Rites of spring: a dozen outdoorsy ways to christen the new season

The clues are starting to add up.

Last weekend we sprang (sprung? gesprungen?) our clocks ahead one hour. Thursday is St. Patty's Day. That can only mean one thing — spring is on its way! Woo-hoo! Yippee! Huzzah!

In fact, spring arrives in the Northwest at 4:21 p.m. Sunday, when the center of the sun is in the same plane as the earth's equator. To help welcome this time of rebirth and renewal — when mountain snows begin to melt out and the allergy-prone begin to sneeze — here are a dozen outdoorsy ideas for celebrating the season. Make any or all of these your own personal rites of spring:

1. Take in Sunday's equinox sunset watch at Solstice Park in West Seattle, hosted by Alice Enevoldsen, planetarium specialist at Pacific Science Center.

"We hope it's clear so we can see if the sunset lines up with the sunset marker at that park," Enevoldsen says.

Seven-acre Solstice Park, 7400 Fauntleroy Way S.W. (www.seattle.gov/parks/park_detail.asp?id=4453#about), features stone works at the top of the hill that mark where the sun sets at both equinoxes (spring and fall) and solstices (summer and winter). Sunday's low-key event takes place from 7 to 8 p.m., with sunset at 7:22.

"I'll be available to answer questions and spend a few minutes doing a demonstration explaining what the solstices and equinoxes are," Enevoldsen says.

2. Take in a waterfall. With spring snowmelt getting under way, the waterfalls for which Washington's Cascades are named will soon be going full throttle. Some goodies include Bridal Veil Falls, off Highway 2; Twenty-Two Creek Falls, off the Mountain Loop Highway, and Franklin Falls, just below Snoqualmie Pass. (Expect snow if you go soon.)

Bridal Veil — Head east on Highway 2 to Mount Index Road, just past Milepost 35. Turn right and drive .3 miles; bear right, the parking lot is ahead on the left. Follow the trail for about 1.5 miles to a signed intersection that points the way to the falls, about 0.5 miles ahead.

Lake Twenty-Two — The trailhead is on the Mountain Loop Highway, 2 miles east of the Verlot Public Service Center. The first falls (of three) are visible about a mile into the trail.

Franklin Falls — Go east on Interstate 90 to Exit 47 and head north. Just ahead, turn right at the T-intersection and in a quarter-mile, left onto FR 58. Follow for 2.5 miles and just past a campground, turn left into the trailhead parking lot. Reach the falls in about a mile.

3. For those who can't wait for summer to rough it (but at the same time they don't want to rough it too roughly), Washington State Parks offers alternatives to tent camping. Rent a cabin at Bayview State Park, overlooking Padilla Bay; Kitsap Memorial State Park, on Hood Canal; or at Wallace Falls State Park, in the shadow of the 265-foot waterfalls for whom the park is named. Or how 'bout a yurt, a circular domed tent, right on the ocean at Grayland Beach State Park, in the southwest corner of the state?

For information, including rates and how to make reservations for these and dozens of light-camping opportunities throughout the state, see www.parks.wa.gov/yurtsandcabins.

4. Get your pedal on.

Nothing says spring quite like a meandering romp on country roads astride one's two-wheeler. It's even more fun whilst pedaling with hundreds of other like-minded (and -legged) souls.

So head to Arlington for Saturday's McClinchy Mile Bike Ride, which offers organized rides from 34 to 100 miles — as well as an 8-mile family pedal along the paved Centennial Trail — throughout rural Snohomish County.

Cost: $10 to $25 depending on ride. Information: www.bikesclub.org/html/mcclinchy/mcclinchy.htm

5. Get your pedal on,

the dirty version.

Sure, spring can be one of the muddier times of the year, but that shouldn't stop you from putting bike tread to trail. I mean, it's not really mountain biking unless your ride's layered with filth and you're wearing a face full of mud measles. (Am I right or am I right?)

Kick off your fat-tire season by exploring one (or more) of the top five Seattle-area mountain-bike hot spots, as rated by the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. They are: Tiger Mountain, Tolt-MacDonald (near Carnation); Saint Edward State Park, in Juanita; Duthie Hill, in Sammamish; and Lake Sawyer, near Black Diamond.

For more information and directions, see the club's website,

www.evergreenmtb.org.

6. Get your dirty on,

the running version.

With trail running's ever-surging popularity, there seems to be new dirt races popping up all over the Puget Sound area. And they're not all a bazillion miles long, either.

Here are a couple upcoming ones: Sunday's Titlow Trails Mud Run 5K in Tacoma (www.metroparkstacoma.org/page.php?id=1261) — registration closes at midnight Thursday — and, on March 27, the Northwest Trails 5- and 10-Miler (www.nwtrailruns.com), at Redmond Watershed Preserve.

7. "I'm gonna walk before they make me run."

— Keith Richards

Not that we're advocating taking fitness advice from the Rolling Stones guitarist and illicit-substance guinea pig, but he makes a good point: Why run when you can walk? If you agree, join the Emerald City Wanderers (www.walkingwithecw.org), one of the region's numerous Volkssporting clubs that offer noncompetitive group walks throughout the area.

Popular destinations include Lake Washington, Washington Park Arboretum, Lake Union or, really, just about anywhere. Check the website for more information.

8. Welcome spring by saying goodbye to winter. With an exclamation point!

Head across the state Friday to Okanogan County's tiny Loup Loup Ski Bowl (www.skitheloup.com), where for $2 you get three chances to see how far you can toss an empty keg of beer. Farthest toss wins ... a pony keg full of beer.

Or, make for Cabin Creek Sno-Park, about 10 miles east of Snoqualmie Pass, on Sunday, for the Ozbaldy 50K, Western Washington's only cross-country ski marathon. (Hard as throwing an empty keg of beer is, somehow I think this will be more strenuous.) Info: www.kongsbergers.org. Register by the end of Thursday to avoid a late fee.

9. Rent a kayak from Northwest Outdoor Center (www.nwoc.com) and get your catadromous on. That is, migrate from freshwater to saltwater by paddling from NWOC's Lake Union location through the Ballard Locks to Puget Sound. Pack a lunch and stop at Golden Gardens Park to enjoy your first picnic of spring. Then get your anadromous on by paddling from saltwater back to fresh at Lake Union.

10. Check out spring's feathered fashions at the Snohomish River Estuary in Everett. Some 200 bird species call Spencer Island their home for at least part of the year. Typical spring visitors include ospreys, wood ducks, blue-winged teals, Western tanagers and others, as well as non-bird types such as coyotes, deer and river otters.

Located off Interstate 5 at Exit 195, the 412-acre sanctuary offers some 3 miles of dike-top trails for exploring the area. Information: www1.co.snohomish.wa.us/Departments/Parks/Park_Information/Snohomish_Estuary.

11. Check out spring's feathered fashions, Part Deux. Head to the northwest corner of the Northwest between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday for Blaine's annual Wings Over Water Birding Festival.

The event, which celebrates all things winged and watered, features guided wildlife and geology tours of Semiahmoo Spit, guest speakers, live raptor presentations, arts and crafts, kids activities, whale-watching tours, cruises aboard the MV Plover and more. Festival events take place at several locations, including Blaine Marine Park, Drayton Harbor and Semiahmoo Spit.

Information: 800-624-3555 or www.blainechamber.com/wow.

12. Head to the dry(er) side. Cross the pass and see how spring is springing in the Leavenworth end of the world. Check out Icicle Ridge Trail to see where the snow level is; take along a pair of snowshoes if you hit some white stuff but want to go higher. Depending on how far you go, you'll be treated to breathtaking views of all of Leavenworth as well as Tumwater Canyon and the Stuart Range.

The area's noted for its rock-climbing opportunities, too, and Northwest Mountain School (509-548-5823 or www.mountainschool.com) is kicking off its season with instructional outings on some of the big walls lining Icicle Canyon.

Mike McQuaide is a Bellingham freelance writer and author of "Day Hike! Central Cascades" and "Day Hike! North Cascades" (Sasquatch Books). He can be reached at mikemcquaide@comcast.net. His blog is mcqview.blogspot.com.