Ohop Homestead

Day 206: As I understand it, the old house associated with the farm in the Nisqually Land Trust's Ohop Valley property is on the Federal register as an historical building. There's not much left of it but the footprint, any wood having long since been removed or consumed by bugs. Made of granite which must surely have been brought in from another part of the state, the walls encompass a single-room floorplan about twelve feet square. If there had been a ceiling in the building at some time, it might have been low enough to make a person of my five-foot height bow their head.

It humbles me to think what the pioneer generations must have endured. Truly, these would be considered cramped quarters for a single occupant these days, and no doubt a large family was raised in this very building, lacking in amenities such as running water and possibly even a wintertime heat source. There is no evidence of a chimney or hearth in this enclosure, only bare and rocky ground. Yet knowing no other way of life, the people who lived here had great dreams of turning Ohop Valley into an agricultural triumph. They defeated themselves by straightening the meanders of the creek in an attempt to drain the wetland, only to find that the substrate was clayey and unworkable. Their venture failed for the most part.

Today, the meanders of Ohop Creek have been restored, the valley replanted with native shrubs and trees. It is well on its way to rediscovering itself as habitat for wildlife, as evidenced by the rich numbers of bird species I have observed here over the years. Ohop Valley's success lies not in farming, but in being a wetland, per its original job description.