It always amazes me to find there are wonderful woodland areas open to the public to enjoy, in places I’ve driven by and never noticed before.

The Indianola Woodland Preserve is such a place. It is not a huge park. The trail system is not extensive. There are no unusually large or important trees here. But, as this spot is not well known, I think you will find it a delightful place to enjoy the solitude of a fall morning or afternoon in a typical and lovely Northwest woodland.

Easy to find, this 77-acre woodland preserve is located on the north side of the Indianola Road just opposite Gerald Cliff Avenue. There is parking for two or three cars across from the fenced public utility station. From the parking area, the trailhead is just a few steps up the hill on the left side of the drive and is marked with a 4×4 sign.

The well-marked loop trail is one mile long. It is a narrow primitive trail, steep in places, but well maintained. You can walk the loop in either direction. The trail travels uphill through a mature forest of alder, maple and fir. There are some attractive open groves of cedar along the way near the top of the hill. Continue down the trail to complete the loop. Side trails go to homes of area residents, so stay on the main trail to return to the trailhead.

Kitsap County owns this property and the Great Peninsula Conservancy holds a conservation easement, which protects the conservation values of the property. The conservation easement allows for passive recreation (hiking, walking, and jogging) and for management of the forest as wildlife habitat. When it was purchased in 2000, the property was set aside as a forest preserve and the easement ensures that it will remain this way forever.  Volunteer work-parties organized by the Indianola Beach Improvement Club Trails Committee constructed a lengthy portion of the trail and conservancy finished the loop in 2008. Now, both improvement club and conservancy volunteers help maintain the trails and remove invasive vegetation.

This is Kitsap County property, so county leash laws apply. Dog owners should make sure that wildlife is not disturbed and that dog waste is picked up.

You can find a list of our many local parks and trails on the website, http://kingston98346.org, or on our blog at http://blogs.kingstoncommunitynews.com/trailmix.

You can find more about the Great Peninsula Conservancy and the work they do at www.greatpeninsula.org.