The Vashon Parks Foundation and the Vashon Park District have worked to restore the views from Inspiration Point for the past several years.

The foundation has now been joined by King County 4Culture to create and install interpretive historic signs at the site that will explain the history, the geography and the development of roads to create Inspiration Point.

In March 2023, members of the South End Community Club worked as volunteers to weed and clean up Inspiration Point Park. They worked with the Vashon Park District and the Vashon Parks Foundation to develop a plan to hire a forester to reopen view corridors that had been obscured by the growth of the surrounding forest.

Brian Novatney was hired to work for seven days in December 2024. This work opened the inspiring views that gave the park its name and enabled visitors to once again see the Burton Peninsula, some of Maury Island and Mount Rainier.

The Vashon Parks Foundation is continuing to raise funds for another round of forestry work to further open the view corridors, especially looking toward Tacoma and Maury Island.

The foundation applied for and was awarded a King County 4Culture grant to design, produce and install four informational signs at the park. The grant was awarded for $14,900. Currently, the only historical information there is a 1970s rock monument to George Vancouver’s discovery and naming of Vashon Island, and to the first American settlers on the island.

The Vashon Parks Foundation wants to update the signage with information about the Swift Water People, who first inhabited Vashon, about what is visible from the area and about how the area roads and the park were developed.

4Culture has been very supportive of this project and of the similar project for the Ellisport Hidden History Trail, which was awarded a grant to develop a trail website to provide visitors with more in-depth information than the signs can provide.

The Vashon Heritage Museum, historian Bruce Haulman and illustrator/designer Sandra Noel are working with the Parks Foundation to produce the signs, which we hope will be installed within the next six months.

The Parks Foundation wants to keep moving forward with opening the view corridors so that Inspiration Point becomes truly the scenic wonder that it can be.

The foundation welcomes contributions of both funds and ideas for this project. You can learn more at the Vashon Parks Foundation website at vashonparksfoundation.org.

Marie Bradley is a member of the Vashon Parks Foundation board.