Horan Natural Area at Wenatchee Confluence State Park

Special to The Seattle Times

Location: Wenatchee

Length: Two miles.

Level of difficulty: Gentle paved path and flat gravel trails.

Setting: Aptly named, this beautiful park is located at the confluence of the Wenatchee and Columbia rivers. The location was an important gathering place for Native Americans, and some of Wenatchee's earliest settlers homesteaded here. Alfalfa was grown in this area to feed livestock, and orchards and vineyards followed. In 1990, 100 acres were bought from the Horan family and converted from pear orchards to wetlands. A paved path that skirts the outer edge of the park leads from the parking lot over the Wenatchee River via a high bridge, passing over gravel islands thick with willows and cottonwoods.

Highlights: Fifteen viewing stations with educational kiosks help visitors learn about the wetland's habitats and animals. Eagles gather here in late winter, and mink, muskrat, beaver and raccoon, whose pelts were sought by early fur trappers, find year-round refuge. The Columbia Basin is located along the Pacific flyway, and migratory birds join resident species to make it rich in birdsong.

Facilities: Restrooms, phone, water and camping in developed part of park; vault toilets near beginning of gravel trail.

Restrictions: Leash and scoop laws in effect. Stay on the gravel trails; bikes on paved path only. Do not pick or disturb plants, flowers, berries or eggs.

Directions: From Highway 2 / Highway 97, take Highway 97A toward Chelan. In .3 mile, take the exit marked Olds Station / State Patrol / Washington Apple Visitors Center. Follow park signs to Euclid Avenue, which becomes Olds Station Road. Turn right into the park, and park in the first parking area, then access the natural area in the South Confluence portion of the park across a footbridge over the Wenatchee River.

Information: Call 509-664-6373 or visit www.parks.wa.gov.

Cathy McDonald is co-author with Stephen Whitney of "Nature Walks In and Around Seattle," with photographs by James Hendrickson (The Mountaineers, second edition, 1997).