Cowiche Canyon

The Cowiche Canyon Conservancy is a series of 4 trails along an abandoned railroad corridor. There is the canyon trail itself, a 6 mile round trip hike of the old RR right-of-way, a hill climb for views of Cowiche Mountain and the sagebrush plain before it, a jaunt to a winery(?) and a hike to the top of Cowiche Mountain.
Today we did the canyon trail and the winery detour.
Cowiche Creek has a pretty good flow and so the vegitation in the valley is lush, at least compared to the sage/steppe country around it. As you'll notice driving around the orchards and vineyards of the Yakima are, if you water something in this warm valley it will grow well. And with the plants come animals. We saw a gopher snake (but not until about 4 feet away), red tail hawks and a legion of violet-green swallows.
The first 3 of 11 bridge crossings of Cowiche Creek are gone, thanks to one of the neighbors who tried to stop the trail with a little pre-emptive strike by having them removed, but despite that the trail opened with detours to keep your boots dry. Be sure to be pleasant and unobtrusive to the folks who live here, respecting their property and privacy. Be sure to look for the giant stone head too, you'll know it when you see it.
The trip to the winery is worthwhile too. The 1 mile round trip, 400' Elevation gain yeilds some nice views of the canyon and Cowiche Mountain, as as advertised delivers you at a winery and tasting room (open Sundays!) where for $5 you can sample the local wares, all of which are for sale on site
This canyon is great for a short stroll or an all day adventure, because you can hike up to 14 milkes of trail here.