Olympia's wild side

To kick-start spring, may we recommend a breath of salt air? The new stretch of boardwalk at Olympia’s Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge crosses over mudflats and salt-marsh plants—chances are good for a bald eagle or otter sighting—to the tidal edge as it washes in marine life like chinook and grebes. Another 2 miles out-and-back brings you into the restored Puget Sound estuary. The 762-acre delta has some of the best birding right now, as winter’s buffleheads and mergansers linger alongside the arrivals: Wilson’s and yellow-rumped warblers. $3 for 4 adults; fws.gov/nisqually