If you like to explore ruins and go on easy hikes, this is the place for you.
Re-posted from 2012
You can find Goat Island at the south end of Swinomish channel just before the dredged channel terminates in Skagit Bay. ( a few miles from Deception Pass)
Fort Whitman and Battery Harrison were built in the early 1900's to defend Deception Pass and Sartoga Passage, thus protecting Puget Sound.
The battery had four six inch guns, so the concrete structure is quite long. Originally designed to be invisible from the water and now totally overgrown you can land your dinghy and hike up the trail in about ten minutes.
Directions: From the dredged navigation channel on the north side of Goat Island (Swinomish Channel) look for the many pilings grouped together marking the old wharf, all you will see is a lot of rows of close together pilings with steel brackets still attached at the top. (look for the rusty old steel brackets, that's your only clue that makes these pilings look different from all the others.)Anchor to one side or tie to a piling. and then run your dinghy to shore directly behind the old wharf pilings and scramble up the bank looking for trail heading westward. At high tide the beach is pretty much submerged and may not look like a place to land. Spotting the seldom used trail is really hard, you may do some bush whacking, just remember the battery is west of where you land and a couple hundred feet back from the top of the cliff.
Have fun, its a fun and very short hike up to the old battery, oh and bring a flashlight.
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| steel railings, doors, long gone |
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| trees have taken back the island |
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| the round pit is where one of four guns was anchored |
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| rooms and hallways are interconnected
If you want some more off the beaten path places to explore, try this post.
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