Blakely Island (

SENĆOŦEN Saanich (also Sənčáθən, written as in Saanich orthography, ) is the language of the First Nations Saanich people in the Pacific Northwest region of northwestern North America. Saanich is a Coast Salishan language in the Northern Straits dia ...

: XEMXEMIȽĆ) in

San Juan County, Washington San Juan County is a county in the Salish Sea in the far northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 17,788. The county seat and only incorporated town is Friday Harbor, on San Juan Island ...

is the sixth largest island in the

San Juan Islands The San Juan Islands is an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state, and form the core of ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

State, United States, encompassing a land area of 16.852 km (6.507 sq m). It is separated from

Cypress Island Cypress Island is the westernmost part of Skagit County, Washington, and is about halfway between the mainland and offshore San Juan County. It is separated from Blakely Island to the west by Rosario Strait and from Guemes Island to the e ...

to the east by

Rosario Strait Rosario Strait is a strait in northern Washington state, separating San Juan County and Skagit and Whatcom Counties. It extends from the Strait of Juan de Fuca about north to the Strait of Georgia. The USGS defines its southern boundary as a ...

. The population was 56 persons as of the 2000 census. There is no immediate public access to Blakely Island and it can only be reached by private ferry or boat.

History

Blakely Island was named by

Charles Wilkes Charles Wilkes (April 3, 1798 – February 8, 1877) was an American naval officer, ship's captain, and List of explorers, explorer. He led the United States Exploring Expedition (1838–1842). During the American Civil War between 1861 and 1865 ...

during the

Wilkes Expedition The United States Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842 was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore Thomas ap Catesby ...

of 1838-1842, in honor of Johnston Blakeley, a naval commander during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. Thatcher bay, on the island's west coast, was the site of seasonal

Samish The Samish people are a Central Coast Salish people, who live in the U.S. state of Washington. It may also refer to: Places * Lake Samish in Whatcom County * Samish Bay in Puget Sound * Samish River * Samish Island, Washington, an unincorporated ...

tribal villages and, during the territorial period, the mill town of Thatcher, Washington. In 2014, toxic

creosote Creosote is a category of carbonaceous chemicals formed by the distillation of various tars and pyrolysis of plant-derived material, such as wood, or fossil fuel. They are typically used as preservatives or antiseptics. Some creosote types w ...

pilings left over from earlier habitation were removed from the waters of Thatcher bay.

Infrastructure

There is no public

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

service to Blakely Island. Access is only by

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size or capacity, its shape, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically used on inland waterways s ...

or private ferry, arriving at the

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...

at the northern tip of the island. There is also a private airstrip for the exclusive use of property owners. The only services available on Blakely Island are at a

general store A general merchant store (also known as general merchandise store, general dealer, village shop, or country store) is a rural or small-town store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, someti ...

and

café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargi ...

, located at the marina and open seasonally.

Seattle Pacific University Seattle Pacific University (SPU) is a private Christian university in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1891 in conjunction with the Oregon and Washington Conference of the Free Methodist Church as the Seattle Seminary. It ...

runs a 967-acre (391.3 ha) biological field station on Blakely Island.

Geography

The island is hilly and heavily forested, with few maintained roads or paths. There are two freshwater lakes, Horseshoe Lake and Spencer Lake, at the center of the island. A freshwater creek, Spencer creek, flows from Spencer Lake into Thatcher Bay.

Climate

References

External links