Marine Environment

About Samish Island

Geographical:

Samish Island is a small island located off the northwest coast of Washington State. It is connected to the mainland by a system of dikes created in the early 20th century. Samish Island is considered part of the Inner San Juan Islands, along with Guemes Island , Vendovi Island , Lummi Island, Cypress Island, Sinclair Island, and Eliza Island. Its map coordinates are 48 °34' 34" N, 122° 32' 23" W. Samish Island was part of the ancestral homelands of the Samish Indians, a Coast Salish tribe of the Pacific Northwest.

Three bays surround the island: Samish Bay to the north, Padilla Bay to the southwest, Alice Bay and the Samish River mouth to the southeast. See the Samish Island map.

Geological:

Geologically, Samish Island is really two small rocky islands. Glaciers piled millions of tons of sand and gravel on top of them, making them higher and wider, and connecting them with a narrow ridge of sand (or “tombolo”) to produce Samish Island’s distinctive hourglass shape. Sea levels were much higher after the glaciers melted, so for thousands of years the Samish Flats were flooded, and Padilla Bay and Samish Bay together formed one very large bay with Samish Island in the middle. As recently as the 1887, according to maps made by the U.S. Navy, Samish Island was separated from the flats by a slough or salt marsh. Dikes and drainage ditches built to create more farmland had completed the “dry” connection between Samish Island and the mainland by the 1930s.

Geologically speaking, Samish Island may be part of the Nanaimo Formation. This formation is much younger than the other terranes in the San Juan Islands and consequently is much less deformed. Read more on the general geologic history of the islands at the Anacortes Kayak Tours web site.

Samish Island is part of the Samish River Basin. This map is from the Washington State Department of Ecology.

Services:

The island is residential, with several small businesses. There is no "island center" with coffee shops, small shops, or other social places. Most shopping is done at Edison Station/Chuckanut Drive, Burlington, Mount Vernon, La Conner, Bellingham, or Anacortes. We are about 15-25 miles from anywhere. As true islanders would say, "we like it that way. "

Phone service (land lines) to the island is provided by Verizon. The telephone area code is (360). The postal zip code of Samish Island is 98232. The Post Office for Samish Island is located at Bow, Washington - about 7 miles east of the island. Mail is delivered daily, or islanders rent postal boxes.

Cable television and high speed Internet via cable modem is provided by Wave Broadband. There is no access to DSL or ISDN. Wireless networking is available through Clearwire/fidalgo.net. Dial-in access to various ISP's is available.

Water Services: Water on the island comes from the Skagit River, through Skagit P.U.D. and the Samish Farms Water Association. There are 483 water certificates currently maintained by the Samish Farms Water Assn.

Septic & Garbage: All homes on the island have septic systems, as sewer service is not available. Garbage service is available on the island, through Waste Management, Inc.

Schools: Students on the island go to the Burlington-Edison School District. Elementary students go to Edison Elementary K-8 and high school students to Burlington Edison High School. View the Washington State report card for the Burlington- Edison district.

Hospitals: Samish Island is in hospital district 304, served by United General Hospital. There are three hospitals in Skagit County.

Transportation: Skagit Transit or SKAT, provides limited transportation to the island two days a week (Monday and Thursday) through Pocket Service Areas, which requires advanced registration (360) 757-4433, or toll-free at (877) 584-7528. Seniors and people with disabilities who qualify for Skagit Transit's Dial-A-Ride service will be provided curb to curb service or curb to bus service, as outlined in their eligibility letter. Van Pooling is also an option, if 5 or more residents can arrange it.

Libraries: Samish Island does not belong to any library district. Residents of the island who wish to use library services may choose to pay annual fees to nearby libraries. These fees are listed next to each library listed on the right index column.

Lodging: Limited lodging is available on the island: there is one bed and breakfast, and several cabin/house rentals are available. Check the businesses page, to see if the business has included a link to their lodging services. Hotels and bed & breakfasts are also located nearby in La Conner, Burlington, Mount Vernon, Anacortes, or Bellingham.

Boat Launches: There are no public boat launches on Samish Island. The nearest boat launch is at Bayview, with others located at the Swinomish Boat Launch below the Duane Berentson bridge, one in La Conner under the Rainbow Bridge, and one at Washington Park in Anacortes.

Community - Who lives on Samish Island?

We are a mix of working people, retired people, young families, small business owners, small and large landowners, and many summer residents. There are approximately 400 houses on the island. The population grows on weekends and in summer. We have no official count, but estimate about 800± year-round residents.

Island residents meet 3 times a year for potluck dinners at the Community Club hall for speakers, ethnic folk dances, and other presentations of interest. Other island activities appear on the left index column of this page.

Real Estate and Homes for Sale:

There are various "Multiple listings services" for Skagit County or Whatcom County which list Samish Island homes and real estate for sale. The island is considered part of Bow, Washington for postal and other services.

Traffic:

The Skagit County Public Works Department provided a report (pdf format, Oct. 5) of the Samish Island traffic.

Maps and Driving Directions - how to get there; island map.

Samish Island Aerial Photos - from the Washington State Department of Ecology, showing tide flats and island shorelines.

Shore Lines Newsletter - monthly happenings on the island.

History - what happened here earlier?

Samish Island Sign & Bulletin Board

The sign and its maintenance are a gift to the Island from the Edgewater Garden Club. Here are the guidelines for use of the sign:

• Notices may be pinned or tacked (no staples or nails) only to the corkboard area of the sign
• Only Samish Island residents may post signs, only Island phone numbers may be referenced - the phone number prefix must be 766. No cell phone numbers.
• Be conservative in your use of bulletin board space at the time your sign is posted.
• Never attach anything to the wood framework of the sign.
• Notices that don't meet the above criteria will be removed.
• Cost to replace the sign is about $12,000 and we' d like to protect its life as long as possible.

Jacquie Stegner (766-6501) can answer more specific questions about use of the sign.

Web Advisory Team:

• Samish Island Community Club Board Members.
• Karen Hadman & Kathy Huckleberry, Garden Club & Arts Committee
• Kathleen Packard, Shore Lines Editor
• Eileen Andersen, web manager

All text, maps, and most images on this web site are Copyight © 2004-2007 Samish Island Residents and may not be used without written permission. No information is collected about visitors to this site. Links to "Island Businesses" are provided for a small fee which help defray costs of the web page.