BY MATT KITE for WEEKLY VOLCANO | 11/6/2026
Since at least 1990, when the Fremont Troll first appeared beneath the Aurora Bridge in Seattle, trolls have held a special place in the hearts of locals. Something about an 18-foot-tall concrete troll crushing a Volkswagen Beetle in its hand just screams Puget Sound.
The connection goes back much further to the influx of Scandinavians in the region during the late 1800s and early 1900s, when Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish immigrants went to work at the local docks, lumber mills, and railyards.
The newcomers brought with them Norse mythology and an entire troll-scape of magic, mystery, and lore, which found a home in the deep, dark woods of the Pacific Northwest.
Thea Foss, perhaps Tacoma’s most famous Scandinavian immigrant, played such a crucial role in Tacoma’s early maritime history that our downtown’s waterway was named after her. And Norwegian Lutheran pioneers founded Pacific Lutheran University in 1890.
Today, Pierce County’s newest Scandinavian residents bear names like Boge, Larke, and Wilde. All told, a dozen ginormous trolls have found their way to Tacoma’s Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and Eatonville’s Northwest Trek Wildlife Park as part of Danish artist Thomas Dambo’s exhibit, “Trolls: A Field Study.”
The exhibit began last month and runs through Jan. 24. Both parks are open Thursday through Monday and are closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. No special tickets are required. Visitors can view the exhibit by paying general daytime admission at the two locations. Membership also provides access.
Dambo’s name might sound vaguely familiar to troll aficionados. Another Dane, Thomas Dam (no relation), was the creator of the small plastic “good luck trolls” with crazy orange hair that took the world by storm in the 1960s and again during a nostalgic revival in the 1990s.
Dambo’s trolls are decidedly different. For starters, they’re much, much bigger. Transporting them from Denmark to Tacoma and locating them in their new wooded homes proved challenging, although the folks behind the move are keeping the exact process under wraps.
Tessa Miller, a communications and media relations supervisor with Parks Tacoma, was cryptic about the process during an email exchange.
“Part of the magic lies in the mystery,” Miller said. “We want each troll to feel as though it has wandered straight out of the forest, waiting to be discovered, so we’ll leave a few of the behind-the-scenes secrets to the imagination. What we can share is that the trolls arrived just a few days before opening, and our facilities teams worked long days using heavy equipment to bring these magnificent giants into their forest homes. Weighing anywhere from 1,241 to 3,200 pounds each, they certainly didn’t slip into place unnoticed by our team. But the wonder of the experience is in the discovery, so we’ll let the trolls keep a little of their magic to themselves.”
That magic includes a bit of worldbuilding. Each troll has a name and a backstory, and visitors can search for them using a medieval-looking map Dambo devised.
Poppy, a collector of manmade objects, is determined to figure out why humans manufacture so much stuff that ends up in a landfill after only one use. Poppy is 8 feet tall and weighs 100 pounds shy of a ton. Bignut, a planner by nature, explores the connection between human behavior and the health of ecosystems. Though four inches taller than Poppy, Bignut “only” weighs 1,300 pounds. And Valle, the only prone troll among the group, can be seen napping in the woods, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding beauty. Valle lies 5 feet tall and weighs 1,487 pounds.
All 12 handcrafted trolls are made from reclaimed materials, ranging from fallen branches and scrap wood to pallets and twigs. Four are lurking at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, and the other eight are hiding among the flora and fauna at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park.
Together, Dambo’s trolls can be viewed as guardians of the natural world. What we call garbage — broken pallets, discarded scraps, and so on — has the potential to form the raw material used to build something beautiful, intriguing, or useful. And the scientific objectivity we use to study the natural world can be used to contemplate our own impact. What role does each of us play in the local ecosystem? How do our choices affect everything around us?
By hiding his oversized trolls in the woods, among trees and near wildlife, Dambo hopes to reconnect us with the world that birthed us and that will eventually reclaim us. In the abundant Pacific Northwest, where green understories of salal and Oregon grape flourish beneath towering cedars and Douglas firs, everything we need is right here. We just need eyes to see it and hearts to appreciate it.
Dambo’s focus on reuse and reclamation jibes well with Parks Tacoma’s ethos and is right at home in the South Sound, where the Salish people have pursued a sustainable relationship with the lush environment since time immemorial.
“Making responsible choices and taking action to conserve natural resources are a way of life here at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and Northwest Trek Wildlife Park,” Miller said. “We strive to operate at the highest level of sustainability.
This means conserving resources to allow future generations to meet their needs. Our Sustainability Plan, created by the Zoo’s Green Team, includes bi-annual goals with a long-term goal for carbon footprint/energy; water, waste and hazardous waste; construction/ purchasing; and staff and guest engagement.”
So far, the locals are embracing the new trolls.
“The trolls fit in perfectly with our mission at both zoos of sustainability and recreating outdoors,” Miller said. “Northwest Trek saw their highest October attendance in its 51-year history, and the zoo also saw a substantial increase in attendance. Memberships, premier experiences, the café and the gift shop at both zoos have also all seen an increase.”
Any chance our new neighbors will become permanent residents like the Fremont Troll? Alas, probably not. Miller said the trolls travel as a group, and Parks Tacoma has no immediate plans to add a troll. But maybe if enough people bond with the trolls, one or more might stay for the duration — or pave the way for another wave of thoughtful trolls.
Visitors who want to see all 12 trolls are encouraged to visit both locations. Those who pay the full-price general admission at either park can ask for a coupon at the front gate for $10 off daytime front gate admission at the other park.
For more information, visit trolltrek.org or www.pdza.org/your-guide-to-trolls.
