Every year I try to come here in the spring and stay in the retreat house for a few nights. It has…read morebecome a special thing for me to do, and I even drive here from Oregon to do it. The retreat house itself is perfect for those doing meditation and Buddhist practices. Every day I can walk in the woods, to the pond, and visit all the special places here, like the driftwood ley line sculpture or the fen pond. Every year things are a little different and there are new things to see and explore in addition to visiting "old friends" like the various stone circles. You can also come just for a brief walk or long walk, there are multiple parking lots. I recommend a change of shoes and socks if your footwear is not water proof.

Plan. Plan. Plan…read more The Earth Sanctuary is a fantastic retreat of walking paths, stone circles, places to sit, think, draw, meditate, remember, and much more. It's only $7 to spend as much daylight as you want while there. You can power walk your way through, but you'll miss the nature and time for self-reflection and teachable moments. Decide why you are going there, even if it is your first exploration. You could spend a whole day by the water writing, drawing, and doing things that fill your soul. Plan to do that. If you have younglings, decide what teaching about Nature you'd like to do. The trails are natural, and this is a place to take it slow for those with mobility challenges. I strongly suggest developing a theme of why you are going and using that as a guideline for a great day. There are porta potties by the parking sites. Bring your water and snacks if you must, but mind the wildlife who get sick from your leaving. A rule of thumb is to take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints.

go here every Mother's Day with my mom and it's always fun! only down is just a me problem and that…read moreis I don't have the attention span to find the salamanders.

Great place to walk around with family on a warm day. The garden has a lot of plants, trails are…read morewell maintained and you could spend any amount of time in there.

I love this park and lighthouse! The view is amazing of the mountains and of Puget Sound and if you…read moreare here at the right time you can see the big cargo ships making slow, gradual turns further into Puget Sound as they are heading to the ports of the larger cities off from the Sound like Seattle or Tacoma. It's also quite peaceful and just a great place to chill out. The beach is pebbly but it's still beautiful. In fact it may be even more beautiful because it is pebbly. I don't know if it's still there but there was a structure made out of wood probably a few beach combers made and it was cool to take a peek inside there too. Anyway I love Puget Sound and have seen it from all kinds of different angles but I think this spot is one of my favorites if not my favorite at the top of the list. The lighthouse is cute, a nice white painted building with red roof. Not terribly tall or towery like some lighthouses but beautifully maintained regardless. Definitely a stop to make if you enjoy lighthouses and absorbing the water and nature of Puget Sound.

Decided to drive up to this lighthouse while visiting the nearby charming Scandinavian town of…read morePoulsbo. This is the oldest lighthouse on Puget Sound, built in 1879. It marks the hazardous Point No Point shoal and north entrance to Puget Sound. There is a nice size beach across from the parking lot. The lighthouse grounds were gorgeous this time of year with all the red hot poker plants in bloom along the rock wall, from the beach all the way down to the lighthouse. There were quite a few driftwood art pieces along the path up to the lighthouse, including a bench, ball, giraffe, dolphin, seal, whale and horse. Overall we enjoyed the time we spent here...so beautiful and picturesque. Would definitely recommend.

When I originally wrote this my wife and I did not have an innerstanding regarding ADA laws and…read moreservice animals. Since than we have become educated so as to protect the laws set in motion by the ADA. There are 2 questions that can be asked regarding an animal that may be in question: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform? Staff are not allowed to request any documentation for the dog, require that the dog demonstrate its task, or inquire about the nature of the person's disability. [Source: https://www.ada.gov/resources/service-animals-faqs/) These questions were not addressed by the Park employee and the Park should have in place a plan on how to address an animal that isn't showing behavioral issues (ie: zero training, aggressive towards people/animals, etc.). There is a need for an awareness of the importance of being respectful to service animals. There is sadly many who claim their dogs as service animals when they're clearly not trained for any tasks and therefore should be labeled as ESA (Emotional Support Animal).

Steve and I returned to Fort Worden State Park after coming here for the first time several years…read moreago. We came here with a relative who recently moved here and it was wonderful to walk around and talk along the beach... visit and catch up as we strolled up towards the lighthouse. It is spring so it was windy and a bit cold but with enough layers we were pretty comfortable on our short walk. Such a beautiful state park and definitely a "must" to visit while in Port Townsend!

Great place to take your kids. New special playground and a skate park as well. There's a small…read moretrail system, which is great for little ones to get them into nature. Only downside is no view of the water.

The south Whidbey park and recreation district takes extremely well care of the facility's they are…read morebeautiful every time I'm here, and while the youngster is at practice for 2 hours there's awesome trails to hike through the woods if you choose. I value the care and beauty here we're pretty lucky and if you choose to stay and watch practice the other littles can exert all there energy on the fabulous play ground in line to see everything going on at once pretty cool

Discovered this place while googling directions to a nearby bakery. Seemed like a place I wanted to…read morevisit. A gorgeous little trail sprinkled with gorgeous sculptures. I only took photos of half the sculptures I saw, because I wanted to enjoy the moment. But trust me it's really cool! Around each corner of the clean trail is a new eye catching sight. Sculptures at ground level. And hanging in tree. The parking lot is small and only one way out and in. SYOY!

Super easy, kid friendly, flat surface trail…read more Loved the artwork and reading about the artist

Great park with beautiful scenery and different routes to choose from. It was quite peaceful other…read morethan the sound of cars driving by when you're parallel to the road. The sound of the creek made up for it and was a nice surprise. The paths were enclosed with trees in some areas and open in others. One side you get views of the ocean and the other side is solely Forrest views. Both are beautiful and a sight to see.

We stopped by recently while roaming the island. We made a loop by taking the Ridge Loop trail to…read moreFern Gulley, around to check out the ancient cedar, into the old campground and back to the parking lot via the Forest Discovery trail. The trails were narrow and a bit muddy, but in good condition overall. The ridge section was okay, but we really enjoyed the scenery as we dropped into Fern Gulley...every shade of green, very pretty. The ancient cedar was a beautiful sight. Great views of the mountains and water from the short Discovery trail. And I always enjoy wandering through campgrounds being reclaimed by Mother Nature. A fun stop-off as we headed up to Deception Pass. Maybe not epic, but certainly an enjoyable trail system.

A national preserve well worth preserving…read more Stunning views of the Olympic Peninsula, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the Cascade Mountains. Easily spend the day just marveling the views. This hike can be visited multiple times and never gets old. Time it right ~ when the tide is out the lower beach section is a beauty on its own. Careful to watch the tide coming back in otherwise a very difficult hike back for many. Pup friendly and please pick up after your pooch. *Parking is very limited so come early.

Quite an easy hike, love the water view all throughout. Enjoyed exploring the beach rocks here…read more Relaxing experience and pretty good cardio as well.

This is a really pretty park right along the water. They have play areas for kids, walking paths,…read moreflowers, a dog park, and really nice houses in the surrounding neighborhood. If I lived here, I'd be in this park often.

This is a medium-sized park with gardens, a gazebo, a trail down to the ocean, playground, picnic…read moretables, BBQ's, firepit and a kitchen shelter. Big lawn for relaxing or get togethers. My friend and I walked around to enjoy the flowers and take a walk to the beach. I was not fit for the trek down to the beach though, so my friend went and reported it's really beautiful. There were swallows flying at a crazy fast speed and zooming around us. Felt like Snow White. There are bathrooms here that are the standard expected for a park, but the one I was in didn't have a light at all so I'd avoid it after dark.