32213 Benbow Drive East

Although the community is in a rural area, it is not too far from many activities and towns, and one 1 hour's drive from Seattle. We are located 10 minutes from downtown Graham, and 15 minutes from South Puyallup, 15 minutes from Orting, which has tons of fun festivals throughout the year.

Nearby Activities:

1. Day trip to Mount Rainier National Park: from our property, we recommend the SW corner of the park. And, bonus, this is have you going through Elbe, where the train restaurant is!

2. Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad: Recently re-opened. They offer tons of activities & events for both kid & adult demographics (note: these require ticket purchase ahead of time, so check out their website first!)

3. Rail Cycle Mount Rainier. (Note: This attraction is accessed from a different side of the park than mentioned above- as it is a very large park, I wouldn't recommend planning both this attraction and Elbe side in the same day.) Just opened during Summer 2023!!! It's like a quad bike that rides along the old logging tracks from Eatonville to MRNP. 
Website: Rail Cycle Mount Rainier

4. NW Trek: 15 minutes away, and a great day trip for animal lovers as well as kids. We like to think of it as a zoo that protects native species to the area. Plus they have a tram to ride too!

5. Go Karts: Puget Sound Go Kart Association is located in Spanaway, and is about 15 minutes away. 

6. Lake Kapowsin: There are "ruins" of the old high school and town that started this "electric" town, just 5 minutes away. The history of Kapowsin is very interesting, and it's really fun to walk the area and discover what remains! Lake Kapowsin has a parking lot and is just 5 minutes away. Lake Kapowsin in and of itself is interesting because of all the underwater trunks, but don't try boating here.

7. Pioneer Farm Museum & Ohop Indian Village: This is a fun place for kids to step back in time and explore. They have two different tours available, and the setting is great for an after-tour picnic. Website: https://pioneerfarmmuseum.org/public-tours/

Nearby Restaurants:

• This is a rural community, so most restaurants are bit of a trek, but the drive is beautiful is just about all directions, so enjoy the trip not just for the food!
  
  1. Kapowsin Alehouse: This is the closest place to eat, and is just 5 minutes away. They serve a variety of pub-style food and pizza. If you're not from a small town, this one may be a bit of a culture shock, but the staff is very nice, and everything we've tried has been very good.

  2. Mt. Rainier Railroad Dining Co: A little farther out (but a great stop if you day trip to Rainier, and a fun place to take kiddos). 33 minute drive

  3. WaWa Teriyaki: Be sure to check their hours before heading over, as they are updated often. 15 minute drive

  4. Out & About Burgers: They are always busy! Fun (drive thru) food truck with delicious burgers. 33 minute drive
  
  5. Tim's Kitchen: The Best breakfast around, and really great fried chicken. If you are driving through Orting on the way up, consider stopping here (Orting also has tons of festivals throughout the year, you may consider looking up what's happening during your stay for a fun day trip!). 15 minute drive. Note, there is also one located on Meridian in Puyallup, roughly the same driving timing, but Orting has a nicer drive to and from, and less traffic.

  6. Don's Drive-In: This one's a bit far, as it is next to the state fairgrounds. But, they have a very large menu for a burger spot, and everything is so yummy! We often go to Puyallup just to stop here. 42 minute drive
  
  8. L&M Firehouse: Bar & burger food done right. Everyone is very friendly, and the vibe is very fun. They also have live music sometimes. 18 minute drive

Orting & Sumner Events:

The city of Orting puts on tons of events throughout the year. Check out their events calendar here. Sumner is just 5-10 minutes further than Orting, and has amazing Seasonal events- there are many farms who put on Harvest festivals and Halloween events, Winter holidays events, Sunflower festivals, and tons of other flower and Summer themed events! We recommend checking out the stretch of farms along highway 162, with the most well known among the bunch being Spooner Farms.

Seattle & Surrounding Metro Area:

If your stay at the Lakeside Wildlife Wonderland is being planned as part of a trip to Washington state, you be delighted to know our lake house is only ~1 hour from Seattle, making Seattle a great day trip! Everyone knows about the fun to be had a Seattle's famous Pike Place, but there is SO much more than the market to be seen and experienced in the Seattle area!

(As a note: if you choose to day trip to Seattle, our recommendation is to route through Orting and Sumner (instead of through Puyallup), as it is not only a lovely scenic route  that takes the same amount of time, but there are many fun stops you could explore along the way (u-pick berry farms, frequent festivals, a cute little downtown, etc)

Here's a handful of our favorite spots in the Seattle Metro area:

1. Chihuly Garden & Glass - one of the best museums in Seattle, and absolute mastery of art
2. Seattle Art Museum's Sculpture Park - Located along the waterfront in a gorgeous park setting, this space doesn't charge to roam through the huge works of art
3. The ferries - it you are traveling with kids, they'll love a ferry ride
4. Woodinville Wine Country
5. Kerry Park - perhaps the most famous viewpoint in Seattle, Kerry Park overlooks the water and Seattle's skyline from a quaint park
6. Starbucks Reserve Roastery & Tasting Room - coffee lovers need to stop in! They have speciatly drinks that are exclusive to this location, and you can sip your coffee in a setting that feels like a cross between a factory and a gastro-pub. 
7. Underground Seattle - fun historical tour of the streets below! Seattle was rebuilt in the late 1800s after a fire left most of the downtown destroyed. The original Seattle downtown was built too low and regularly flooded, so when it was rebuilt, they built the "ground level" two stories higher! 
8. Snoqualmie Falls! You can even take a (very short) hike to the bottom to get a more up close and personal view. Stop by Small fries in Fall City afterward for a delicious guilty treat (they are specifically known for their fries and shakes)

Tacoma & Olympia

The Tacoma area has a lot to offer, and is a super easy day trip!

1. Food! Tacoma has lots of great restaurants, and a quirky downtown core. Our favorite spot in Tacoma's downtown is McMenamin's (a PNW chain, but this is our favorite one in WA)- and if you have enough time, try to find their secret bar.

2. Union Station - a beautiful old train station that is now used as a federal courthouse. The Foyer  is open to the public and has stunning displays of Chilhuly's glass art.

3. WW Wright Botanical Conservatory - seriously stunning greenhouse located in Wright Park. This huge victorian greenhouse is on the national historic register, and houses hundreds of exotic plants.

4. LeMay's Car Museum - if there's a car fanatic in your group, this car collection is a must see

5. Karpeles Manuscript Library - Museum entry is free! They boast thousand upon thousands of historical documents from just about any category. The exhibit changes several times a year, so even if you've been before, you haven't seen it all. The collection is all encompassing, including handwritten literary transcripts from famous authors, to religious documents, to historical certificates and more

6. Washington State Capitol Building in Olympia -  they offer free tours. Washington's capitol boasts one of the more architecturally significant sites compared to many other states. You can also take a stroll along Capitol Lake, just below the Capitol building. There are tons of great restaurants, bars, and breweries in the Capitol area.

7. Mima Mounds - this nature preserve in Olympia is very unique. It is known for the bubbly mounds dotting the landscape of this prairie setting, and offers three miles of easy trails.

8. Lattin's Country Cider Mill - Farm with a petting zoo that sells their own freshly pressed cider and other fresh foodie treats! Best time of year to visit is early fall.

9. Food! Olympia is well known for their breweries, and the downtown area is fun to explore and brewery hop

Appliances

Espresso machine (automatic)
Fridge
Induction Range
Dishwasher
Heatpump Washer/Dryer
Electric Fireplace
Heat pump A/C
Propane fire table
Propane BBQ
Toaster
Electric kettle
Electric hand mixer
Nutribullet with small blender cup

Carina organics

Carina Organics is a very important part of our efforts. We provide guests with Carina organics body wash, shampoo & conditioner, lotion, and hair gel.

These products are made from high quality natural ingredients that are not only septic safe (we are on a septic system), but are also safe to deposit into the soil after the septic system process is complete. This ensures that the wetland ecosystem will not be negatively affected by our guests hygiene products.

And, one last reason we love using Carina Organics: they help us reduce our single use plastics use via a bulk refill program.

-100% Biodegradable (safe in rivers, lakes and oceans)
-Synthetic Free
-Hypoallergenic
-Cruelty Free
-Vegan
-Paraben Free
-Soy Free
-Gluten Free
-Dye Free

Green Cleaning

All of our cleaning products are eco-friendly, and just like the Carina Organics products, are safe for the lake environment. This ensures that the sensitive wetland ecosystem will not be negatively affected by our guests hygiene products.

Habitat Rehabilitation

Preserving the natural beauty of this “wonderland” is one of our top priorities. Proceeds from the vacation rental go towards rehabilitating the wetlands
Habitat Rehabilitation
The area around Lake Kapowsin, Twin Lakes, and Lake Whitman is considered to be an “ecologically sensitive area.” When we purchased this property, there were many land use issues from the prior owners that had to be mitigated to protect the wildlife.

We’ve spent the past three years (with additional plans forthcoming) rehabilitating a large section of wetland, removing and preventing the spread of invasive plants, re-introducing native plants, and monitoring the animal life that depend on this land.

And, we want to share our efforts with guests. We are in the process of setting up a nature-walk guide for guests to learn about this project and the local wildlife!

Lower Impact Remodel

Prior to launching the rental listing, we renovated many areas of the home. But, we used a combination of eco-friendly building materials, re-using as many of the original materials as possible, and repurposing or donating the materials we couldn’t re-use to projects that work to ensure old building materials don’t end up in landfills.

Coffee & Tea

We’ve found that guests expect single-serve coffee instead of the traditional coffee pot. But, it was important to us that we not contribute to the coffee pod waste that has become a large contributor to waste. We searched long and hard to find a less wasteful alternative, and eventually found these “teabag” style coffees, which are significantly less wasteful than other single serve coffees. Bonus: they are organic, and contain no additives.

Additionally, our selection of teas come from B-corp certified Bigelow Tea company. They have some of the best practices in the tea industry, and use only renewable energy sources.

Compost & Recycling

We provide a countertop compost bin for guest use. Please use this for food scraps (check the composting guide in the kitchen window sill for what and what not to compost!). Composting not only reduces waste, but returns nutrients to the soil!

We use the local garbage service to pick-up guest recycling, further reducing the amount of trash created during guest trips!

What is the Cellphone service and internet situation?
Cell phone service is not great in the neighborhood. We have used T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T all with varying degrees of success depending which phone was used. We have mostly been able to take phone calls on any of the major networks, bu have poor data connection.
We provide guest wifi, and have fast wifi speeds.

Is fishing allowed?
No, this lake does not allow for private or public fishing, per HOA rules. This is monitored by the community, and guests found fishing will be fined.

Should we bring our own drinking water?
Our water is provided via a private well. The home is on a "whole house 4 stage water filter" but, some who are not used to well water may find the taste off putting, so we do recommend bringing bottled water.