Best Seattle-Area Places to Embrace Bad Weather With Kids
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Plant life abounds in the lush environment of Saltwater State Park. Photo: Fiona Cohen
Saltwater State Park, Des Moines
Weather to see: Rain
Best known as a summer beach spot, Saltwater State Park in South King County offers off-season delights as well. These features come to the fore when the weather gets soggy. Inland, salmon-bearing McSorely Creek runs through a steep gully lined with Douglas fir, alder, maple and ferns. The habitat isn’t pristine — there’s a whole lot of invasive English Ivy — but the park is still a wonderful place to view local forests in their ideal state: dripping. Mosses and ferns that die back in the warm, dry months come to lush life and use the rainwater to carry their spores.
The trail back into the woods has an abundance of a squelchy, clay-based mud that leaves detailed impressions of your shoes as you pass.
Editor’s note: The campground at Saltwater State Park is currently closed due to the impacts of flooding and erosion. The rest of the park remains open.
Location: 25205 Eighth Pl. S., Des Moines. To park, you’ll need a Discover Pass.
Pair with: A stop at Auntie Irene’s for snacks or hot drinks. It’s a couple of miles from the park in downtown Des Moines.
Next stop: Marina Beach Park
