Bellingham Bay Downwinding

Conversations about when the Bay is good for downwinding

Prevailing winds - most commonly from south to north but sometimes can work from north to south

Laps - start and end at same location - paddle upwind and turn around to downwind surf. Repeat # of times preferred.

Wildcat Cove protected launch with boat ramp, typically you have to paddle out into the bay across waves and wind from the south. How much “west” there is determines how far you want to paddle west before heading north so you will not immediately be pushed back into the east shore. Too much west? You should probably just do in and out laps - trying to paddle north will just be an unpleasant beam wave fight, unless for some reason that is the training you are looking for on the day.

Governor's Point typical gathering point for everyone to check buddy status and is an opportunity to pull close to the point if anyone needs to take out due to issues, too extreme conditions, etc. Map.

Chuckanut Bay to the right of Governor's Point opens into Chuckanut Bay where the sound end offers protection from South wind and waves along with several takeout options. The bay fetch will build big waves toward the bay north end on big days, although you may still be able to get across to Teddy Bear Cove which has a protected takeout behind its north end rock outcropping. The trail there is a bit of a winding uphill walk. Chuckanut Bay and the surrounding hills often capture wind and send it into the bay along with waves with a more easterly push which can create criss-cross wave interaction with more southerly waves coming from farther south.

Clark's Point north end of Chuckanut Bay. On days with west waves you can get significant rebound from the steep shore going north from here.

Point Point Buoy about 2/5 mile off east shore not very far from Marine Park now. If there is any strong east you should probably already be well right of the buoy if you want to take out at MP unless you are a strong paddler with no problem going sideways in big wind and waves.

Once in a blue moon Bellingham Bay may get strong enough wind swell to create some shore surf, but it is rare. South winds can sometimes also build a little bit of shore waves at the northern beaches in the Bay.

There are a few fairly dedicated board surfers who seem to find more frequent opportunities at Birch Bay. And if you want to start to practice getting in and out through shore break, Birch Bay can be one place to start that more frequently has a bit of shore break, but is almost always just quite moderate in comparison to places around the world that employ surf lifesavers.

2016 Surf at Marine Park Video

Surfable Boat Wakes