Hike of the Week: Illahee Preserve
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Illahee Preserve
Bremerton’s Backyard Wilderness
by Craig Romano
photo by Craig Romano
produced by Michael Fagin
Quick Facts
Location: Bremerton
Land Agency: Kitsap County Parks
Roundtrip: 3.0 miles
Elevation gain: 200 feet
Contact: Kitsap County Parks; Kitsap County Parks (360) 337-5350; http://www.kitsapgov.com/parks
Notes: Dogs must be on leash
Access: From Bremerton follow SR 303 (Wheaton Way) 3.0 miles turning right onto Riddell Road. Continue for .6 mile to trailhead.
Wedged between bustling Bremerton and the strip developments of Silverdale is a forested little gem little known to hikers and area walkers. Tucked between department stores, subdivisions and a country club is the 350-acre Illahee Preserve. A longtime Department of Natural Resources tract that was slated for hundreds of homes, concerned citizens rallied to have it preserved. A former dumping ground and a place for illegal dirt biking, county officials and citizen groups like the Rotary Club and the Illahee Forest Stewardship Committee have worked hard since the land was transferred to the county parks department in 2003 to help restore it. An additional adjacent private tract of 350 acres is also being managed as part of the preserve.
Heavily wooded, Illahee makes for a good rainy day hike as well as a snow-free option during the wet winter months. From the main trailhead set out on old wood roads and trails passing by forest openings and small ravines. Continue north 1.5 miles to the preserve’s northern boundary coming to an old car that will leave children baffled on how it ended up in the middle of the forest. Trails are well-defined but poorly marked. It’s hard to get lost in the reserve though for you’ll end up on a road in due time. Just turn around and retrace your steps and explore another trail or two.
Improvements will continually be made to the Preserve with better signage, increased parking capacity and more trails in the works. So return often.
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