It probably took about an hour to get to the trail head from Mount Vernon. We arrived around 10:30 which I thought would be a little late but it worked out perfectly. It was alot cooler on Whidby than it was when we left our house because of the cool marine air. And the fog was just beginning to burn off of the sound. It we had arrived any earlier it would have been way too cold and we wouldn't have had a view. The trail starts by going up to the edge of a bluff. There were alot of different wild flowers and roses. There were also a variety of birds. I'm not really a bird watcher but the birds were really colorful and were singing. We also saw a bald eagle fly in front of us and go into the tree line that the trail follows. The only down side to this hike were the amount of mosquito's on the first part of the trail. Whidby Island seems to have alot of monster mosquito's this time of year, but they are male mosquito's and do not bite. I'm not sure when the females come out but luckily they were more of a nuisance than anything else. The hike follows the top of a bluff along a tree line and you get to see a bunch of knarled trees and you get a beautiful view of Mt.Baker, and the Olympics as you walk about two miles. You get to see a beautiful laggon and the beach below as you hike. Then the trail descends to the beach and you walk back to your car. My husband thinks he saw a seal. If you go on this trail wear lots of sun screen since you are exposed to the sun for the entire 4 miles.

Left Redmond around 10.30am and arrived at the trailhead close to noon. The ferry traffic was very light today and we didn't have any problems with traffic. The weather was cloudy which must have kept folks away because the trail wasn't too busy. We hiked from the trailhead along the beach past the lake for about an extra 3/4 mile, since the tide was low. We returned and continued up on the ridge back to the trailhead and a tasty meal. Total distance was a leisurely 5 miles, and we finished close to 4.00pm. Trail was in excellent condition. Steep in some areas, particularly going up the cliff on the return. We saw several rabbits, a deer, and a snake that slithered across the trail before I could identify it. All in all a great hike, with beautiful scenery, on a fantastic day.

This Whidbey Island hike is a nice option for a sunny winter day when you'd like to stay out in the open and enjoy some great views. It took about 1.5 hours to drive there from Seattle including the ferry. Our five year old happily walked the whole (3.5 or 3.0 mile?)loop, and we carried the 14 month old in the pack. I held kiddo's hand on a couple of parts of the bluff trail where it traverses steep open slopes. He loved the short sand slide at the bottom near the beach. It appears that this trail has been re-built and is now more switchbacked and less steep. We added variety to the return walk on the beach by cutting over to the trail along the lagoon. This avoided an area of slightly slippery footing on the beach, too. Tide was pretty high. Lots of others out enjoying this spot. We felt we had picked just the right thing to do on a sunny winter day.

The Ebey's landing loop was gorgeous as usual, although the trail is too short. The kids, who were bickering a bit in the car, immediately perked up and we decided to do the trip in the opposite order from usual--beach first. Found three small agates, and a very orange crab shell. The wildflower display is currently dominated by a pretty purple vetch, accented by roses, brodeia, and catchfly. Showers were forecast, however there was a negligible amount of precipitation.

One of these days I should learn how to snowshoe, but for now most of the mountains are closed to me. So a fantastically beautiful day for a trip to the coast! The 3.5 mile Ebey's Landing loop (turn west on Ebey Rd from Coupeville) on Whidbey Island provides a stunning outing in any weather, with views spanning the Sound through a hundred and eighty degrees. Dramatic stormy seas and skies, a wide expanse of mirror-like blue, it just can't look bad whatever the weather. The day didn't clear up as much as predicted, but the mist gave way to thin, hazy sun and rippling lines of high cloud. I do the loop climbing up the bluff from the car park, along the top of the cliffs and down beyond Perego's Lagoon to return via the beach. I imagine doing the reverse loop would make a hard climb up to the bluff on slippery sand - that's a steep section of trail. At this time of year, there are many visiting waterbirds off the beach at Ebey's Landing, mostly various species of ducks and grebes, with a few waders around Perego's Lagoon. Between the wildlife and the huge accumulations of driftwood, there's never a lack of something to grab the eye on the walk back along the beach to the parking area. Loops are always good for increased interest, and this is a quick hike that can be easily fitted in on a short winter day even when you have to take the ferry! More pictures at http://eelpi.livejournal.com/30103.html#cutid1