Friday, June 30, 2017

Port Gamble Beaver Dams - #SaturdaySnapshots

My FitBit says I walked 7.25 miles on June 16th, and 5.5 miles of that distance were logged in the magnificent Port Gamble Forest Heritage Park, located on Hood Canal, Washington. 

Although we walked through towering trees, up and down hills, and through the biggest collection of ferns I've ever seen, the most memorable parts of the hike for me were the beaver pond and dam. We didn't see the shy inhabitants, but we found ample evidence of their presence. Looks like they've been as busy as ... well... beavers! [Click on photos for a closer look.]

Downed trees.

Their dam.

Freshly gnawed building materials.


One of the men on our walk educated us about ferns, and we learned to identify several varieties. The ones in this photo are predominantly sword ferns, but we also learned about bracken ferns, lady ferns, deer ferns, and licorice ferns. Who knew there were so many kinds? 

This forest may soon become a residential neighborhood unless money is raised to purchase the land as a refuge and for recreational use. The following video tells more about the situation. It also includes gorgeous photos of the beauty I saw on my hike.





More info about the Port Gamble Forest Heritage Park and a map of hiking trails: HERE

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16 comments:

  1. I've always been quite bad at identifying plants- so I didn't know that there were so many types of ferns either!

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    1. If I went into the forest now, I'm not sure I'd remember how to differentiate one fern from another! They look so similar.

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  2. You have to love the ingenuity of nature!

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    1. I wish we could have seen some of the little critters, but it was amazing to see their handiwork.

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  3. I love seeing glimpses of Nature and its animal inhabitants (even if they're hiding and we only see evidence of them). Beautiful Beaver Dam...and here's hoping the park can be preserved.

    Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

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    1. Thanks for stopping by, Laurel-Rain. Some subspecies of mountain beaver are on the endangered species list. It's definitely unusual to see a beaver dam.

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  4. So beautiful...and we may even get there soon! My husband's father lives in Poulsbo and I asked him if he'd ever been there (he hadn't). Since we're planning to takes a lot of hikes while we're up there next week, this may be one of them!

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    1. It's such a beautiful area, and the town of Port Gamble is charming. However, the trails we took are shared with horses and bicyclists. We only saw a few people, but we went on a weekday. I imagine there's more activity on the weekends.

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  5. I certainly hope this beautiful place does not become a residential neighborhood. Those ferns are amazing!

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    1. I agree. We're losing so many of our wild places. Soon there won't be anywhere to escape concrete, cars, and cell phones!

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  6. I've never seen beaver dams. Thank you for sharing. Beautiful shots.

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    1. Beavers are shy and timid animals. This is only the third time in my life that I've seen a beaver dam and lodge, and I've done a lot of hiking and camping.
      Thank you for stopping by my blog.

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  7. Sounds like a wonderful hike! We have a local stream that we hike along that always has a beaver dam in it - we DID see the beavers once!

    Beautiful photos - thanks for sharing!

    Sue

    2017 Big Book Summer Challenge

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  8. I've never seen a beaver dam myself so these are incredible shots.

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