Bloedel Reserve

What a wonderful reserve! We enjoyed the shorter walk around with our kids (4 and 1.5 years old). They were both able to walk most of it. We carried the 1.5 year old for the last 10 minutes.
The walk started out in an open meadow, and continued into the forest. There were lots of ferns, moss, new and old growth. I liked the Japanese sand and stone gardens the most. The kids loved the ponds, little waterfalls, and many ducks.
We look forward to coming back when more of the flowers and trees are in bloom in the spring.
Tip: There’s a 2 for 1 coupon in the Chinook book.

Bloedel Reserve is another must see place while visiting Bainbridge Island. Bloedel is open to the public during operating hours (see website for times). You will drive up to the gate, stop, and someone will buzz you in. Then you will park, and walk to the gatehouse to pay the $ 15 adult admission price. There are bathrooms and a cute gift shop located in the gatehouse. They will provide you with a map, and recommendations on how to best walk the paths to view the beautiful gardens that make up the reserve. The gardens are well maintained, and I felt instantly at peace walking along the forested paths. There are uniquely different sections to the garden that always offer a beautiful surprise around the next bend.
The reserve was owned by Prentice and Virginia Bloedel. They lived on the property from 1951 through 1986. Both came from wealthy lumber families. Prentice ran a timber mill and retired young in 1950. He spent the remainder of his time creating the gardens with the advice of landscape experts. Fujitaro Kubota of Kobota Gardens in Seattle advised him regarding the creation of the award wining Japanese Garden on site. The Japanese tea house was created to be a guest house, and the now stone garden, was once a pool. Bloedel had a love for nature. He is noted for his pioneering ideas for utilizing renewable resources in his timber mill. He was the first to use sawdust as a fuel to power the mills, and replanted clear cut areas.
The impressive home of the Bloedel’s is open to view and take a tour of. The reserve docent inside was kind to share the history of this special place with us and take us through some of the rooms. There are also bathrooms located here. The home reminds me of smaller European estates I have visited in the countryside. Some of the furniture is original, with portraits of the family hanging on the walls. The dinning room also showcases a rotating art exhibit.
Cell phones are requested to be put away at all times to maintain the serene and peaceful experience of visiting the gardens. No dogs are allowed, and neither is picnicking.

For us this elegant reserve can be accessed via a 30 minute ferry ride. We used the Edmonds/​Kingston ferry terminal.
Entrance fees to the reserve is $ 15 per person. Discover is an accepted form of payment. There is a small gift shop to peruse as well.
It took us about 2 hours to leisurely stroll the expansive grounds and view the inside of the home. The home has some interesting historical facts listed. The upstairs portion of the home is not for public viewing. A bit disappointing.
The grounds are well manicured and offer a couple different types of gardens, as well as a reflection pool. Although children are welcome, I’m not sure if there is enough entertainment at the reserve to keep them occupied.
Thank you Bloedel for preserving a piece of our wonderful PNW land.

We visited the Bloedel Reserve during the week. The grounds were beautiful! The reserve has a trail that is 2.50 miles long with ponds, shady areas, the main house, waterfall and Japanese zen garden. We enjoyed our trip around the grounds. Lovely place to visit.

The reserve was an incredibly relaxing and tranquil getaway after being in downtown Seattle for a few days.

It’s a beautiful place, but was surprised by the admission fee. It was similar to the ferry cost (forgot the exact amount). It’s a huge property, and I think I was told 2mi walk around. Very peaceful and beautiful. It may not be a place a child would appreciate. At least mine didn’t after some walk around the gardens. It was the family’s first time so the adults enjoyed the place very much.

A great place to get a break from the city! We did a Saturday trip for the Poetry @ Bloedel event, we spent two hours at the park but could easily spend an entire day here.

Nice forest garden that you can hike about 2 miles. While on the trail stopped by and do some poetry reading and chairs chairs where you can relax and enjoy nature.

This place is stunning! The people that work there are lovely and welcoming. The main trail is about 2 miles long and takes at least an hour and a half. This place would be great to go to in each season so that you can see the different birds and wildlife plus the trees and flowers in various stages of bloom. The admission is $ 15 per person. Note: there is no café or tea shop, but that would be a great addition in the future!

This is how my place would be landscaped if i were a gazilionaire. It would be in Colorado, but still. Very beautiful grounds. Even saw a sea otter. Lovely walk on a winter day.

People rave about this place. Am I right?
Go ahead read their reviews.
Great, welcome back to reality. This is quite simply, a well landscaped park. Sure, Bloedel was blind and so used his ability to see different pines together to create this masterpiece. And yes, there are beautiful ponds which were created in specific water-​prone zones ONLY because, you guessed it, Bloedel wasn’t into anything unnatural.
Perfect. Pristine. Pines.
The walks were covered in unique mulch that made me happy to walk on it. Honestly this is worth a star by itself.
A park may not be as personal as the Bloedel Reserve. But most parks don’t charge you $ 15 per person to stare at their trees. It was, as they say, a-​ok. But there is little doubt that I will go back.
Even if the in-​laws are paying.
Whoa.

Maybe it was the fall rain that kept other tourists away, but this place felt like we were transported to a tranquil sanctuary. The 1.5 hr stroll through the well-​kept preserve gave us best of nature at every turn. Despite the gardens each having their own themes, I had to stop and check the map periodically because everything flowed so seamlessly. More stunning in person than any picture could capture and was definitely worth our time.

If you are fortunate to visit on a sunny day, you’ll be in full awe at the landscaping and thought that was taken to create such a beautiful place.
It’s a short 10 minute drive from the ferry terminal.
Entrance is a small fee of $ 15/​adult. I believe it was well worth the cost for a great 1.5 hour walk. Your money also helps to support its upkeep.
It was serene and calming; a nature escape that is very much needed after a week in the city.
There is no restaurant. Grab a bite to eat in town before or after and just bring your camera and enjoy.

This is seriously my favorite natural place in the world. And as a person who does not take the word «favorite» lightly, that is a big deal!
My husband and I stumbled across this gem while searching for something to do. We took the ferry to Bainbridge Island ($ 8 each) and a bus to the reserve ($ 2 each in cash). The tickets to get in are $ 15 each and so worth it!
They have a variety of different landscapes, including a prairie, a Japanese garden, a moss garden, waterfalls, a view of Puget Sound, and you can even go inside the house the Bloedel family used to live in. I love old stuff like that!
But the main attraction is the grounds, which are designed to promote harmony between humans and nature, not a place that tries to tame nature but that allows people to be in it and enjoy it. Using cell phones is actually discouraged on the grounds so that everyone can experience the tranquility and beauty of the place. There are so many awesome trees!
And the wildlife! A group of ducks followed me and my husband for about 15 minutes, all walking in a line. They were adorable! Also, we saw a deer behind the main house and it let us get so close to it!
I could go on and on about this place, but you’ll have to go check it out for yourself! Be prepared to be amazed by the breathtaking, calming, and refreshing journey!

This place is filled with tress and plants. It was just so beautiful and refreshing and relaxing. This is a truly forest therapy. I came from Seattle by ferry and took a direct bus for $ 2, which took about 15 minutes. The walking distance within the garden is about 2 mile and I spent about 1.5 hours. It’s one of the best spots at Bainbridge island though you need a half day if you include this place in Bainbridge Island visit. If I can afford the time, and when I am stressed out, then I want to come back again just to breathe-.

This place is absolutely beautiful the best nature reserve I’ve ever been to its free and has a great gift shop. You could spend hours looking at all the amazing details on the paths, its a great place to bring a friend or a relative also bring a camera! You can wander through the woods on winding pathways discovering amazing breath taking sights every turn!

Words cannot express how beautiful this place is.
If you live or are visiting downtown Seattle it’s a little off the beaten path, but worth every effort to get there.
From downtown Seattle, you have to take the ferry to Bainbridge island. It’s only $ 8/​person to the island and coming back it’s free. The ferry runs til very late into the evening, well before this place closes.
After you get off the ferry, there is a shuttle that will take you to the reserves (this shuttle just started a week ago). It’s only $ 2, can’t beat it. The shuttle will also pick you up, you and schedule that with them.
The reserves was the most pristine and beautiful garden area I have been to/​seen. While giving you the nice trail to walk through, the reserves really allows you see how nature works together. You can easily spend a half a day here on the 2ish mile walk. I think we did it in 2 – 3 hours because my wife likes to stop and take a bunch of pictures.
Also the Japanese gardens is something like top 10 in the nation. I forgot the fact, but it’s amazing like the rest of the reserves.
Definitely a gem that not a lot of Seattle visitors have been.

Beautiful, just beautiful. I wish I had more time here. I came on the weekend that it snowed so I wasn’t able to see all the gardens (let alone find the gardens). All the paths were covered in snow so I didn’t know where I was going. But the gardens had their own elegance with the all the snow and it was just breathtakingly beautiful.
Directions to get here from Seattle:
We took the ferry from the port which is walking distance from Pike Place. It was about $ 8 per person. The return ride is free. From there, we were able to find a taxi right away and to Bloedel it is about a $ 25 ride one way.
The next time I’m in Seattle, I will definitely come back here hopefully in spring and summer when the garden is in full bloom. I can only imagine how beautiful it would be.

Breathtaking Gardens on Bainbridge. A great place to take visitors.
My friend and I came to Bainbridge for the day. We decided to visit the Bloedel Reserve after a filling breakfast in downtown Bainbridge. There is an easy 2 mile walk for anyone that is just looking for a nice stroll on a sunny afternoon. We wandered through a variety of gardens, woodland plants, flowers, and shrubs. We also toured a beautiful mansion and saw the eagle’s nest overlooking the water. It was a wonderful walk where two old friends could relax and catch up.
The gardens are in amazing condition and depending on the time of year, you’ll see a variety of blooms. They also have one of the largest japanese gardens in the area, amongst collections of ferns, orchids, and rhododendrons.

The new Island Frog Hopper shuttle bus (north route) makes a regular stop at Bloedel. After several days of noisy Seattle traffic I was ready for a peaceful break and found it here. The paths are beautifully maintained with soft bark. They cover a variety of terrain including a meadow, woods and manicured estate lawns. Bloedel is more of a park than an arboretum – few plants or trees are labeled.
The homeowners who established the reserve obtained their fortunes from the lumber industry. Ironically they valued the beauty of the property enough to save it. They did, however, do extensive landscaping and introduced many non-​native species. There is no old-​growth forest on site; a few enormous stumps provide clues to the magnificent trees that once grew here. The second-​growth trees are well-​established and it is a lovely place for a peaceful, contemplative walk. I also enjoyed watching a great blue heron and a female hooded merganser with her two babies fishing in the pond. Admission was $ 13 for adults. The tiny gift shop entrance had restrooms but did not sell any food or beverages.