1. Chuckanut Drive

Take a scenic drive along Puget Sound and through some of the most beautiful farmland in Skagit County. A beautiful side trip is through the historic town of Edison, to Bay View and Samish Island which both overlook Samish Bay and some of the state's prime shellfish beds.

Drive along the rock shoulder of the Chuckanut Mountains. From here you overlook the San Juan Islands and can try one of the many hikes, either to lakes on Chuckanut & Blanchard Mountains or to the beaches at Larrabee State Park or Teddy Bear Cove. The Drive continues all the way to the 1880's brick town of Fairhaven, now a suburb of Bellingham.

2. Port Susan Bay/Stillaguamish River

Drive through Snohomish County’s working farms to one of the best quality estuarine habitats. Port Susan Bay is part of the Greater Skagit-Stillaguamish Delta and is a key stop along the Pacific Flyway for hundreds of thousands of migratory waterbirds and is part of the core wintering range for many avian species.

In February, the area is home to thousands of snow geese and trumpeter swans who make this delta their home during their winter migration. The Stillaguamish River offers the winding channel of Hat Slough through a lush delta of grasses, trees, and farmland attractive to wildlife that floats, flies, and strides. With views across Port Susan to Camano Island and the distant Olympic Mountains beyond, and a relatively direct route between the estuaries to a Cascadia Marine Trail site at Kayak Point, this area offers a relaxing half-day paddle.

Photo: Snow Geese at Port Susan Bay © Keith Lazelle

3. Robe Canyon

Located east of Granite Falls, just off the Mountain Loop Scenic Byway, Robe Canyon Historic Park blends a rich history of the mining and railroading era with the natural beauty of the South Fork of the Stillaguamish River thundering through narrow Robe Canyon.

4. Meadowdale Park

Stroll through Meadowdale Park's corridor on a 1-1/4 mile long nature trail. Experience the sounds of the adjacent tumbling stream as it weaves its way through the giant trees of the old forest. The stream, which is home to various aquatic life, including fresh water fish and migrating salmon, forms a small marine estuary as it empties into Puget Sound.

View various bird species in their natural habitat on a hike through the forest. Or comb the beaches and enjoy the breathtaking views of the distant Olympic Mountains.

5. U.S. Route 2

The highway was actually started in 1926 as part of the original U.S. highway system. But for most of us it is the northern route across the state from Everett to Spokane, passing through Stevens Pass, Leavenworth, Coulee City among other highlights.

Still in the planning stage, the idea is to create a greenway similar to the Mountains to Sound Greenway that runs along Interstate 90.

6. Proposed Wild Sky Wilderness

100,000 acres of wild land in the Skykomish River Valley proposed for protection as Federal Wilderness. Features imposing mountain peaks, pristine alpine lakes, vast flower meadows, and ancient forest stands with 8-foot-diameter Douglas firs and Western redcedars.

The Cascade Land Conservancy has been involved in preserving some of the remaining in-holdings in the proposed wilderness. In 2005, it preserved an area called Jump Off Ridge, aptly named for its steep and forbidding character.

Over the past several years, a dedicated and growing coalition of conservationists, forest users and local residents have worked to carefully envision and craft a proposal to permanently protect more than 100,000 acres of wild country located in the central Cascades. Streams in the lowland valleys of the proposal offer some of the best remaining salmon and steelhead habitat in the Puget Sound Basin.

7. Skokomish River

The Skokomish River is a river in Washington, United States. It starts by draining the southeast corner of the Olympic Mountains in Mason County. It flows southeasterly entering Hood Canal (a fjord of Puget Sound) at Hoodsport. Lake Cushman and Lake Kokanee are maintained by Cushman Dam No. 1 and Cushman Dam No. 2 respectively on the Skokomish River.

Like most Pacific Northwest rivers, it was named after the people who owned it, whose name derives from the Salishan words skokom + ish = "brave" + "people" or "strong" + "people".

Walking this magical river loop in Olympic National Park can take as little as an hour. However, with small children, the possibilities for play along the way are infinite. Enormous trees with trunks set on stilt-like roots border river pools and rapids, calling to waders and paddlers. In fact, an hour is not enough. Better allow half a day.

8. Theler Wetlands

The Theler Wetlands cover some 75 acres, and an agreement with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife expands the trail system to 135 acres.

Four separate trails are open to the public free of charge during daylight hours, seven days a week. Birdwatchers and photographers flock to the wetlands, where they'll see kingfishers, heron and other birds – and possibly a fox or a mink – on a good day.

9. Green Seattle Partnership

Seattle’s trees are dying and they need your help! The Green Seattle Partnership is dedicated to restoring 2500 acres of forested parkland in Seattle by 2025. If we want to have healthy sustainable forested parklands for the future we need to act now to restore and preserve these areas.

Be a part of the Green Seattle Partnership efforts by learning more about the value of trees in our city, and by volunteering for a forest restoration work party at a park near you. Seward Park is a great place to check out what Seattle’s landscape looked like more than a century ago before the city was logged and cleared of trees. You can still find some old growth native evergreen trees in Seward Park’s “Magnificent Forest” that provide important habitat for nesting bald eagles and other urban wildlife. Monthly Green Seattle Partnership volunteer work parties will start up in January to help save these beautiful trees from invasive plants such as English ivy, holly, and blackberry. All ages are welcome.

Discovery Park is the largest city park in Seattle with 534 acres of natural area. Discovery Park offers spectacular views of both the Cascade and the Olympic mountain ranges, two miles of protected tidal beaches as well as open meadow lands, dramatic sea cliffs, forest groves, active sand dunes, thickets and streams. Discovery Park staff and volunteers have been working for many years to restore the native habitat for wildlife in the park. The Environmental Learning Center has several activities and Green Seattle Partnership volunteer opportunities for people of all ages.

10. Snoqualmie Winery Park

In early 2000, a critical 130-acre parcel, called Snoqualmie Point, was purchased by the Forest Service from owners that had planned to locate a large new office park on the former Snoqualmie Winery site, one of the most spectacular viewpoints in King County. Instead, 10-acres of this site (the open area of the former Winery and entertainment amphitheater) will be managed by the City of Snoqualmie as a public park, scenic viewpoint, and event amphitheater, while the remaining 120 acres will be managed by the Forest Service as public forestland.

The land was purchased in a cooperative effort between the City of Snoqualmie, the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust, the National Forest Service, and the Department of Natural Resources.

11. Mid Fork of the Snoqualmie River

The Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie is King County's wild backyard, with three whitewater rivers, popular mountain climbing routes, a new campground, and miles of trail that reach from lowland King County to the heart of the Alpine Lakes wilderness. Hike, mountain bike, or find your favorite fishing hole along this beautiful stretch of river.

12. Nisqually Wildlife Refuge/Northwest Landing

The Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, on the Nisqually River Delta in southern Puget Sound, was established in 1974 for the protection of migratory birds. Three thousand acres of salt and freshwater marshes, grasslands, riparian, and mixed forest habitats provide resting and nesting areas for migratory waterfowl, songbirds, raptors, and wading birds.

Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge is one of over 544 National Wildlife Refuges in the United States. Managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in the Department of the Interior, the National Wildlife Refuges encompass over 95 million acres of land for wildlife.

The mission of the Refuge System is to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management, and where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife, and plant resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans.

Nearby is Northwest Landing, an award winning 3,000-acre mixed use planned community located in the city of DuPont. Land uses include industrial, office and commercial development, homes, schools, parks, open space and trails.

13. Snake Lake Tacoma Nature Center

Lace up your shoes and take a "quietly wild" trek in the heart of a city. At the Snake Lake Tacoma Nature Center you may hear the honking of Canada geese and the peculiar twitter of the wood duck as you explore this 70-acre wetland habitat. Tread carefully and you might catch sight of a red fox, raccoon, blue heron or other wildlife.

Pick up a self-guiding booklet in the Visitor Center to help you identify the many native plants you'll spot along the two-mile path. Discover science secrets in the Center's exhibit area and laboratory. Join in exciting nature programs or explore the beauty of our state on naturalist-led trips around Washington.

The Cascade Land Conservancy recently was instrumental in adding another 13 acres to the habitat, working with neighborhood groups and a local developer to preserve the additional lands.

14. Mountains to Sound Greenway

The Mountains to Sound Greenway stretches along 100 miles of Interstate 90 from the waterfront in Seattle to the edge of desert grasslands in Central Washington. Today, most of the landscape not already developed along I-90 is in public ownership and designated as a National Scenic Byway. The Greenway includes historic towns and over 700,000 acres of foothills, working farms and forests, spectacular alpine scenery, wildlife habitat, campgrounds, trails, lakes and rivers right in our backyard.

15. Carbon River Valley

Nearly 700 acres along the Carbon River Valley near the entrance to Mount Rainier National Park were permanently protected through the efforts of the Cascade Land Conservancy and a number of other organizations and leaders.

Pierce County Conservation Futures purchased several properties in the valley, ensuring they are preserved. The 200-acre Marsh farm is likely to be purchased eventually by the federal government as part of an expansion of the national park.

Another property is farther down the Carbon River near the town of Carbonado. It includes the river and has important rails-to-trails potential. It will continue to be owned by Pierce County.

The Carbon River in Pierce County, Washington flows about 30 miles from it source on Mount Rainier at the Carbon Glacier (with which it shares its name) to Orting were it joins the Puyallup River.