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Old 03-10-2009, 09:57 PM   #1
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Deception Pass

Just got back from 4 days in Deception Pass - near Anacortes, WA. Absolutely beautiful!!!

Very nice (heated) bathroom/shower building. Beautiful camp sites with easy access to some wonderful trails and the ocean and a lake.

I would go back in a heartbeat - close to Vancouver too - about 3 hours from the Lower Mainland, and an easy drive.
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Old 03-10-2009, 10:27 PM   #2
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Re: Deception Pass

Thanks for that Dirk, I am making a list of various places to see and camp all over the place. Not certain when I will get to see all of them, but I will be ready. Nothing beats a good recommendation.
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Old 03-10-2009, 11:11 PM   #3
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Re: Deception Pass


Dirk,

I subscribed to your blog, but I haven't seen anything new for some time. Are you still posting to it? I'd like to see and read your Deception Pass experiences.

baglo
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Old 03-11-2009, 01:32 AM   #4
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Re: Deception Pass

Oh we have camped in Deception Pass many times and love it..
Lots of nice walks and a beautiful beach to walk on...

I did have a favorite spot for our Boler--not sure if the escape will fit as well.. Hmm we'll have to give it a try soon!!!! What site were you in?
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Old 03-11-2009, 11:19 AM   #5
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Re: Deception Pass

I was in site 14 - it was pretty nice, somewhat private compared to some of the others. I would recommend 24 (although check the website, I'm not totally sure of the size). Site 16 was good too. My bbq was camping there (and it/they made wonderful burgers, some pork tenderloin, and bacon thick enough to bbq).

Glenn - I'm planning to write something on the blog, now that the adventures have started (specifically the trailer mods). It'll be up soon (just have to sort out some work stuff first - dang priorities).

Cheers,
Dirk
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Old 03-11-2009, 07:32 PM   #6
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Re: Deception Pass

I had to look on a map as we have never stayed in that loop.
Our fave "was" site 112--but I read on the map that only 17' of the pad is flat and I do remember the Boler fit well, but not a lot of extra room. So probably won't try ther escape as the driveway was on a bit of an angle up...

The pull through site 115 I have always wanted but it gets booked up quickly.

I like how Deception pass now has pictures of the sites...

oh yeah site 24 is max size---camper/van...So not for us.
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Old 03-11-2009, 08:49 PM   #7
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Re: Deception Pass

I hadn't noticed that you could open up an information page on an individual site, that is a great idea. Lots of sites for 18' trailers it seems, I would imagine though a 19' would fit on there.

Does anyone know which convention they use for trailer length, overall including the hitch, or the length of the body only?
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Old 03-12-2009, 10:12 AM   #8
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Re: Deception Pass

We had sites 14 and 16 - there was plenty of room for the Escape in site 14, and my friends had an 18' in site 16 (I believe it's a Rookwood, measured as 18' for the living section of the trailer). The site indicates that both sites fit an 18' trailer, so I suspect is the method of measuring the living portion that is used.

I think that an Escape 19 would have easily fit in the site I had (plenty of leftover room).

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Old 03-12-2009, 10:47 AM   #9
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Re: Deception Pass

It is good to know they measure the living section (assumed to mean the outside body length) of the trailer, as the 19' would not make their requirements otherwise. I am not certain what the length of the body is, but it must be around 16' or so.
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Old 12-10-2009, 05:48 PM   #10
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Re: Deception Pass

I'm jumping in a bit late, but was curious which park you were discussing. Is it Whidbey Island? As we will be passing through after picking up our 5.0 in September, I'm interested in a good first-night site.

Thanks;
Dave
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Old 12-14-2009, 09:17 PM   #11
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Re: Deception Pass

Hi Dave,

We spent our second-ever Escape night in site #43 at Deception Pass State Park on Whidbey Island. Beautiful park! There are a lot of really nice pull-through spots. Would have loved staying longer, but had to make it home to California in 3 nights.

Cheryl
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Old 12-15-2009, 07:55 AM   #12
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Re: Deception Pass

Thanks Cheryl. That looks like a great place for a housewarming.

Dave & Deb
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Old 03-27-2010, 10:08 PM   #13
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Re: Deception Pass

Quote:
Originally Posted by amirie
I had to look on a map as we have never stayed in that loop.
Our fave "was" site 112--but I read on the map that only 17' of the pad is flat and I do remember the Boler fit well, but not a lot of extra room. So probably won't try ther escape as the driveway was on a bit of an angle up...
We have booked 112 for the Easter weekend. We will let you know how the 17' fits..

Wow. Washington State Parks have an excellent web site.
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Old 03-28-2010, 03:25 PM   #14
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Re: Deception Pass

Puts our BC parks site to shame..
Oh, anxious to hear how the Escape fits....Such a nice walk on the trails there--we did the walk on the beach and around up to the bridge and then walked across the bridge. Have some very nice pictures.

Also a nice hike on the other side of the highway and you get a toally different view from the top.

I am working ALL next weekend--but it means some nice $$ as I have both stats--gotta pay for some new toys...(and cruise and tires upcoming for the car etc etc etc)
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Old 03-29-2010, 12:37 AM   #15
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Re: Deception Pass

Deception Pass State Park. Camped there a few years ago.

Few years ago? 1956 - 54 years ago!

Remember it well as a beautiful campground, wonderful trees, great weather. My brother and I were in our "puptent" and my parents in a Benroy teardrop trailer, one of 300 built. Some memories stay with us forever. Haven't been up that way since.
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Old 04-09-2010, 11:17 AM   #16
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Re: Deception Pass

We arrived Friday in the midst of a wind storm. Some vehicles were damaged by falling tree limbs. Park rangers filled out accident report forms for insurance claims.

It is a beautiful location. We loved being there. Since Americans don't get a holiday for Easter, most of the license plates were from BC. Site 112 has a nice view, unless site 111 gets filled by a particularly big rig. I'll post a picture this evening.

For unserviced sites, the pull-through 115 is very nice, but not level. Back-in 117 has the best view in the park - visible through your rear window. If those two are not available, 118 and 120 are very desireable.

Generally, the unserviced sites have better views. It seems that you don't get a sewer outlet in the serviced sites, but you get water and power.

I could not get a campfire going very well, and noticed a lot of fires in the campground were very smoky. I attribute part of this to my lack of skill and part of it to the steel fire-pit rings. Their walls are too high to allow air flow. I saw one couple who had used rocks to lift their ring several inches, and they had a good, low-smoke fire going.

There is a two-lane sewer dump that is free with camping, and $5 otherwise.

Monday morning came, and starting at 8:00, some EA-18G Growlers from Whidbey Island Naval Air Station started running laps. These are like F-18 Hornet fighter jets on steroids and equipped for electronic warfare. Now, I am ex-navy and love military aviation, but this was not my idea of a relaxing morning. For the 2.5 hours it took us to wake up, eat, pack, hitch and dump, the noise never stopped. There were times when you could not hear yourself shout, although mostly it was like standing half a block from a busy highway.

I gather weekends are usually quiet, but weekdays can be noisy. My advice is that you keep your tow vehicle ready for excursions. Anacortes is a very scenic town, as is Langley. I hear that Coupeville is nice. Oak Harbor is nice if you like Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Jack-In-The-Box, etc. It is just a seviceable, practical small city, but with zero holiday appeal.

There are five off-leash parks on Whidbey Island, of which two are near Deception Pass. One of the five is an off-leash beach on the southern part of the island, but the weather wasn't good enough for driving that far for a beach walk. See the FETCH! web site. Anacortes also has a dog park.

You can dump your tanks for free right at the Anacortes waste water plant on the south side of 4th St between R Ave and T Ave.

All-in-all, a fine weekend. We will be going back.
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Old 04-11-2010, 12:22 PM   #17
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Re: Deception Pass

Thanks for the great review. I'll make reservations for a September stay as soon as we get all the pick-up details sorted.

Dave
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Old 04-15-2010, 02:07 AM   #18
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Re: Deception Pass

We returned today from three days at Deception Pass State Park.

I have posted a few pictures here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/2733509...7623858530988/

We stayed in the Forest Loop at site #40 (a serviced site) which has huge trees all around. There were few trailers despite mostly good weather.

We took a day trip covering Whidbey Island and especially liked Coupeville, which has a lot of charm in its old buildings. The Admiralty Lighthouse near the Keystone Ferry is worth visiting. Anacortes is an interesting city with some magnificent houses both old and new and a neat downtown.

The jets that Ron mentioned occasionally flew over the campsite, but most of the time did their flying out to sea, which was appreciated.

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Old 04-15-2010, 05:38 PM   #19
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Re: Deception Pass

Great pictures Brian--we have never stayed in the serviced sites...I like the ones closer to the water.
I think that is my fave park...
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