Surfski Knowledge Base

Samish Bay & South Bellingham Bay

• Samish Island Public Beach (map) is occasionally used for longer downwinders, but is not highly recommended due to the ankle and rudder busting, barnacle covered rocks in the water there. Samish Bay also gets quite shallow when the tide is out with long mud flats to the east of Samish Island.
• Wildcat Cove (map) (Larrabee State Park Boat Launch) Cove to Bay downwinders (Wind from south, paddle north to Marine Park (approx. 5 miles), Bellngham Marina (approx. 7.5 - 8 miles) or other north Bellingham Bay landings.
  • At low tide you may will need to walk your boat out a way to get rudder clearance. In general stay closer to the middle going in and out because you can encounter shallow hidden rocks on either side, but in particular be careful at lower tides.
  • Bellingham Bay water is COLD and conditions can get BIG. The average monthly water temp varies from 6 degrees Celsius (42.8 Fahrenheit) to 13 degrees Celsius (55.4 degrees Fahrenheit). Make sure your ability and safety precautions are adequate for the conditions on the Bay. Talk to experienced local boaters about doing this downwinder if you have not done it before.
  • Leaving a vehicle at Wildcat Cove - you will need a Discover Pass or pay for day parking (violators are often ticketed). There have occasionally been car breakins at Wildcat, valuables left in cars is a bad idea.
  • Reverse downwinders ending at Wildcat can be good too with north winds (get familiar with what it looks like going in the other direction so you don't miss your takeout - is that really Whiskey Rock?).
  • Wildcat can also be a good launch for laps when the wind is coming from the north or northwest.
    • Laps to North - start out going upwind to Whiskey Rock and farther then surf back
    • Laps to South - surf south as far as you want keeping in mind the amount of slog against the wind you will have to do to get back
      • Dogfish Point (map) (2 miles south of Wildcat - about even with Oyster Dome) - It's a ways to paddle from Wildcat, but the waves can be best if you get to Dogfish Point. You will just have a longer slog to get back to Wildcat. Kiters are warned that the trail at Dogfish is really steep so we can only assume it is not really a viable put-in or take-out for surfskis directly at the Point.
        • The Wave Finder 5/21/2017
        • Localkitespots.com Description of Dogfish Point

Fairhaven Mid-Bellingham Bay (Marine Park is our most popular launch)

• Marine Park (map) This park is near the Alaska Ferry terminal in Fairhaven. Launch for paddlers in many directions depending on conditions. When a south wind is blowing the park launch is usually somewhat protected so you often have the opportunity to do “laps” going into waves of increasing size as you get out of the wind protected zone - and gauge how much you are comfortable with and skilled enough to handle in terms of chop and surfing waves when you are headed downwind. If you are a novice, be careful about having east in the wind that will push you away from land and gets stronger as you get farther from shore. When there is west in the wind, you get less protection but fortunately more push back toward shore. This small park has a nice shelter with bathrooms and a boat rinse station.
  • Low Tide Hazards
    • it is safer to launch center right (as you face the water, but left of the line of boulders that runs into the water) and paddle straight out a ways before turning to the left or right. Same path precautions apply in reverse when you are returning to shore
      • To The Left (South)
        • There are several obstacles toward the left that become hazards for boat rudders, skegs, etc. at low tide.
          • Old Metal Wheel & Axle (see wheel photo below)
          • 8 ft of Concrete Filled Steel Piling lying flat somewhat closer to shore than the metal wheel.
        • Also if you turn left (south) don't go too close along the shoreline initially. Farther to the left about half way to Post Point there are several boulders that may be just under the surface or exposed on the left. The one farther out has traditionally been marked by some kind of buoy that periodically has needed to be replaced.
      • To The Right (North)
        • there is WAS a derelict floating 2“ mooring line that sometimes extended close to 50 feet off the dolphin (grouped pilings - see photo below) at the West side of the shipyard - people have run into/ caught their rudders on this. (between Marine Park and where the old drydock used to be) - UPDATED - the mooring line was eliminated May 2025
  • Video of rare shore break at MP
  • Downwindfun Description of Wildcat to Marine Park

• Community Boating Center (map) boat ramps in a bay area with better south wind protection than most local launches. Some parking close to the ramps and a larger lot across the railroad tracks from the launch. The larger lot has a bathroom and boat rinse station. Close to Marine Park, this is an option when MP is overcrowded or particularly when the Bay is too rough with south wind and you are looking for a place to launch and/or paddle protected from the south wind. Like MP you can work your way out into rougher water gradually as you are ready. Sometimes this launch works well when a SW wind is pushing good waves deep toward Cornwall Beach. You can get out into the waves, paddle toward Cornwall Beach or Boulevard Park and get some wind protection hugging the shore on the upwind, particularly as you stay left and get closer to the CBC again.

Upper Bay

• Boulevard Park (map) more parking than Squalicum Beach, but usually very busy with any kind of decent weather so a parking spot can be hard to find. 2012 Flooding Video. Note that the shoreline at Boulevard is mostly rocky and you have to be careful launching and landing. Also folks passing by the park and paddling too close to the shoreline there at low tide have hit and damaged rudders on hidden rocks.

North End of Bay

• Cornwall Beach - currently problematic to leave a vehicle here due to risk of break-in. As of 2020 this beach is relatively neglected, but if city/port plan to build large park on east shore moves to completion, this area could become a more attractive boat launch.
  • Discussion of Glass Beach Problems 6/04/2019
• Whatcom Creek Waterway (map) with Waypoint Park is a nice place to launch or land. Waypoint can also be a very good place to practice surfing waves when the wind is from the south. The waterway filters waves so that they are lined up inside the waterway. If you want to practice with larger or more disorganized waves then you can paddle farther out toward or into Bellingham Bay.
• Bellingham Marina (map) protected entry/exit at breakwater by Zuanich Point Park. You can launch/take out at the pier just east of the park or at the boat ramp by the parking lot on the north side of Anthony's Restaurant. There are 2 boat rinse faucets with hoses at the north end of the parking lot close to the street.
• Squalicum Beach (map) limited parking. There used to be concrete slabs lining the right entry shore and up to about 10 yds into the right edge of the water, but the city cleaned them all out in 2022. There is one large rock about 30-40 yds out from the right shore that is well above water level at low tide and disappears but can be lurking at medium tide levels - you need to become familiar with that rock before you paddle here in rough conditions - just take a look at lower tide and you can get a good idea about where to land. After rains, strong south winds can push logs into this beach and landing area that may have to be dodged. Landing at Squalicum Video
  • At low tide you still have to watch a rock or 2 close to the east end of the landing beach.
  • 
• Locust Beach (map) on the north shore of the Bay, farther west than Squalicum Beach. When the wind is blowing from the SE this can line up better with the waves though you will be going farther west offshore during your run. No nearby parking - you have to park on Marine Drive (or Locust Ave if allowed?) and walk a bit on a path unless the membership/parking deal with North Sound Kiteboarders is still a possibility. They used to provide shelter access for a small membership fee and limited parking at $1/hr.
  • Downwind to Locust 11/18/2012
  • Kiteboarder Description of Locust