It started with a donation of eight acres and $2,500 for a monument in 1911. Today, Washington Park in Anacortes covers 220 acres jutting out into Rosario Strait near from the ferry landing.
A 1925 donor predicted the park would become “unequaled in scenic beauty and tidewater beach by any other city.”
A drive on the 2.2-mile paved road is a good way to get a feel for the park, to decide which trails and spurs you’d like to walk, to enjoy many views along its shoreline dotted with gravel beaches and bluff, and to agree that the prediction came true.
Warning: The maximum vehicle length is 20 feet because of hairpin turns. Vehicles must share the narrow road with pedestrians and joggers.
If you’re fond of short trails that can be combined with others to create a longer loop outing, you’ll be pleased. There are eight trails ranging in length from the Rosario Strait Trail (.06 mile) to Fidalgo Head Loop (1.6 miles).
Some trails intersect others, but there are also several very short connector paths. Be sure to take a map.
In the central part of the park, the forest quickly dampens the sound of tires on asphalt and the peaceful nature of the inner area takes over.
Walk through firs and cedars; see fallen trees that have been “repurposed” as nurse logs; admire the mosses, especially after this particularly wet winter.
Even if you can’t go far from your car, there are a few pullovers, including Green Point, for spectacular views of Rosario Strait
Easiest access to a beach is at Sunset Beach (boat launch, play area) on the north shore and Green Point on the west shore. There are other points where reaching the beach takes a little effort, such as the stairway to West Beach with its rocky profile and tidepools, or a couple of sites that require scrambling.
For the geology-minded, there’s a half-tube on the east side of Burrows Channel Trail. The 50-foot-long, 10-foot-high striated groove in the low cliff wall probably was scoured by a boulder trapped in a slow-moving glacier. Burrows Overlook sits on serpentine rock, the oldest on Fidalgo Island.
Anacortes covers 15½ square miles, including 3.8 square miles of water, and possesses many other get-outside options. One gem is the Anacortes Community Forest Lands, 2,800 acres in several tracts with dozens of miles of trails, including nine loop trails shared all or in part by horseback riders, hikers and bikers.
Rock climbers have their patch of Anacortes-owned land at 160-acre Mount Erie Park, where routes go up the south and west faces to its 1,273-foot peak. Or you can drive to the peak for the scenic vistas from Fidalgo Island’s highest point.
Parking can be a problem on summer weekends.
Some seasonal closures against climbing have been in place over the years to protect falcon nests. Falcons can display their territorial instincts by dive-bombing climbers.
Ship Harbor Interpretive Preserve includes 25 acres of freshwater wetlands, five acres of upland habitat, and 2,000 feet of sandy beach. There is a trail system that protects sensitive areas. A 1,000-foot-long, 6-foot-wide boardwalk extends the 1,600-foot path from the Edwards Way cul-de-sac west of the San Juan Passage subdivision to the wetlands.
The Washington Park has a recorded information line, 360-293-1927. For information on the park as well as several others, call 360-293-1918 or go to www.cityofanacortes.org, then click on department directory, then city parks.
Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.
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