Adventures in Nature: Dash Point State Park.

The quest continues: To visit every Washington State park in our three-county region during the winter/spring of 2026.

This is the goal for myself and my eight-year-old son Malachi.

It means a total of 16 state parks across King, Pierce and Thurston counties in western Washington State.

Today, we hit our THIRD park: Dash Point State Park in Federal Way, Washington (King County).

Dash Point State Park is beautiful! It is located right on Puget Sound with ~3,300 feet of saltwater shoreline. The water is generally calm, and the beach is sandy. There is also a fantastic view!

What does this mean in real life?

Dash Point State Park is a POPULAR place in the summer months!

Things can get busy.

But on a sunny afternoon in late January?

Wide open spaces, baby!

There were a few other twosomes enjoying the day, but mostly....

The beach was quiet, the sand was undisturbed, and the flocks of birds were peacefully (though quite loudly) enjoying a feast of Puget Sound shellfish.

We spent our time at Dash Point watching the waves roll in and out, scattering groups of squawking seabirds, and hiking the (relatively) accessible, half-mile beginning portion of Thames Creek Trail.

That first part of Thames Creek Trail is really a nice little viewing hike for young kids. It leads you alongside the little creek, and sometimes up and over streams of runoff making their way to the larger channel.

As for a little park history:

The establishment of Dash Point State Park was initiated by a letter sent to the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission by Carl Anderson in 1957. Anderson noticed the property in today’s park had been platted for development and was listed for sale.

The Commission moved quickly to acquire the 272 acres of land, and the sale was executed on July 22, 1958. Dash Point State Park was dedicated in a ceremony presided over by Governor Albert Rosellini on June 10, 1962. On July 31, 2018, a park bench was dedicated to Carl Anderson to honor his contribution to the establishment of the park.

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State Park Visit 1:

Flaming Geyser State Park -- King County, near the city of Auburn, Washington, on January 9th, 2026. Read more about our visit HERE.

State Park Visit 2:

Federation Forest State Park -- King County, outside of Enumclaw, Washington, on January 14th, 2026. Read more about our visit HERE.