Thurston Bountiful Byway, sign
Photo credit: Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater Visitor & Convention Bureau (OLTVCB).

– Taking the THURSTON BOUNTIFUL BYWAY to the next level:
On October 13th, 2014, County Commissioner Sandra Romero and agritourism committee members launched the opening of the Thurston Bountiful Byway — a scenic route in the heart of Thurston County’s most picturesque rural and agricultural lands, celebrated with new directional signs placed along the route. The Byway is a scenic route that promotes agricultural tourism, or agritourism, in the rural parts of Thurston County. The route starts in the Nisqually Valley, stretches south to the city of Yelm and on to the communities of Rainier, Tenino, Bucoda, Grand Mound, Rochester and Littlerock, continuing west to the Capitol Forest before ending in Olympia. Along the way you can explore dozens of special stops and activities including creameries, nurseries, wineries, sculpture gardens and historic sites. There are more than 90 suggested agricultural, ecological and cultural stops along the Bountiful Byway. Business are encouraged to become Byway members and participate in a survey.
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– Yelm area businesses are an integral part of the Thurston Bountiful Byway:
Shauna Stewart, Executive Director of the Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater Visitor & Convention Bureau (VCB) told the Yelm Community Blog that reaching out to unique businesses along the Thurston Bountiful Byway route is important for the byway to be a meaningful and authentic experience, so important that a variety of unique businesses along the route are included. “Learning about all the amazing assets we have in this community has been so much fun and we look forward to working with business owners and community members to bring this route to life,” Stewart said.


– Won’t you participate in the VCB’s Focus Group?
Click here for the VCB’s focus group participants sign-up page. scroll down.
While this is on the VCB’s Destination Branding Survey page, the Survey closed April 4.


– Won’t you become a Thurston Bountiful Byway member:
Click here for the Thurston Bountiful Byway membership packet.


UPDATE: April 8, 2016
“Bountiful Byway: Thurston County trail leads to farms, hikes — and attention”
* “Route is designed to give travelers incentive to leave the freeway”
* “Byway runs 62 miles, from Mud Bay, across south county, to Nisqually”
By Jerre Redecker, The Olympian.
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