The ferry docking at Jetty Island

I know, I know, you think I’m about to start in again with the Bainbridge Ferry spiel, and all things considered it’s a pretty short ferry ride, but this is a really REALLY short ferry ride. The captain of the good ship MV Queen’s Launch welcomed us on board, told us he would be our captain for the next, oh, 5 minutes or so, and told us where the lifejackets were (under our seats) by which time it was time to dock on the other side of the bay. So I think it actually takes 3 minutes, but you could call it 5 minutes if you counted the boarding time. What’s up with the Queen’s Launch, anyway? Do we get a loaner from Argosy Cruises every summer? Is it a free loaner? Because Everett isn’t charging for the ride, so, it’d be nice if they weren’t having to pay for ferry rental.

Jetty Island Daze
As for our destination, Jetty Island, what can I say about it that hasn’t already been said? A little history: It was created about a hundred years ago (back when we had a lot more wooden boats), to be a jetty — sort of keeping the fresh water in the marina, and the salt water out-ish. Then it transmogrified into a dumping ground for construction materials, as well as a landing ground for whatever was floating in the Sound. Then twenty years ago, the Everett parks and rec people started organising little trips out there during the summer. Now, it’s a Thing — during the summer, up til about Labor Day, they’ll ferry you out there, for free, or you can drag out the old canoe and ferry yourself out there.

Give me an umbrella, a sandy beach, a sunny day, and a good book.

I love the smell of suntan lotion in the morning
As soon as we docked, everyone immediately headed in a swarm for the beach. They were dragging coolers, and little bbq cookers, and food, and squalling children. We diverged a little way north to the lagoon, where we and half a dozen other birdwatchers watched a stinking mudhole transform itself into a sparkling lake within the course of 2 hours. Isn’t high tide wonderful? And a nine-foot high tide is especially so. It hides all the ugly stuff, and makes everything smell nice again. Every so often, a flock of sandpipers would startle at an incoming wave, or the bad-tempered cry of a Caspian tern, and take flight, swooping around in the air as though they were connected to each other.

If you go: They hardly ever have a problem with the numbers, but be warned, they do a headcount and if too many people seem to be headed out, they’ll just discontinue outgoing ferries until the numbers decrease.

Favorite find: Would have to be the kitesurfers.