The Mountains to Sound Greenway is a magnificent 1.5 million-acre landscape providing bountiful opportunities for people to connect with nature

Nature

Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general...

, enjoy stellar outdoor recreation

Outdoor recreation

Outdoor recreation or outdoor activity is leisure pursuits engaged in outside, especially in natural or semi-natural settings out of town...

 and scenic views as well as a quality of life

Quality of life

The term quality of life is used to evaluate the general well-being of individuals and societies. The term is used in a wide range of contexts, including the fields of international development, healthcare, and politics. Quality of life should not be confused with the concept of standard of...

 that is deeply connected to our surroundings. The Greenway is key to the heritage and culture of the Pacific Northwest

Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...

.
Framed by the urban areas of Seattle and Ellensburg

Ellensburg, Washington

Ellensburg is a city in, and the county seat of, Kittitas County, Washington, United States. The population was 18,174 at the 2010 census. The population was 18,250 at 2011 Estimate from Office of Financial Management. Ellensburg is located just east of the Cascade Range on I-90 and is known as the...

, the Mountains to Sound Greenway is woven together by the historic transportation corridors and an extensive network of trails that link the public to the landscape. The Greenway is shaped by watershed boundaries: the Yakima

Yakima River

The Yakima River is a tributary of the Columbia River in south central and eastern Washington State, named for the indigenous Yakama people. The length of the river from headwaters to mouth is , with an average drop of .-Course:...

 to the east, the Cedar

Cedar River (Washington)

The Cedar River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington. About long, it originates in the Cascade Range and flows generally west and northwest, emptying into the southern end of Lake Washington...

 to the south, Snoqualmie

Snoqualmie River

The Snoqualmie River is a long river in King County and Snohomish County in the U.S. state of Washington. The river's three main tributaries are the North, Middle, and South Forks, which drain the west side of the Cascade Mountains near the town of North Bend and join near the town of Snoqualmie...

 and Lake Washington

Lake Washington

Lake Washington is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle. It is the largest lake in King County and the second largest in the state of Washington, after Lake Chelan. It is bordered by the cities of Seattle on the west, Bellevue and Kirkland on the east, Renton on the south and...

 to the north, and Puget Sound

Puget Sound

Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...

 to the west.

The Greenway as it is today was first envisioned in 1990, when a group of citizens hiked from the Cascade Crest alongside Interstate 90

Interstate 90 in Washington

Interstate 90 , a transcontinental Interstate Highway from Seattle, Washington, to Boston, Massachusetts, crosses the state of Washington before crossing the Idaho state line between Spokane and Post Falls...

, through the forest all the way. They appreciated the priceless asset of natural lands and green spaces near a major metropolitan area, which could easily be lost without thoughtful planning. The Seattle region was on the verge of a significant economic boom, and unchecked sprawl threatened much of the region. In 1991, the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust was founded to work toward a shared vision of keeping some of these natural lands within a connected, multi-purpose Greenway between Seattle and Central Washington

Central Washington

Central Washington is a region of the United States defined as the western half of Eastern Washington, or those counties lying east of the Cascade Mountains but west of the 119th meridian west....

.

Twenty years later in the Mountains to Sound Greenway, vibrant urban, suburban and rural communities flourish alongside working forests and farms, spectacular natural beauty, abundant wildlife

Wildlife

Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....

, clean rivers and lakes, world-class recreation

Recreation

Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure and are considered to be "fun"...

 and quiet places where one can simply get away from it all. It's a remarkable conservation success built through a local cultural commitment to healthy people and place. By gathering a broad range of public and private stakeholder

Stakeholder

The term stakeholder, as traditionally used in the English language in law and notably gambling, is a third party who temporarily holds money or property while its owner is still being determined....

s around a shared vision and daily work, the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust serves as a catalyst for action to ensure retention of a thriving natural world and a growing and globally competitive economy.
The Greenway is a living, dynamic place requiring continuous attention and care, or its unique balance between built and natural environments could be lost. The Greenway coalition works to:

• Promote voluntary public land acquisitions for wildlife habitat and recreational access

• Build and maintain trails and facilities to enhance recreational opportunities

• Create a connected regional Greenway trail system

• Conduct on-the-ground habitat restoration

• Mobilize thousands of volunteers

• Support working farms and forests

• Promote tourism

Tourism

Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

 within the Greenway

• Provide environmental education

Environmental education

Environmental education refers to organized efforts to teach about how natural environments function and, particularly, how human beings can manage their behavior and ecosystems in order to live sustainably. The term is often used to imply education within the school system, from primary to...

• Support historic preservation and interpretation

• Promote a balance between built and natural environments

• Provide a forum for diverse interests to integrate conservation

Conservation

Conservation may refer to:* Conservation movement, to protect animals, fungi, plants and their habitats** Conservation biology, the science of the protection and management of biodiversity...

and economic prosperity.
Learn more about the Mountains to Sound Greenway at http://mtsgreenway.org