Port Angeles Forum: Port Angeles -> Marblemount (North Cascades) logistics

You really want reservations, plan around them. You won't want to wait in a line for the next one or two ferries. I'd leave PA quite early in the day to get an early and reserved ferry, allowing more time on Whidbey Island.

If nothing else on Whidbey, Fort Casey State Park entrance is adjacent to the ferry terminal; Langley (or second best, IMO, Coupeville, near the terminal on the east side of the island), for a small, walk-able, village(s) (and ice cream); and presumably en route, N. Cascades NP via Deception Pass.

Give yourselves time for the above.

Plan two hours from PA to PT, then reserve the next ferry. PT is very congenial for a little walking around, and you might want to schedule some time there anyway. Fort Worden is very interesting. The ferries to PT are very small so you MUST make a reservation. I speak from personal, vivid experience (three boats later....).

From the Keystone side, I would allow 2.5 hours to get to Marblemount. Maybe three, but probably a little less. Fort Casey is a great stop and a stop at Deception Pass is a must. There are cute towns with shopping etc. but that takes more time. Once you go over the bridge at Deception Pass, head straight to Marblemount.

The ferry crossing time is posted on the web page. it isn't long, but I don't know it right offhand.

Thanks for the info and tips, please keep them coming! I see clearly now that I need a ferry reservation; my hesitation is in not knowing how long we'll spend up at Hurricane Ridge and Obstruction Point before heading down and to PT for the ferry. Are ferry reservations at all changeable, meaning that if I see in the morning that we're running early can I call/change online and move it up, or the other way if I see we're running late can I call/electronically delay it? If we miss it are we out our money? Also, is Fort Ebey worth a stop?

Ferry travel, about 35 minutes.

Fort Casey better than Ft. Ebey and more diverse.

Changeable reservations? Probably, don't know for sure. Don't see why not. Try it on the web, see what happens. You don't pay ahead of time, you pay at the terminal, so no money at risk.

Keystone terminal on Whidbey Island is now called Coupeville. It's confusing to us old-timers. :)

Given the new information you provided about the Ridge and the Point, you will be pushed on WI to see what I suggested, but it might be done. I think you and the kids will enjoy Fort Casey SP, and it will allow time to relax, explore the battlements and the lighthouse. Stunning views. OR, Coupeville for a few restaurants and galleries, then north to Deception Pass. Or a combination of two places, but Deception Pass is, as noted, a must see.

Whoa, your new info is a game changer. I didn't realize you were planning on visiting Obstruction Point Road and then driving to PT. First, it will take you 45 minutes to reach the top of Hurricane Ridge from Port Angeles. From the top of HR to the end of Obstruction Point Road will another 30 minutes. You cannot rush this; driving on Obstruction Point Rd. is slow. If you want to explore the trails at the end of Obstruction Pt. Rd., allow at least an hour. So plan for all this accordingly.

Correction, that new information is not a game changer, it's the whole series.

To the OP, now you see the importance of providing your itinerary rather than bits and pieces.

Strongly suggest that you do so. This is clearly unfamiliar territory, literally and figuratively, to you.

The reservation is free, so you won't be out any money. You are always free to cancel a reservation, but there may or may not be space on the later boat.

So you are going from Port Angeles to Hurricane Ridge, then on to Port Townsend and Marblemount? I would allow most of the day. There are far more easily accessible places to eat dinner in PT than on Whidbey. There are great restaurants there, but you have to drive to the towns where they are. In PT they are right by the ferry.

So have a late lunch / early dinner at four, and make a reservation on a ferry around 5:30 (Adjusted to timetable, which I am not consulting). You'll still have time to get to Marblemount before full dark if you leave PT by 5:30.

From the State Ferry Reservations page:

Customers with reservations should arrive 45 minutes before departure time to ensure timely processing and boarding. Customers arriving late will forfeit their reservation.

Reservations can not be made less than two hours in advance of the desired sailing.

Contact WSF Customer Service at least three hours before your reserved departure to change or cancel your reservation: by phone at 888-808-7977 or 206-464-6400 or by email at wsfinfo@wsdot.wa.gov.

Thanks for the feedback, and sorry for the confusion. Part of it stems from the fact that I myself am not sure how long everything in ONP will take us (yes, I realize, the likely answer is "longer than expected"), and we may get up to Hurricane Hill the afternoon before we depart for NCNP, in which case we will want to be on an earlier ferry. I suppose the option to change the reservation 3 hours earlier will help with flexibility, although people have mentioned that the PT - Whidbey ferry is small, so if I want to switch to another ferry 3-4 hours in advance, how likely is it to already be booked?

Also, Google Maps routed us from PA to Marblemount on this ferry, but if it's small and fills up easily, should we consider taking the Kingston - Edmonds ferry, which isn't that much more driving time and I believe is larger? This would also mean missing out on a quick drive through of Whidbey though.