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 San Juan County.
Bellingham is the most populous city in, and county seat of, Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It lies 21 miles (34 km) south of the U.S.–Canada border and in between Vancouver, British Columbia and Seattle. The Bellingham Metropolitan Area's population is 231,919, making it the 204th-largest in the United States. Its growth rate of 13.28% between 2010 and 2023 made it one of the states fastest-growing large cities.
Whatcom County is a county located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Washington, bordered by the Lower Mainland of British Columbia to the north, Okanogan County to the east, Skagit County to the south, San Juan County across Rosario Strait to the southwest, and the Strait of Georgia to the west. Its county seat and largest population center is the coastal city of Bellingham, comprising the Bellingham, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area, and as of the 2020 census, the county's population was 226,847.
Birch Bay is a protected bay of the east shore of the Salish Sea, between Semiahmoo Bay and Lummi Bay; approximately 100 miles (160 km) north of Seattle and 35 miles (56 km) south of Vancouver, BC, Canada.
The LummiNation is a federally-recognized tribe of primarily Lummi people. The Lummi Nation also includes some Nooksack, Samish, and other local tribes which were removed to the reservation. It is based in the coastal area of the Pacific Northwest region of Washington state in the United States, and is located within the Bellingham Metropolitan Area
The Strait of Georgia or the Georgia Strait is an arm of the Salish Sea between Vancouver Island and the extreme southwestern mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada, and the extreme northwestern mainland coast of Washington, United States. It is approximately 240 kilometres (150 mi) long and varies in width from 20 to 58 kilometres. Along with the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Puget Sound, it is a constituent part of the Salish Sea.
Guemes Island is a small island in western Skagit County, Washington, United States. It is located north of Fidalgo Island and the city of Anacortes, and is accessible by private boat and by the Guemes Island ferry operated by Skagit County.
Lake Whatcom is located in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. It is the drinking water source for approximately 85,000 residents in the city of Bellingham as well as Whatcom County. It is approximately 10 miles (16 km) in length and 1 mile (1.6 km) in width at its widest. Lake Whatcom is located and managed within three political jurisdictions: the city of Bellingham, Whatcom County, and the Lake Whatcom Water and Sewer District. The lake is a popular area for motor boating, swimming, fishing, and other recreational activities.
The Whatcom Trail was an overland trail from the Puget Sound area of Washington Territory during the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858. The trail began on Bellingham Bay, at Fairhaven, the route used went via a route known as the Columbia Valley, which is a lowland route connecting the mid-Nooksack River area with Cultus Lake and the lower Chilliwack River in the Upper Fraser Valley, about 80 km east of today's Vancouver. In 1858, T. G. Richards built the first brick building in Washington as an outfitter for those using the Whatcom Trail.
Padilla Bay is a bay located in the U.S. state of Washington, between the San Juan Islands and the mainland. Fidalgo Island and Guemes Island lie to the west of Padilla Bay. Guemes Channel, between the islands, connects Padilla Bay to Rosario Strait. Samish Island lies to the north of Padilla Bay, beyond which is Samish Bay and Bellingham Bay.
Eliza Island is located in the western part of Bellingham Bay in the U.S. state of Washington. It lies just east of the southern part of Lummi Island, in Whatcom County. Eliza Island has a land area of 0.571 km2. Its population was ten persons as of the 2010 census.
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 23 kilometres (14 mi) north to the Strait of Georgia. The USGS defines its southern boundary as a line extending from Point Colville on Lopez Island to Rosario Head on Fidalgo Island, and its northern boundary as a line from Point Migley on Lummi Island to the east tip of Puffin Island and then to Point Thompson on Orcas Island. Rosario Strait runs north-south between Lopez, Decatur, Blakely, and Orcas Islands on the west, and Fidalgo, Cypress, Sinclair, and Lummi Islands on the east.
The Bellingham Waterfront consists of the land along Bellingham Bay in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. It is mostly in Bellingham, Washington and other surrounding neighborhoods and cities. Various Bellingham neighborhoods are along the waterfront including is shared with Fairhaven.
The history of Bellingham, Washington, as it is now known, begins with the settling of Whatcom County in the mid-to-late 19th century.
Hale Passage is the name of two different bodies of water in Puget Sound, in the U.S. state of Washington.
The Whatcom Chief is a ferry in Washington state, United States. The ferry carries both pedestrians and vehicles to Lummi Island from Gooseberry Point west of Bellingham, Washington.
The Gateway Pacific Terminal was a proposed export terminal at Cherry Point in Whatcom County, Washington, along the Salish Sea shoreline. It was announced in 2011 and would have exported coal, but was opposed by local residents and the Lummi Nation, who had an ancestral village site at Cherry Point. The terminal project was rejected by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2016, ruling that it would infringe on the fishing rights of the Lummi Nation.
Chuckanut Bay is a crescent-shaped bay about three miles (4.8 km) long in southwestern Whatcom County, directly south of Bellingham, Washington, United States. The bay was formed along the axis of a plunging syncline during the formation of the Chuckanut Mountains. It is situated on the east shore of the Salish Sea at the southeast end of Bellingham Bay. The bay was named Puerto del Socorro by Lieut. Juan Francisco de Eliza in 1791. The present name was chosen by Capt. Henry Roeder on December 1, 1852. The name 'Chuckanut' is derived from a native word for "Long beach far from a narrow entrance" Prominent natural features include Pleasant Bay located south of Chuckanut Bay, Mud Bay to the north and Chuckanut Island and Chuckanut Rocks to the west. Other natural features include Teddy Bear Cove, Governors Point and Clark Point. The most prominent creeks that drain into the bay are Chuckanut Creek and Fragrance Lake Outlet. The bay is home to interesting tafoni formations found in the area.
The Interurban Trail is a rail trail in Whatcom County, Washington. Built for bicycle and hiking recreation, the trail runs 6.6 miles (10.6 km) between Fairhaven and Larrabee State Park in the Bellingham area.
Lummi Nation School (LNS) is a K-12 tribal school for the Lummi people, in unincorporated Whatcom County, Washington, with a Bellingham postal address. It is affiliated with the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE).
