a number of road construction areas to deal with.

Arrived at the trailhead about 10:45 on an overcast and drizzling Friday morning. Parking lot was about half full when we arrived. Visitor's center and bathrooms remain closed, but there are port-o-potties available at the parking lot and near the barn. Lovely day for a walk along the trails and boardwalk. As always, lots of birds available for viewing. Nice wide paths make for easy distancing, and about 80% of people wore masks for their trek.