Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area, Natural conservation area in Thurston County, Washington.
Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area is a nature reserve on the shore of Puget Sound in Thurston County, Washington. It covers salt marshes, mature forests, and an undeveloped stretch of coastline where marine and inland wetland habitats meet.
Harvey and Solome Woodard settled here in 1853, though Native peoples had used the land for a very long time before them. Logging operations took over the site for much of the following century and a half, leaving behind the structures still visible today.
The old logging structures on the property are still standing and give a clear sense of how the land was used for industrial work over many generations. Walking past them today, visitors can see how the forest has slowly grown back around the remains.
The site has several trails, including a flat path along the bay that works well for visitors of all abilities. Footwear with good grip is a good idea, as conditions can change with the weather.
The old logging structures on the property shelter one of Washington's largest bat maternity colonies, where females gather each year to raise their young. Not far away, the bay hosts one of the biggest heron nesting colonies in the state, making this one of the few places where both species share the same protected land.
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