Spotting Wild Barred Owls in the Grand Forest on Bainbridge Island
At the heart of Bainbridge Island, just a 35-minute ferry ride from downtown Seattle, is one of the Pacific Northwest’s most cherished treasures, the Grand Forest. An oasis for outdoor enthusiasts, visitors, and locals alike, the Grand Forest offers a unique experience found nowhere else. Step inside and sample the sights, sounds, and smells as you immerse yourself in the Forest’s majesty.
By Laura Walters for Harts®
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, WASHINGTON — It's Saturday morning, just after sunrise. A chill in the air creates a momentary debate - jacket/no jacket - before setting off down the trailhead. Despite the full parking area, there's not a soul in sight, and a distinct hush falls all around as you enter another world.
This is the Grand Forest, Bainbridge Island's masterpiece of conservation efforts, an oasis for hikers and outdoor enthusiasts, as well as a respite for the island's full-time residents. Towering conifer, cedar, and lush fir trees envelope as you surrender to the tranquility. Birds and chipmunks scurry across the path, startled by the company. Arching branches covered in moss and crooked tree trunks seem to point the way to the Forest's treasure. And if you journey deep into these woods, you will indeed find a sacred meditation spot, a library, and maybe even an owl doubling as a wizard.
The Grand Forest offers six total miles of easy to moderate trails, accessible from the East or West entrances. It is perhaps the oldest on the island, a second-growth forest, with over 50,000 trees. You'll find a 50 year-old native Northwest Douglas Fir, as well as Hemlock and Western Red Cedar. Mountain bikers enjoy both the East and West trails of the Grand Forest, and even horseback riders have access and a tie-up area about mid-way around the Ron Williamson Trillium Trail. Across the road from the parking area to the West entrance is the Forest to Sky Trail, a third option corridor that heads west from the main forest to nearby Battle Point Park.
Every visitor leaves their unique mark on the Forest. Also along the Trillium Trail, if you look closely, you'll find a giant rock cairn, upon which perch dozens of smaller stone sculptures created by passers-through, each building on the one before, creating an ever-evolving artistic offering to the Forest spirits and making for a perfect reflection spot.
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Signs will warn you of the Forest's most famous inhabitants, the Barred Owl. You'll have to keep your eyes open though; they are elusive and hunt mostly at night. And just outside the East Forest boundary, on Mandus Olson Road, sits one of the Island's Little Free Libraries, lest you need a rest and some reading material to enjoy at one of the Forest's picnic table spots.
The Grand Forest offers easy to moderate trails for hikers, bikers, and horseback riders, open daily from sun up to sun down. The park system web site has excellent maps for trails and parking. Entrances are just a short 15 minute drive from the ferry docks in Winslow.
Explore the Grand Forest in photographs
A Barred Owl captured on Bainbridge Island, Washington in the grand Pacific Northwest.
