Spencer Island

Spencer Island is a beautiful island tucked deep in north Everett near the Everett sewer treatment facility.
Getting there: Located near the Everett Animal Shelter just continue along that road, you will enter the water treatment plant, which makes you feel like you went the wrong way, but KEEP GOING, you will come to a sign that says 'No Parking Beyond This Point' but again, KEEP going. The road will turn to gravel and down a bit further there is a parking lot on the right side along with a small brown sign identifying the island. If you park here it is still about a quarter mile walk to the island. When I first read about Spencer Island on The Herald website and various parks and rec sites, they mentioned car break-ins, which can happen anywhere, but on both visits I saw small piles of window glass shattered in the lot. They weren't kidding so don't leave any valuables in the car! You can continue driving down the gravel road towards the bridge and there is an area to turn around but there isn't enough room to park. I think it serves as an access road for the plant which is on both sides of the road. We saw lots of birds on both visits and according to the website, the island is home to deer, coyotes, river otter, and much more! The entire island is an easy and level hike but keep in mind dogs and bikes are not permitted on the south end. There is a port-a-potty near the entrance towards the left after you cross the bridge. We have not seen the entire island so I am not sure if there are more. We also saw a few picnic tables along the way. Depending on the weather and which way the wind is blowing, it may be smelly (like the slough you occasionally smell while driving on I5 between Everett and Marysville.) It was pretty stinky on our first visit but the smell faded away as we got closer to the island and there was no smell on our second visit.

 

The island is divided into 2 areas. We went on 2 separate occasions and were able to see a little bit of each end.

This first group of pictures are from the 'south end'

This next set of pics are from the North end of the island which is where dogs are allowed.  

On the bridge over the Snohomish river.

Where shall we begin?

We frequent many of the parks in Snohomish county but the weather has been crummy. Now that spring is officially here (according to the calendar) we are ready to get out and have some fun! Here is what I have in mind for this week:

Thursday March 22, 2012- walking trail in Mill Creek
Friday March 23, 2012 (no school for our older kids)- Mukilteo beach? Zoo?

What we call "the walking trail in Mill Creek" is actually named North Creek Trail. Click on the link to see a few pictures and a short description of the trail.

Now this is where we come in.... we LOVE this trail for a few reasons not mentioned on their website:
-great place to feed the ducks
-the trail has an abundant amount of mature trees making it a good place to "get outside" even if it's raining.
-it's free to visit free to park
-dog friendly
-great place to let the kids bring bikes/scooters/etc.
-paved trail with small inclines/declines along with trash cans, picnic tables, and park benches along the trail.

Good to know before you go:
- there are no bathrooms along the trail- at least not along the 1 mile stretch we usually walk. At one end of the trail is McCollum Park and they do have restroom facilities but please check their website for hours and more info. So 'go' before you go!
-dog friendly (on-leash)

Here is a picture from a prior visit:

...... more to follow after tomorrow!