Mineral, Washington

Mineral is a small town in Lewis County, Washington just off State Route 7 near the Pierce/Lewis county line. Mineral originally began as a mining town. Prospecters searching the area for gold instead found coal and arsenic. Though the mines failed early in Mineral's history the town found new life as the site of a logging camp and sawmill, both of with are no longer in operation. Today, Mineral's main industry is tourism, primaraly through recreational fishing. Mineral has an event center, a post office, two churches, one general store, one tavern, a cafe, a log lodge (in the National Register of Historic Places) a resort with fishing docks and boat/pontoon rentals and two bed and breakfast facilities. Mineral is the location from which the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad now operates.

Natural features

Mineral affords views of Mount Rainier.^[1]

Mineral is most noted as a fishing destination. The lake is stocked yearly with rainbow trout and other fish species. On the opening weekend of Washington's fishing season, the town more than triples in population due to the influx of anglers. As many as 200 boats easily fit on the lake. The local catch-phrase is "Mineral Lake, home of the 10 pound trout".

Mineral is the location where one of the tallest specimens of Douglas Fir was recorded, measuring at approximately 120 meters high.^[2]

Mineral is also located near the location of the famous Kenneth Arnold UFO sighting in 1947.

See also

• Mount Rainier

References

• C. Michael Hogan (2008) Douglas-fir: Pseudotsuga menziesii, globalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Strõmberg
• Mineral Lake Official Website (2009)

Line notes

1. ^ Mineral Lake, 2009
2. ^ C. Michael Hogan, 2008

External links

• Mineral Lake webcam

Coordinates: 46°43′01″N 122°10′51″W / 46.71694°N 122.18083°W / 46.71694; -122.18083