Capitol State Forest
State forest in Washington, United States
The Capitol State Forest is a 110,000-acre (450 km2) state forest in Thurston and Grays Harbor counties in Washington, used for both commercial logging operations and recreation. The forest, containing the Black Hills, is surrounded by various preserves and wildlife areas; it contains Mima mounds geologic features and is the headwater for McLane Creek. Capitol State Forest is managed by Washington State Department of Natural Resources and considered public land.
01History
Prior to logging in the early 20th century, large old-growth trees up to 250 feet (76 m) in height and 12 feet (3.7 m) in diameter occupied the forest.
02Geography
Capitol Forest is approximately bounded by U.S. Route 12 to the southwest, Interstate 5 to the east and State Route 8 to the north.
It roughly contains the Black Hills. The Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve is directly east and units of the Scatter Creek Wildlife Area, such as the Black River Wildlife Area and Glacial Heritage Wildlife Area, are to the southeast.
Cities and towns near its borders include Olympia, Tumwater, Littlerock, Oakville, and McCleary.
03Recreation
The forest is open to the public for off-road motorcycles, mountain biking, horseback riding, and hiking. Several cross-country cycling and downhill mountain biking trail systems are maintained by volunteers throughout the forest.
As of 2025, on ongoing project has been undertaken by the city of Olympia to connect existing trails in areas and neighborhoods between Capitol Forest and the Washington State Capitol campus. The commuter, "multi-modal" system is known as the Capitol to Capitol (CTC) trail.
McLane Creek
The forest contains the McLane Creek Nature Trail located in an eastern portion of the park. A flat, 1.1-mile (1.8 km) looping, with an additional 1.0-mile (1.6 km) extension, it contains a mix of boardwalks and natural pathways with wildlife viewing platforms.
Visitors can walk to McLane Creek, the headwaters of which begin in the forest, and through wetland areas and second growth forest. Visitors can view avian wildlife such as Canadian geese, kingfishers, and mallards and the creek is host to migrating Chum salmon, usually in December.
Mima Mounds
The forest includes Mima mounds geologic features, located at the Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Capitol State Forest”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- View from ISS Expedition 72, Capitol State Forest, Olympia, Washington (cropped).jpg by Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain
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