Robin Hill Farm County Park offers a getaway between Port Angeles and Sequim

Hikers stroll the 3½ miles of footpath at Robin Hill Farm County Park. -- Photo by Jim Casey/Peninsula Daily News

By Jim Casey, Peninsula Daily News

Nov. 30, 2007

AGNEW, WA- As eastern Clallam County sprouts subdivisions like Scotch broom in the spring, 195 acres of pasture and forest become increasingly precious.

Robin Hill Farm County Park offers hikes, bike trips and horseback rides through woods and pastures midway between Port Angeles and Sequim.

Clallam County commissioners bought the tract 10 years ago and probably can be forgiven for some self-satisfaction for preserving an oasis in an area under heavy development pressure.

Robert McCool donated half its property value to the county in the sale after he ceased hobby-farming Christmas trees on the site.

The county added 40 more acres in a land swap with the state Department of Natural Resources.

For a time, the Washington State University Extension managed the farm operation. The pasture now is rented for raising cattle.

The National Park Service also uses the site to propagate native plants it will transplant along the Elwha River after lakes Aldwell and Mills are drained when the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams are removed.

7 miles of trails
Robin Hill's biggest value, though, is its 3½ miles of trails for hikers and mountain bikers, plus another 3½ miles for equestrians, mostly meandering among 80-year-old trees.

The park also lies at the midpoint of the Olympic Discovery Trail between Port Angeles and Sequim.

"It's a great open space," says Craig Jacobs, director of the county Public Works Department that oversees Robin Hill Farm and the county's other parks.

"We're in the middle of the populace. A big advantage is just having the 195 acres protected."

As residents risk cabin fever as they hunker down for another wet winter, Robin Hill Farm and other county parks beckon as mini-trip destinations.

"With an area this close to town, you can as easily drive a few miles to take a walk in this forest as to drive 20 miles for the same thing," Jacobs says.

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Reporter Jim Casey can be reached at 360-417-3538 or at jim.casey@peninsuladailynews.com.

Last modified: November 30. 2007 9: