Tacoma Silent Trees: Pacific Madrone Breaking Silence
“I’ve seen Fort Nisqually open in 1937, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse in 1940, and the landslide just north of Salmon Beach three days after the 1949 Puget Sound earthquake, but the event I remember most was the Grizzly bear escape from Point Defiance Zoo in July of 1937,” says the Pacific madrone at the Narrows Viewpoint on the Five Mile Drive in Point Defiance Park. “Men with high-powered rifles scoured Point Defiance looking for the 600-pound bear. It was a scary time.”
Peaks & Pints first partnered with Tacoma Tree Foundation, or TTF, in the fall of 2019, pairing our then-house beer, Kulshan Brewing Tree-dimensional IPA, with TTF-selected trees around Tacoma. For 2024-25, we brewed our eighth house IPA at Loowit Brewing in downtown Vancouver. Since the brewery is named after Mount St. Helens and its eruption silenced many trees, we named the beer Silent Trees IPA and have partnered with the Tacoma Tree Foundation, once again, to tell the stories of their favorite trees. The TFF sent us to Point Defiance Park to chat with the Pacific madrone watching over the Narrows Viewpoint on the Five Mile Drive.
Pacific madrone breaks silence at Five Mile Drive
The 2-year-old, 600-pound Grizzly bear arrived at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium from Yellowstone National Park on July 5. “The beer had escaped from its cage at the zoo early Tuesday morning, July 13,” continues the Pacific madrone leaning over the cliff at Point Defiance Park’s Narrows Viewpoint. “The gate to the cage was padlocked, and there were no signs of tampering with the cage or gate. He went over the pen wall, leaving only some hide and hair on the prongs designed to keep him in. Park officials, fearing panic among nearby residents, did not immediately announce the bear’s disappearance. Bear tracks were found about one mile from the park’s entrance, but the bear was never found. I never saw it, but saw plenty of dudes with rifles.”
Pacific madrone | Arbutus Menziesii
“If there were any tree I would write a love letter to, it would be the Pacific madrone,” says Eden Standley, Tacoma Tree Foundation outreach specialist. “They are some of the grittiest, funkiest, and most elegant natives in western Washington. I don’t think there will be a time when I am not awed by their waxy, emerald, evergreen broadleaf foliage, multicolored peeling bark, and their uniquely individual branching patterns as they chase the sun. Once you start learning to recognize them, you will see them growing in every nook and cranny of the Puget Sound–sometimes literal nooks and crannies, as they have been observed growing around fences, compacted gravel, or the side of the road.”
To love a madrone, you must respect its allusivity. “You won’t find them in nurseries; they are notoriously hard to cultivate,” she continues. “Much like how a cat might ignore the perfectly good bed you bought for them to instead curl up in a shopping bag, madrones are picky about where they take root. They might choose a less-than-ideal place from a human perspective. They can grow in various environments along the Pacific coast, but they evolved to grow in highly specialized habitats: ocean cliff sides, to be exact.”
But the madrone does not live in these difficult environments on its own. “Symbiotic plant friendships with the Douglas fir and mycorrhiza, my-core-rye-za — my favorite word — are such a critical part of this tree’s support system that you can’t help but to fall in love with them, too,” Standley adds. “Mycorrhizae are fungi that live in the madrone’s root systems and can extract nutrients and water from the rocky soil, which the madrone couldn’t get on its own. In return, the mycorrhiza receives sugars produced by the madrone. Many scientists believe the Douglas fir and madrone share a symbiotic relationship and trade resources through their root systems, but their connection is poorly understood. Whatever they’re up to, you will likely find them growing nearby. I imagine this growing habit as the tree version of holding hands. Could they be cuter?!
“These trees are special in the heart of Coast Salish culture and mythology. Many Coast Salish tribes use the madrone bark, leaves, berries, and flowers as medicine and food (even making an alcoholic cider from the astringent berries!). In Coast Salish stories, the tree is remembered as the one that saved many tribal ancestors by acting as an anchor for their canoes at the ‘place of refuge.’”
“There are so many things to love about the madrone, more than I could highlight here, she concludes. “To learn more, see this blog post, or go out and find a tree to love. Some of my favorite madrones are around Swan Creek Park, Titlow Beach, or the nooks and crannies along the west end of 56th Street.”
All this talk deserves a pint
Check out Standley’s favorite Pacific madrone locations, or the beautiful tree at Point Defiance Park’s Narrows Viewpoint on Five Mile Drive, and then head to the Proctor District for a pint or Campfire Crowler of Loowit Silent Trees IPA (6.6%) at Peaks & Pints. Loowit Brewing in Vancouver, Washington, collaborated with the Tacoma craft beer lodge on their house beer. Paying homage to trees and outdoor enthusiasts who join Peaks daily in Tacoma’s Proctor District, Silent Trees IPA is the perfect beer to toast passing trees on powder, currents, or trails and reveal the sprains. Silent Trees IPA continues Peaks & Pints’ love affair with old-school piney IPAs, this time brewed with Simcoe, Columbus, and Chinook for all the pine and citrus. Yes, Vancouver, Washington, is named after Capt. Vancouver, too.
You can enjoy the view from below the Pacific madrone on the Five Mile Drive without fear of Grizzly bears.
LINK: Loowit Silent Trees IPA inspires Tacoma Tree stories
LINK: Tacoma Silent Trees: Mountaineer Tree at Point Defiance Park
LINK: Tacoma Silent Trees: 1910 Bigleaf Maple in North Tacoma
LINK: Tacoma Silent Trees: Breaking Silence near the Rhododendron Garden
LINK: Tacoma Silent Trees: Breaking Silence at Swan Creek Park
LINK: Tacoma Silent Trees: Breaking Silence Near People’s Park
LINK: Tacoma Silent Trees: Breaking Silence at Oak Tree Park
LINK: Kulshan brews Peaks and Pints Tree-dimensional IPA
