Features | Key Peninsula News

Some of my teenaged relatives enlisted after 9/11. One became a Marine and deployed to Afghanistan. He did convoy duty or was behind the wire, on base. When he came home, he had nothing but … more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 12/30/21

Getting ready to hike 10 miles out to Dungeness Spit to earn the Hiking Merit Badge

Local Scouts Welcome New Leadership and Rechartered Cubs

After nearly two years of challenges brought on by the pandemic, including the loss of a local program for younger Scouts, Scout Troop 220 and Cub Scout Pack 222 are back together again, meeting weekly at the Key Peninsula Civic Center … more

Krisa Bruemmer, KP News | 12/30/21

Ava Tisino with instructor Tien-Li Holdych

KP 10-Year-old Wins Gig Harbor Music Olympics Event

Longbranch resident Ava Tisino, 10, won a first place trophy for mastery of the piano in her category at the annual Gig Harbor Music Teachers Association Music Olympics Nov. 20 at Harbor Covenant … more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 12/30/21

KP Institution and Leader of the Band, Dr. William Roes Retires, Sort Of

After over 40 years practicing medicine on the Key Peninsula, Dr. William Roes is entering a phase of semi-retirement. Starting Dec. 30, Roes will cut back to approximately two days a week … more

Krisa Bruemmer, KP News | 12/30/21

On a Ramble, Raven-watching in the New Year

Let’s take a ramble. Let’s head through this soggy pasture and aim for the woods. Think of all we’ve seen in the last year on the KP, the encounters with deer and moths, the … more

Chris Rurik, KP News | 12/30/21

Mom's Fried Razor Clams

When I was young, say about 65 years ago, our family enjoyed digging for razor clams on Washington’s beaches every time the tide was sufficiently low. In those days there were perhaps 30 brave … more

Brad Sherman | 12/30/21

Naturalist's Notebook

A Beaver Poop Mystery The dam is deep in a thicket and quite small. To reach it I’m forced to crab-walk into the lively creek below it. Salmonberry canes extract the small blood offering … more

Chris Rurik, KP News | 12/2/21

Deck the Halls: When the KP Grew Holly

The Key Peninsula once worked hard every December to deck the halls of America with boughs of holly. For a brief decade in the 1930s, one of the most promising crops in the South Puget Sound area was holly. more

Chris Rurik, KP News | 12/2/21

Even Santa Claus needs a good old-fashioned salon treatment to get dolled up for Christmas.

Naughty or Nice, Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Most of the year, Santa Claus can go about in public without a single child noticing him. But come autumn, he breaks out his red fedora and starts waxing his moustache; he is no longer incognito. more

Carolyn Wiley, KP News | 12/2/21

The Heavenly Swedish Meatball

Growing up in southern Minnesota, the holiday season for our family centered on the run up to Christmas Eve. Holiday baking began as soon as the Thanksgiving table was cleared, with a variety of … more

Barbara Van Bogart | 12/2/21

Mud-splattered KPMS students Venicia Robles.

Guided Mountain Biking for Local Teens Inspires More

Red Barn Youth Center teamed up with Key Pen Parks to take nine students from Key Peninsula Middle School for a guided mountain bike ride. It was a ride they won't soon forget. more

Lisa Bryan, KP News | 12/2/21

Founder of The Mustard Seed Project

I met Tom, my husband, back in ’81, and he already had this piece of property out here, and I came out here right away. I was a social worker in long-term care in Tacoma, and here would come … more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 10/28/21

Sonja Nesta of Lakebay won first place and $175 in prize money with “The Yellow Brick Kids” in the annual Scarecrow Contest. more on pages 10-11.

2021 Annual Scarecrow Contest

Sonja Nesta of Lakebay won first place and $175 in prize money with “The Yellow Brick Kids” in the annual Scarecrow Contest. Tina McKail, KP News more

10/28/21

The view from the shore of Filucy Bay Preserve.

Chasing Silence and Sound in Filucy Bay Preserve

As I work my way down a forested draw in Filucy Bay Preserve, tree frogs call. Ferns and logs guide me through a series of pinch points where deer have squeezed before me. more

Chris Rurik, KP News | 10/28/21

Erden Eruç rowing out of Waikiki Harbor Oct. 7

Wauna Man Resumes Solo Row From U.S. to Asia

Solo circumnavigator Erden Eruç, 60, of Wauna, resumed his second solo row across the Pacific Oct. 7 when he relaunched from Waikiki, Oahu, where he arrived Sept. 10 after an 80-day crossing from Crescent City, Calif. more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 10/28/21

The soup is on, but not without this winning stock.

The Secret to Great Stock

When I was young, growing up here on the Key Peninsula, I loved to spend hours in the farm kitchen with my mother. By sixth grade I helped almost every evening with dinner. Mom was a fantastic cook … more

Lori Deacon | 10/28/21

‘You Don’t Belong Here’ by Elizabeth Becker

As the former spouse of a Vietnam veteran, I did not think I would ever read another book about that war. For 16 years I absorbed everything I could find to understand the devastation Vietnam did … more

Maureen Reilly | 10/28/21

Seed Saver

Diane Grant, who lives in Lakebay, harvested a tomato this year that she had never seen before. She loved the flavor and was afraid she might never find it again. Could she save the seeds and rest … more

Sara Thompson, KP News | 10/28/21

Seahawks Prevail in Epic Overtime Fish Bowl 43

The Peninsula High School Seahawks beat the Gig Harbor Tides 35-28 Sept. 17 at Roy Anderson Field in a stunning come-from-behind win for their sixth consecutive Fish Bowl victory. more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 9/29/21

Wandering Bands of Berry Hunters

Fall again. Hea vy sunflower heads have fallen and the clouds of goldfinches that came for their seeds have scattered into the trees. Rain falls and rotting resumes. Down come the soggy stems of … more

Chris Rurik, KP News | 9/29/21