Let your feet go wild in this Tacoma gem

It will take several visits to sample Point Defiance Park in Tacoma, a savory spring destination for hikers with a generous chunk of old-growth forest and a sense of wilderness that defies logic. You might find yourself asking -- how could a park in the middle of a city feel so wild?

This is one of the largest city parks in the country at 696 acres, with seven miles of hiking and biking trails, a zoo and aquarium, gardens, beach, museums and historical displays.

In places where wilderness and urban development overlap, you can expect the unexpected, such as a pair of eagles we spotted soaring above towering evergreens.

Prespring is getting off to a good start and Point Defiance offers a variety of gardens where you can enjoy floral displays. We saw daffodils, irises, rhododendrons and crocuses beginning to bloom. Primroses add colorful borders to the paved trails near the lodge and the Japanese Garden.

The park also has an attractive native garden with a waterfall that could rival small waterfalls I've seen in the North Cascades.

The park was acquired from the U.S. Army in 1888 and is situated on a peninsula almost two miles long and 3/4-mile wide that juts out between Dalco Passage and the Tacoma Narrows.

We parked near the lodge at the main Pearl Street entrance, near the bronze statue of Francis W. Cushman, a congressman from Washington who was instrumental in securing title to the park.

Be sure to visit the Torii Gate and Shinto Shrine in the Japanese Garden on the east side of the Pagoda -- it also is situated near the main entrance. The shrine, Torii Gate and lanterns were a gift to Tacoma from its sister city in Japan, Kitakyushu.

When we visited, it felt like the first day of spring and a lot of other folks were out enjoying the sun. We picked up a free trail map at the information kiosk near the main entrance. Established trails are shown, but unofficial trails may confuse a first-time visitor. Fortunately, the unofficial trails are short and all lead to established trails or Five Mile Drive, which loops through the park.

We hiked the Perimeter Trail (also known as the Outer Loop), which winds around the perimeter of the park; it is marked with white squares on posts. There also is a shorter route, the Inner Loop, indicated by a diamond. And the Spine Trail, indicated by a circle, bisects the park.

Some trails are open to bicyclists and hikers, while forested trails are hiker only. Non-hikers can stop at several viewpoints along the paved Five Mile Drive.

From the main entrance near the Rose Garden, we hiked uphill onto Five Mile Drive and sought a trail that would take us down to Owen Beach. We noticed several unofficial trails that descended to the shore, but they were not user-friendly and could be dangerous.

If you can't find the established trail, walk (or drive) along Five Mile Drive to a signed road leading to Owen Beach and a picnic area. Another option is to start hiking from the seawall near the Boathouse Marina near the Vashon ferry landing.

We did find a trail, possibly not an established one, and dropped down to the seawall (also known as the Promenade) and headed south a half-mile or so to the sandy beach near the picnic area. There you will find restrooms, picnic shelters, grills, tables, a parking lot and a set of stairs that climbs to Five Mile Drive.

Owen Beach is ideal for a family outing. Folks were taking advantage of the springlike day -- dogs were happily retrieving sticks, children were laughing, couples strolled hand in hand, and solo hikers sat on logs soaking up every possible bit of sun.

Back on Five Mile Drive, we continued counterclockwise until we came to a post with a white square -- a sign we were on the Outer Loop. The trail follows along the top of the bluff, never straying very far from Five Mile Drive, and leads to several overlooks. The viewpoints along Five Mile Drive (heading counterclockwise) are Vashon Island, Dalco Passage, Gig Harbor, the Narrows and the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.

We descended to the beach again on a trail leading to Owen Point. Again, we were not certain it was an established trail, but it was a trail experienced hikers could handle. When tides are conducive you also can walk to Owen Point from Owen Beach.

Owen Point offers a better chance for solitude. A few hikers were continuing south and rounding the point, but the tide was coming in, so we climbed back to the Outer Loop where it parallels the road.

The forest was much grander than we anticipated and as we were enjoying the quiet ambience of the evergreens, we heard the cries of eagles and looked up to see two bald eagles in flight, their wings backlit by sunlight, circling above the trees.

One of the attractions of the park is its old-growth forest. Don't miss The Mountaineer Tree -- it is shown on the trail map. This mighty giant is still healthy and is more than 400 years old. We saw several other big Douglas firs, many of them bearing the marks of fires.

On a previous trip, we had visited the Fort Nisqually Historic Site (and museum), so this time we continued to the Camp Six Logging Museum.

It is easy to lose track of time as there is so much to see in this reconstruction of a logging camp. You'll see camp housing, a Shay locomotive, a spar tree (110 feet tall and fully rigged), donkeys, skidders, a loaded log car, loaders and various tools the loggers worked with in early days.

From the Logging Museum, we hiked the road back toward the main entrance and just before we reached it we stopped at the Northwest Native Garden to admire the pond, waterfall and native plants. We also stopped at the Rose Garden and the Iris Garden, though it was too early for them to be in bloom. Some of the rhododendrons are starting to blossom -- come back in a few weeks and hike through the garden when it's at its best.

If you go

* Getting there -- From Seattle head south on Interstate 5 and get off at Exit 132 (state Route 16 west) and continue 3.6 miles on Route 16 to the Pearl Street exit. Turn left (west) on Sixth Avenue, then right on Pearl Street/state Route 163. Continue north 3 miles on North Pearl Street -- the street ends at the Point Defiance main entrance. There are several places to park near the entrance, including near the zoo, the Native Garden, the lodge, the Rose Garden or the Boathouse Marina. If you are not hiking, you can drive to and/or park at any one of the overlooks along Five Mile Drive.

* Trail data -- Outer Loop (Outer Perimeter Trail) about 7 miles round trip, elevation gain 300 to 800 feet, depending on whether you visit Owen Beach. Inner Loop, about 5 miles round trip. The park has shelters with cooking facilities, picnic tables, a playground, tennis court, boat launch and marina. Fort Nisqually is open Wednesdays through Sundays. From May 31 through Sept. 6, it is open daily. There is a small entrance fee for the Fort Nisqually Historical Site.

* Information -- Visit the park on the Internet at www.metroparkstacoma.org/parks/point-defiance.view or call the Metropolitan Park District of Tacoma at 253-305-1000. To find out more about Camp Six, visit the Web at www.camp-6-museum.org/c6.html and for more information on Fort Nisqually, visit the Web at www.FortNisqually.org.

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