Matlock is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Mason County,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Matlock is the primary population center for the western part of Mason County, a sporadically populated logging area. The most notable sites are the church, food bank, general store, post office, local grange hall, and the Mary M. Knight school, grades

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

through senior high school. Matlock features nearby lakes and recreational opportunities, including fishing, hiking, hunting, and horseback riding. The nearest lake to Matlock is

Lake Nahwatzel Lake Nahwatzel () is a body of freshwater located in Mason County in the U.S. state of Washington. The lake is fed by three main sources, which include two unnamed creeks and naturally occurring hot springs. The lake empties into the East Fork of ...

. Every year during the first full weekend in May, Matlock hosts the Old Timers' Fair at Mary M. Knight School campus. The fair features food, crafts and tractors. Matlock is located northwest of

Olympia, Washington Olympia is the capital of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat and largest city of Thurston County. It is southwest of the state's most populous city, Seattle, and is a cultural center of the southern Puget Sound region. European ...

, about a 20-minute drive from the county seat,

Shelton Shelton may refer to: Places United Kingdom *Shelton, North Bedfordshire, in the parish of Dean and Shelton, Bedfordshire *Lower Shelton, in the parish of Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire *Upper Shelton, in the parish of Marston Moretaine, Bedfor ...

. Matlock is a secluded little town just outside of Shelton and Elma. Matlock is also home to Mason County Fire District 12.

Climate

Matlock has high annual precipitation due to strong influence from the nearby Pacific. A significant drying trend occurs in summer, giving Matlock a warm-summer

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

(Csb) according to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system.

References

External links

*Matlock page o
official Mason County Tourism website
Unincorporated communities in Washington (state) Unincorporated communities in Mason County, Washington {{MasonCountyWA-geo-stub