Chimacum Creek: estuary

Looking out from the mouth of the creek towards Indian Island.

Non Native development

The site had a iron smelter beginning in 1879 (foundations and other artifacts are on the upland part of the site) originally started by Puget Sound Iron Company. The mill peaked employing approximately 400 people to ship high quality steel to San Francisco. Eventually the Puget Sound Iron Company failed, but a new owner Western Steel Company re-opened the mill. At its peak the smelter was running 24 hours a day producing about 700 tons of steel a week. That mill closed in 1911.

The tide flats where filled in and over the years hosted a variety of schemes, the final years a log dump and log chipping facility.

Restoration

Jefferson County acquired the property from the Cotton Family Limited Partnership in December 2002. The County portion of the total parcel contains 12.5 acres of uplands and 4.5 acres of tidelands providing 1370 feet of shoreline. Land owned by WDFW adds 1510 feet more of shoreline, south of Chimacum Creek. The WDFW land has been restored by removing the fill, currently there is negotiations to re-store the portion owned by the county. The site contains eelgrass beds and near shore habitat for a multitude of marine species, and saltwater rearing habitat for Hood Canal Summer Run chum salmon, listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Chimacum Creek is native habitat for chum, Coho, Steelhead and Cutthroat.

Looking up the creek in fall

Parking is: 48* 02.680 122*46.105

FTF: the.james.gang