Deception Pass State Park, Outdoor Enthusiasts Playground - Whidbey Island Washington

Washington's most spectacular state park, Deception Pass (5 star rated) is a showcase for all the elements that make the Northwest magic: sprawling saltwater beaches, jutting cliffs, deep forest, freshwater lakes and absolutely amazing views. The bridge alone is impressive, but there is so much more Deception Pass has to offer, such as boating, kayaking, salt and freshwater swimming, picnicking, camping, saltwater fishing, trout fishing, fly-fishing and miles upon miles of hiking trails.

 It's hard to imagine Deception Pass without the bridge. But until 1935, the gap between Fidalgo Island and Whidbey Island could only be crossed by boat. Whidbey Island residents had called for construction of the bridge to Fidalgo Island since the 1890's. After years of broken promises and two vetoes, a bill was finally passed and construction of the bridge began in August 1934. Construction took just under 12 months. The bridge was dedicated on July 31st, 1935. Today, roughly 15,000 cars cross the bridge each day.

Deception Pass State Park is a 4,134 acre marine and camping park with 77,000 feet of saltwater shoreline, and 33,900 feet of freshwater shoreline on three lakes. The park is outstanding for breath-taking views, old-growth forests and abundant wildlife. Deception Pass has three campgrounds to choose from, and three primitive boater-only campgrounds as well. Camping is very popular here, especially in the summer months.

Bowman Bay Campground is a more intimate campground, with only 20 sites, all located fairly close to the beach and is open seasonally. There is a large grassy field and a small playground along the south end of the bay. The trails in this area are among the most scenic in the entire park. Hikes to Lottie Bay, Lighthouse Point and Rosario Beach are short but rewarding, and offer spectacular views of Puget Sound, Deception Pass and the San Juan Islands. With sandy beaches, covered picnic shelters, a one lane boat ramp, camping and hiking trails, Bowman Bay is an ideal starting point for exploration and adventure at Deception Pass.

Cranberry Lake Campground is hidden in the old growth forest between North Beach, West Beach and Cranberry Lake on Whidbey Island. With 234 campsites, it is the largest campground at Deception Pass and is open seasonally. During the summer, Cranberry Lake is a popular location for swimming, boating and fishing. There is a sandy beach with an enclosed swimming area on the west side of the lake and water temperatures are typically between 55 and 60 degrees (much warmer than the ocean waters to the west).  A seasonally operated concession stand rents paddle boats at the west end of the lake. On the east side of the lake, there is a long wooden dock and several covered kitchen shelters built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930's.

Quarry Pond Campground is open year round. There are 61 sites, 54 hookup and 7 standard sites. There is also a kitchen shelter and gazebo in the middle of the campground. Quarry Pond, one acre in size, is a pleasant rock-rimmed pond near the campground. Goose Rock, the highest point on Whidbey Island, rises to the north of the campground.

If you plan on camping or are only on a day trip be sure and take a walk out on Deception Pass Bridge, which spans one of the most treacherous saltwater channels in the Northwest. The total length is 1,487 feet (Canoe Pass span: 511 feet, Deception Pass span: 976 feet). The height is approx. 180 feet from the water, depending on the tides. The road width is 22 feet with 3 feet of sidewalk on each side. It is a spectacular, heart pounding experience.

Camping reservations and directions contact: www.parks.wa.gov

Camping Tip - Keeping your Food Cool

Milk, cheese, meats and some other foods should stay cold until you cook them or eat them, or else they can make you very sick. Most of your drinks and fruits don't have to necessarily stay cold but they taste better when they are cold. If you are planning on smores make sure to keep your chocolate bars cool or you will end up with a pile of melted chocolate if they are in the car too long or sit out in the sun at camp.

I recommend, if you have the space to bring one, that you have a separate ice chest filled with ice, it will keep longer if you aren't in and out of it on a regular basis as you would your food ice chest. If you pack your ice in a freezer bag, it will last longer. If you do the same with your spare ice you can just take out a few bags at a time as needed. You can also make ice in freezer bags at home to take with you.

Once you get to your campsite, you might be able to use natural refrigeration to keep some of your foods cool. If you are near a lake or stream that's not to deep or too swift, you can bundle up your fruit (packed tightly in Ziploc bags or small containers) and put them in a plastic grocery bag or small bucket and set them in a shallow spot in the water. Make sure you carefully seal your items so that they will not get wet as most rivers and lakes carry bacteria. Fruits that can be peeled (bananas, oranges, etc.) should be OK as you would not eat the peel, but never eat anything that directly touches the water. You can also do this with drinks to keep them cold. Make sure you tie your items to a rope around a tree or a big rock so they don't end up down stream.

Last, try and find a shaded area at your campsite for your coolers so the sun is not beating down right on them.

Eat safe!

Thunder while Fishing - Blue Lake, Washington

One year while camping at Blue Lake in Eastern Washington, my cousin and I were fishing for trout early in the morning. It was a perfect day, clear blue sky, not a cloud to be seen. The sun had just come up over the hills and we had just put our tackle back into the water and settled in to start trolling.

Then, all of a sudden we hear thunder, only it doesn't stop. We looked at each other, then to the hills and the lake thinking this might actually be an earthquake. But to our surprise there were no waves on the lake but rather a perfect calm. No shaking in the hills, no rocks falling. We looked at each other again and I said "What the heck is this?" Then we saw them, Harley Davidson motorcycles coming through the valley 2 x 2. We stood up in the boat and counted 140 of them, what an awesome sight and even more an awesome sound as there was only peaceful nature sounds prior to their thunder.
Oh, and by the way, as we were so mesmerized by what we were seeing and hearing, I had a nice 16" rainbow trout on the line and didn't even realize it!

Tales by Tommy Headley

You can visit Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for licensing & permits, fish limits and directions to beautiful Blue Lake, Grant County Washington

Camping Recipe - Muffin Tin Eggs

Muffin Tin Eggs

This is a fun way to make eggs for a bunch of people at the same time, fried or scrambled, or make eggs for some people in a muffin tin and pancakes for others in the skillet. 

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

6 strips of bacon

6 eggs

You will also need:

Muffin tin

Preparation:

1. Cut each strip of bacon in half, making 12 pieces total.

2. Put 2 pieces of bacon into the bottom of each of the 6 muffin tin cups in a cross, making a little bacon "basket."

3. Place the muffin tin on the grill over the campfire and cook the bacon until done to your liking.

4. Crack an egg into each cup on top of the hot, cooked bacon and cook more until the eggs are done.

Note: This recipe was found in "The Real Family Camping Cookbook" 2nd Edition

Camping/Boating "Horror" story - Lake Kachess, Washington

One camping adventure at majestic Lake Kachess in Cle Elum, Washington......
It was a semi nice weekend, but Washington is known for rain and cold weather even in the summer. We decided to take out the boat for a while on the lake which is just off the camp grounds. This lake has a beautiful background of mountains and trees with two creeks/little rivers running into it.
We were having a great time with taking turns in the boat since there were too many of us to all go at once. It was our last run and my husband Tommy, daughter Ashley (about 11 at the time) and myself went out. The others had gone back to the camp grounds by now. We were having a great time and suddenly the boat died, I MEAN DIED, DEAD!! We weren't out of gas it just stopped running, and there we were stranded. Of course we were way down at the other end of the lake where there weren't any other boats around us so we couldn't get anyone's attention for help. Mind you we are in a 17 ft Bayliner, not just a little row boat.
We were somewhat in a panic because we were drifting way down near the end of the lake to nowhere land.

We had a couple of oars so we started to paddle the boat the best we could to try and get to the shoreline. After a really long time, because it isn't very easy rowing a 17 ft Bayliner, we were getting a little closer to shore. We were still at the far end of the lake away from anyone and not even close to the boat launch area. My husband finally decided to jump in the freezing cold lake and try and pull the boat while my daughter and I kept trying to paddle with the oars. We finally made it to the shoreline enough that my husband could touch bottom. There were lots of branches, big tree limbs, and stumps that he could not see in the water so he was tripping, going under water and he was getting scratched and cut up on his legs, arms, face and everywhere.
After, I don't even know how long it was, but a very long time, we made it back to the boat launch area. We had quite the story to tell the other's when we returned to our camp, and went through a lot of first aid supplies patching up my husband. To this day we still aren't certain what the cause was but needless to say we did not take the boat out again the rest of our trip.
Camping and boating can be a really fun thing to do, but just a little tip...check your boat out really good before hand and make sure to have a cell phone with you or you might end up with a "horror" story like this one!!