Announcing a new Meetup for Noodlists - 20s & 30s Social Group - Make Friends!

What: Wussy Friday Hikes with Dogs - Rainbow Falls SP

When: Friday, April 2, 2010 11:00 AM

Where:
Rainbow Falls State Park
SR 6
Doty, WA 98532

While I do not own a dog, I enjoy hanging out with them and their owners. I don't usually work on Fridays so I'm going to start exploring local short, not very steep (less than 5 miles and 500 ft elevation gain) trails, within about 30 min of Olympia on Fridays. Most of these trails are dog-friendly and little kid-friendly. If you are in good shape, you are welcome to come and hike at your own pace even though I will lag far behind you. If you are in not-so-great shape, you're also welcome to come and you'll be in good company. ;-)

Rainbow Falls State Park was first developed for recreation as a community park in the 1900s and its central feature is the Chehalis River, which passes through a pair of rocky outcroppings to form a low falls. There is also a historic (but recently restored) suspension footbridge crossing the river just downstream of the falls, granting a nice view of them, and a fuchsia garden near the ranger station. There are 3 miles of trails total, but we'll do an outer loop that's probably a little more than a mile. If anyone would like to add a little bike excursion, the park also has access to a 7-mile section of the Willapa Hills Trail, a converted railway, between Rainbow Falls and Pe Ell. The Willapa Hills Trail runs between Chehalis and Raymond along the Chehalis and Willapa rivers for a total of 56 miles.

To get there, take I-5 south to Exit 77 (SR 6W to Pe Ell/Raymond) and go west on SR 6 for about 18 miles to the park entrance on the right. Look for me next to my white Ford Escape Hybrid with the bumper stickers.

Learn more here:
http://olympia.noodlists.com/calendar/12846694/