Fort Ward to Blakely Harbor Trail

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Wildlife

Excellent footing when dry recommends this route for running. However, the trail can be muddy in a few places after a rain. This is a great place to enjoy well shaded, rolling singletrack.

This route is a beautiful trail connecting the 137 acre Fort Ward Park to the 40 acre Blakely Harbor Park. The trail meanders through first and second growth trees with dense Northwest native forest underneath.

Begin in the Fort Ward upper parking lot, and continue .6 miles north on the Main Loop Trail and you'll see the sign for the Fort Ward to Blakely Harbor sign on the right side. At 0.5 miles you'll come to a gravel road. Turn right and continue 100 feet up the road to pick up the trail again to your left.

At 1.0 miles you'll come across a small pond tucked into the forest. This is a great place to see how much wildlife the kids can spot. The trail ends in a small gravel parking lot across the road from Blakely Harbor Park.

Note that the journey from Fort Ward to Blakely Harbor Park is a very gentle descent, which might make the return journey just a hare longer than the original trip.