It had been a while since we did this hike and there have been some changes. Since we live in Anacortes we had no need of a ferry, just took Highway 20 south across the Deception Pass bridge, then continued on through Oak Harbor, and beyond.
Before heading down the hill toward Coupeville we turned right onto Sherman Road, passed the cemetery, and found a parking niche in the small lot on the left. (A larger lot is available a bit farther along to the right.)
A free brochure available at the headquarters, titled "Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve," offers historical commentary and a map of the surrounding area.
My hiking buddy Marin and I set out on the gravel trail heading southwest past the old home and blockhouse. We followed along next to a barbed wire fence, with good views to the south and east across Whidbey Island's varying terrain, and to Cascade peaks beyond.
When we reached the Bluff Trail we headed northwest up the ridge (According to WTA's hike description, "Hikers are asked to hike Ebey's Landing as a one-way loop temporarily, as it is difficult to maintain physical distance on sections of the trail." This seemed a good thought, and would have been more helpful if the clockwise or counter-clockwise direction had been specified. The additional link "See a map of the requested route" did not lead to any clarification.)
We found the main trail open all the way, but frequent side trails, some of them just social trails, were signed "Trail Closed."
The ridge walk had a lot of minor ups and downs, with extensive views out to Admiralty Inlet, and inland into rather dark forest and an occasional nearby residence.
Eventually the route began to switchback downhill, leading to the northern end of Perego's Lake, as it's called on the map in the brochure. Here, there seemed to be two options: to head directly for the beach, or to follow the obvious, long-established trail around the seaward side of the lake. (A former third route, along the base of the steep hillside, seems no longer to be in service.) We opted to begin with the lakeside option (trail visible in Marin's photo.)
This route offered interesting low vegetation, tall grasses, some late-blooming composite wildflowers, occasional driftwood, and sightings of two herons and a few other shore birds. We were never out of hearing of the surf that was just a few yards away to our right.
When we reached the southern end of the lake it was obvious that the connector to the former trail along the steep hillside is no longer present, so that route definitely is out of service now. (I recall enjoying it on a solo hike a few years ago. Impermanence happens.)
We easily moved over to the beach to continue our walk south. This offered additional bird sightings, a variety of interesting rocks and shells to contemplate, and some complex sand layering exposed in the steep hillside.
At the southern trailhead, we noted many additional cars parked near a cupola and restroom. Our trail headed steeply up the slope, then became more nearly level before a final bit of uphill to reach our incoming trail along the fence that took us back to our parking area.
It was a very pleasant day to be out on the trails, sunny but not hot, with only a few wisps of cloud in the air. Our trails did not seem particularly crowded, although we did encounter a few other hikers.
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