Misplaced Pages

Capitol State Forest
Beaver dam and pond with hills of the Capitol State Forest beyond
Location in the state of WashingtonShow map of Washington (state)Capitol State Forest (the United States)Show map of the United States
Location	Thurston, Washington, United States
Nearest city	Tumwater, Washington
Coordinates	46°58′21.8″N 123°8′19.49″W / 46.972722°N 123.1387472°W / 46.972722; -123.1387472
Area	111,000 acres (450 km)
Elevation	2,658 ft (810 m)
Operator	]
Website	Official website

The Capitol State Forest is a 110,000-acre (450 km) state forest in Thurston and Grays Harbor counties of the U.S. state of Washington. It includes part of the unusual Mima Mounds geologic feature.

Description

The Capitol State Forest is managed by Washington State Department of Natural Resources and considered public land. It is a multi-use forest with active logging operations and is open for off-road motorcycles, mountain biking, horseback riding, and hiking.

Geography

Capitol Forest is approximately bounded by U.S. Route 12 to the southwest, Interstate 5 to the east and State Route 8 to the north. It roughly contains the Black Hills. The Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve is directly east and units of the Scatter Creek Wildlife Area, such as the Black River Wildlife Area and Glacial Heritage Wildlife Area, are to the southeast.

Cities and towns near its borders include Olympia, Tumwater, Littlerock, Oakville, and McCleary.

Amenities and recreation

The forest contains the McLane Creek Nature Trail located in an eastern portion of the park. A flat, 1.1-mile (1.8 km) looping trail, with an additional 1.0-mile (1.6 km) extension, it contains a mix of boardwalks and natural pathways with wildlife viewing platforms. Visitors can walk to McLane Creek, the headwaters of which begin in the forest, and through wetland areas and second growth forest. Visitors can view avian wildlife such as Canadian geese, kingfishers, and mallards and the creek is host to migrating Chum salmon, usually in December.

References

1. ^ "Capitol Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
2. "Capitol State Forest | WA - DNR".
3. ^ Scruggs, Gregory (November 29, 2024). "Opt outside on Black Friday to duck waddle on this Thurston County trail". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 3, 2024.
4. Romano, Craig (2017). Urban Trails: Olympia: Capitol State Forest/ Shelton/ Harstine Island. Mountaineers Books. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-68051-027-0.

External links

• Capitol Forest Community Website
• mountain biking guide at singletracks.com
• Friends of Capitol Forest volunteer organization
• Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve

v t e Protected areas of Washington
Federal	National Parks Mount Rainier North Cascades Olympic National Monuments Hanford Reach (USFWS) Mount St. Helens Volcanic (USFS) San Juan Islands (BLM) National Historical Parks and Sites Fort Vancouver NHS Klondike Gold Rush NHP Lewis and Clark NHP Manhattan Project NHP Nez Perce NHP San Juan Island NHP Whitman Mission NHS National Historical Reserves Ebey's Landing National Trails Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Pacific Crest Trail Pacific Northwest Trail NPS National Recreation Areas Lake Chelan Lake Roosevelt Ross Lake National Wildlife Refuges Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually Columbia Conboy Lake Copalis Dungeness Flattery Rocks Franz Lake Grays Harbor Julia Butler Hansen Refuge for the Columbian White-Tailed Deer Little Pend Oreille McNary Pierce Protection Island Quillayute Needles Ridgefield Saddle Mountain San Juan Islands Steigerwald Lake Toppenish Turnbull Umatilla Willapa National Forests Colville Gifford Pinchot Idaho Panhandle Kaniksu Mount Baker–Snoqualmie Okanogan–Wenatchee Olympic Umatilla Wenatchee USFS National Recreation Areas Mount Baker National Wilderness Alpine Lakes Boulder River The Brothers Buckhorn Clearwater Colonel Bob Daniel J. Evans Glacier Peak Glacier View Goat Rocks Henry M. Jackson Indian Heaven Juniper Dunes Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Ridge Mount Adams Mount Baker Mount Rainier Mount Skokomish Noisy-Diobsud Norse Peak Pasayten Salmo-Priest San Juan Stephen Mather Tatoosh Trapper Creek Washington Islands Wenaha–Tucannon Wild Sky William O. Douglas Wonder Mountain National Marine Sanctuary and National Estuarine Research Reserve Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve National Wild and Scenic Rivers Illabot Klickitat Pratt Skagit Snoqualmie White Salmon
State	State Parks Alta Lake Anderson Lake Battle Ground Lake Bay View Beacon Rock Belfair Birch Bay Blake Island Blind Island Bogachiel Bottle Beach Bridgeport Bridle Trails Brooks Memorial Cama Beach Camano Island Camp Wooten Retreat Center Cape Disappointment Clark Island Columbia Hills Columbia Plateau Trail Conconully Crawford Curlew Lake Cutts Island Daroga Dash Point Deception Pass Doe Island Dosewallips Doug's Beach Eagle Island Federation Forest Fields Spring Flaming Geyser Forks of the Sky Fort Casey Fort Columbia Fort Ebey Fort Flagler Fort Simcoe Fort Townsend Fort Worden Ginkgo Petrified Forest Goldendale Observatory Grayland Beach Griffiths-Priday Harstine Island Hope Island (Mason County) Hope Island (Skagit County) Ike Kinswa Illahee Iron Horse Jackson House James Island Jarrell Cove Joemma Beach Jones Island Joseph Whidbey Kanaskat-Palmer Kinney Point Kitsap Memorial Klickitat Trail Kopachuck Lake Chelan Lake Easton Lake Lenore Caves Lake Sammamish Lake Sylvia Lake Wenatchee Larrabee Leadbetter Point Lewis and Clark Lewis and Clark Trail Lime Kiln Point Lincoln Rock Lyons Ferry Manchester Maryhill Matia Island Matilda Jackson McMicken Island Millersylvania Moran Mount Pilchuck Mount Spokane Mystery Bay Nolte Obstruction Pass Ocean City Olallie Olmstead Place Pacific Beach Pacific Pines Palouse Falls Palouse to Cascades Paradise Point Patos Island Peace Arch Pearrygin Lake Penrose Point Peshastin Pinnacles Pleasant Harbor Posey Island Potholes Potlatch Rainbow Falls Rasar Reed Island Riverside Rockport Sacajawea Saddlebag Island Saint Edward Saltwater Scenic Beach Schafer Seaquest Sequim Bay Shine Tidelands Skagit Island South Whidbey Spencer Spit Spokane River Centennial Trail Spring Creek Hatchery Squak Mountain Squilchuck Steamboat Rock Steptoe Battlefield Steptoe Butte Stretch Point Stuart Island Sucia Island Sun Lakes-Dry Falls Tolmie Triton Cove Turn Island Twanoh Twenty-Five Mile Creek Twin Harbors Wallace Falls Wanapum Recreational Area Wenatchee Confluence Westport Light Willapa Hills Trail Willie Keil's Grave Yakima Sportsman State Forests Ahtanum Capitol Elbe Hills Green Mountain Loomis Loup Loup Tahuya Teanaway Tiger Mountain Yacolt Burn Natural Area Preserves Admiralty Inlet Badger Gulch Bald Hill Barker Mountain Bone River Camas Meadows Carlisle Bog Castle Rock Charley Creek Chehalis River Surge Plain Chopaka Mountain Clearwater Bogs Cleveland Shrub Steppe Columbia Falls Columbia Hills Crowberry Bog Cypress Highlands Dabob Bay Dailey Prairie Davis Canyon Entiat Slopes Goose Island Gunpowder Island Hamma Hamma Balds Ink Blot Kahlotus Ridgetop Kennedy Creek Kings Lake Bog Kitsap Forest Lacamas Prairie Little Pend Oreille River Marcellus Shrub Steppe Methow Rapids Mima Mounds Monte Cristo Niawiakum River North Bay Oak Patch Olivine Bridge Pinecroft Point Doughty Riverside Breaks Rocky Prairie Sand Island Schumacher Creek Selah Cliffs Skagit Bald Eagle Skookum Inlet Snoqualmie Bog Spring Creek Canyon Trombetta Canyon Trout Lake The Two-Steppe Upper Dry Gulch Washougal Oaks Whitcomb Flats Willapa Divide Natural Resources Conservation Areas Ashford Cattle Point Clearwater Corridor Cypress Island Devils Lake Dishman Hills Elk River Ellsworth Creek Granite Lakes Hat Island Hendrickson Canyon Klickitat Canyon Lake Louise Loomis Lummi Island Merrill Lake Middle Fork Snoqualmie Morning Star Mount Si Naselle Highlands Queets River Rattlesnake Mountain Scenic Area Shipwreck Point Skamokawa Creek South Nemah South Nolan Stavis Stevenson Ridge Table Mountain Tahoma Forest Teal Slough Washougal Oaks West Tiger Mountain White Salmon Oak Woodard Bay Aquatic Reserves Cherry Point Cypress Island Fidalgo Bay Maury Island Nisqually Reach Protection Island Smith and Minor Islands
Other	Former state parks Damon Point Fay Bainbridge Fort Okanogan Fort Ward Park Griffin Bay Mukilteo Lighthouse Park Osoyoos Lake Veteran's Memorial Park Skull Island Upright Channel Wenberg Westhaven Marine protected areas Blanchard Forest Cascadia Marine Trail The Enchantments Goose Island Les Hilde Trail & Trailheads Little Pend Oreille Maritime Washington National Heritage Area Mount Adams Recreation Area Sehome Hill Arboretum Walker Valley ORV Riding Area Withrow Moraine Yellow Island
Category Seattle Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission Commons

This Thurston County, Washington state location article is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it.

• v
• t
• e

• Washington (state) state forests
• Protected areas of Thurston County, Washington
• Protected areas of Grays Harbor County, Washington
• Thurston County, Washington, geography stubs