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Thurston Bountiful Byways

Hidden gems of Thurston County

One of more than 100 sculputres at the Monarch Sculpture Park in Tenino, a recommended stop along the Thurston County Bountiful Byway. Photo credit: Mike Burdoff

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Farm-to-bottle tastes at a family run distillery, Icelandic lamb and u-pick blueberries available for purchase, hiking through mysterious Mima Mounds or a beautiful sculpture park. These are just a few of the stops along a 60-mile stretch of road, one that lives up to its name - Thurston Bountiful Byway. 

Dotted with signs indicating "Bountiful Byway participating business," the road winds through eight towns: Yelm, Rainier, Tenino, Bucoda, Grand Mound, Rochester, Lacey and Littlerock.

"There are so many little hidden gems all over," said Kyla Cavanagh, marketing and sales director for the Olympia, Lacey, Tumwater Visitor and Convention Bureau.

Cavanagh recommends a visit to the Monarch Sculpture Park ("It's amazing!" she said). The 80-acre park, located in Tenino, is free and open dawn to dusk year-round. With 110 sculptures crafted by the owner and artists from around the world, and even a "Sound Garden" with sculptural musical instruments, this is a must-see along the way.  www.monarchsculpturepark.org

While in Tenino, drop by Sandstone Distillery (with or without the kids) and get a tour of small batch distilling, as well as a historical account of the "Sandstone" name. This family run operation has a tasting room, gift shop and more.  

Jenni Bourdon, co-owner at Sandstone, is passionate about agri-tourism.

"To our minds, agri-tourism is a beautiful blending of an agri-centric, sustainable intent and an agri-centric, sustainable business practice," she said. "While craft distilling might not be readily identifiable as an agricultural enterprise, we adhere to both the spirit and the letter of the law that define craft distilling in Washington state by sourcing not 51 percent, but 100 percent of our grain products from Washington, going so far as to participate in the annual harvest of our non-GMO grains.

"Demonstrating our agricultural intent here in Thurston County," she continued, "we bring our Washington-sourced grains to our finished product, with plans to utilize in the coming months plants and berries sourced on our own property to infuse our spirits." www.sandstonedistillery.com

Tenino also boasts a Farmers Market and a unique rock quarry park and pool for picnicking and swimming.

Just down the Bountiful Byway, make sure to swing by Helsing Junction Farm in Rochester where you can purchase organic, sustainable, farm-fresh honey, veggies, meat and more. Ask about their summer music festival and group gatherings as well. www.helsingfarmcsa.com

And for the geologically curious, scoot around the bend to Littlerock, where hundreds of 4-to-6-foot mounds grace the prairie. An observation deck, .5 mile loop or 2.75 mile loop are all great options to explore this much-debated obscurity. Was it freezing and thawing during the last Ice Age that caused the earth to form this way? Was it gophers or other land critters? Was it an extra-terrestrial occurrence? These are just a few of the suggestions for the bizarre formations of the Mima Mounds.

Other note-worthy stops on the route are the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge, A Cottage Farm Winery and Scatter Creek Winery and tasting room.  

From consumption to creation to conservation, Thurston Bountiful Byway is just waiting to be discovered.

There are more than 90 suggested agricultural, ecological and cultural stops along the route. For a growing list of activities and participating businesses, visit www.ThurstonBountifulByway.com.

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