Cama Beach State Park

Last updated

Cama Beach Historical State Park
Cama Beach Resort 11.jpg
USA Washington relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Location in the state of Washington
Usa edcp relief location map.png
Red pog.svg
Cama Beach State Park (the United States)
Location Island County, Washington, United States
Nearest city Stanwood, Washington
Coordinates 48°08′32″N122°30′49″W / 48.14222°N 122.51361°W / 48.14222; -122.51361 [1]
Area486 acres (197 ha)
Elevation82 ft (25 m) [1]
Established1934-1989 [2]
Administered by Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
Website Official website OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Cama Beach Resort
Cama Beach Resort pano 02.jpg
Cama Beach Resort, October 2013
Nearest city Stanwood, Washington
Area38.3 acres (15.5 ha)
Built1934 (1934)
Architectural styleBungalow/craftsman
NRHP reference No. 01000505
Added to NRHPMay 15, 2001

Cama Beach Historical State Park is a public recreation area facing Saratoga Passage on the southwest shore of Camano Island in Island County, Washington. The state park preserves the site of a renovated, modernized 1930s-era auto court and fishing resort.

Contents

History

The archaeological record shows that Native Americans were active along the shoreline now known as Cama Beach for thousands of years before the arrival of European settlers. [3] The discovery of human remains and artefacts in the early 21st century threatened to scuttle the creation of a state park at the site. [4] In 1934, LeRoy Stradley opened a fishing resort with some two dozen cabins that could be rented by vacationers at a modest cost. After his death four years later, as many other Camano Island resort properties came and went, Stradley's family continued to operate Cama Beach Resort until 1989. [5] Once closed, Stradley's granddaughters sold the resort, which had fallen into disrepair, [6] to the state of Washington at a fraction of its estimated worth, [4] contributing some of their earnings to the property's rehabilitation. [3]

The state park's 33 cabins closed on February 26, 2024, due to issues with its septic system. The Washington State Parks Commission then proposed a permanent closure of the cabins due to the cost of repairing the septic system and the site's sensitive history. [7] The full closure of the cabins was approved in October 2024 due to the need for a strengthened seawall to protect the area from future king tides and coastal erosion. [8]

Activities and amenities

Park activities include boating, crabbing, scuba diving, fishing, swimming, hiking on 15 miles of trails, wildlife viewing, and horseshoes. [2] A mile-long trail connects the park with Camano Island State Park. The Center for Wooden Boats operates the historic boathouse and shop, offering boat rentals (including boats from the site's days as a fishing resort), youth and adult sailing and boat building classes, and crabbing gear rentals. [9] [A]

Notes

  1. Overnight accommodations at Cama Beach previously included two bungalows and 24 waterfront cedar cabins. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camano Island</span> CDP in Washington, United States

Camano Island is a large island in Possession Sound, a section of Puget Sound. It is part of Island County, Washington, and is located between Whidbey Island and the mainland by the Saratoga Passage to the west and Port Susan and Davis Slough to the east. The island has one road connection to the mainland, via State Route 532 over the Camano Gateway Bridge at the northeast end of the island, connecting to the city of Stanwood.

Fair Haven Beach State Park is a 1,141-acre (4.62 km2) state park on the southeastern shore of Lake Ontario in upstate New York. It is located on the east side of Little Sodus Bay in the town of Sterling in Cayuga County, northeast of the village of Fair Haven. The southern part of the park is sometimes called Fair Haven State Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Center for Wooden Boats</span> Museum on the south shore of Lake Union, Seattle, Washington, U.S.

The Center for Wooden Boats (CWB) is a museum dedicated to preserving and documenting the maritime history of the Pacific Northwest area of the United States. CWB was founded by Dick Wagner in Seattle in the 1970s and has grown to include three sites; the South Lake Union campus in Lake Union Park, the Northlake Workshop & Warehouse at the north end of Lake Union, and The Center for Wooden Boats at Cama Beach State Park on Camano Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sucia Island</span> Island of the San Juan islands in Washington, United States

Sucia Island is located 2.5 miles (4.0 km) north of Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands, San Juan County, Washington, United States. It is the largest of an archipelago of ten islands including Sucia Island, Little Sucia, Ewing, Justice, Herndon, the Cluster Islands islets, and several smaller, unnamed islands. The group of islands is about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) in length and just short of a half mile wide. Sucia island is roughly the shape of a hand. The total land area of all islands is 2.74 km2. The main island of Sucia Island by itself is 2.259 km2. There was a permanent population of four persons as of the 2000 census, all on Sucia Island. Sucia Island State Park is a Washington State Marine Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turtle Lake (Saskatchewan)</span> Lake in Saskatchewan, Canada

Turtle Lake is a lake in the west-central part of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It is fairly long while also narrow. The closest town is Livelong and the closest cities are North Battleford, Meadow Lake, and Lloydminster. Turtle Lake is a heavily utilized recreational lake with campgrounds and small resort villages along its shores. Access to the lake and its amenities is from Highways 697 and 795.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spencer Spit State Park</span>

Spencer Spit State Park is a public recreation area ran under the Washington State Parks. It covers one hundred and thirty-eight acres (56 ha) on the eastern shore of Lopez Island in San Juan County, Washington. It overlooks the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The state park features two sand spits that enclose a salt chuck lagoon that provides a migratory stop for waterfowl, including Bonaparte's gulls. Other local fauna include great blue herons and kingfishers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park</span> State park in Washington State, United States

Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park is a public recreation area located at the foot of Dry Falls, three miles (4.8 km) west of Coulee City in Grant County, Washington. The state park covers 3,774 acres (1,527 ha) along Route 17 at the head of the Lower Grand Coulee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle Ground Lake State Park</span>

Battle Ground Lake State Park is a 280-acre (110 ha) public recreation area located three miles (4.8 km) northeast of the city of Battle Ground, Washington. The state park is covered by an evergreen forest that surrounds a crater lake of volcanic origin. The park is managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saratoga Passage</span> Waterway between Whidbey Island and Camano Island in Puget Sound, Washington, United States

Saratoga Passage lies in Puget Sound between Whidbey Island and Camano Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tolmie State Park</span> State park in Washington (state), United States

Tolmie State Park is a public recreation area covering 154 acres (62 ha) on Nisqually Beach on Puget Sound, eight miles (13 km) northeast of Olympia, Washington. The state park includes 1,800 ft (550 m) of saltwater shoreline at the mouth of a creek known as Big Slough as well as forest lands, a saltwater marsh, and an underwater park with artificial reef for scuba diving.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camano Island State Park</span> State park in Washington, United States

Camano Island State Park is a publicly owned recreation area on Camano Island in Puget Sound located 14 miles (23 km) southwest of Stanwood in Island County, Washington, United States. The park occupies 173 acres (70 ha) and has 6,700 feet (2,000 m) of shoreline. It is managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meadow Lake Provincial Park</span> Provincial park in Saskatchewan, Canada

Meadow Lake Provincial Park is a northern boreal forest provincial recreational park along the Waterhen and Cold Rivers in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The park was founded on 10 March 1959, is the largest provincial park in Saskatchewan, and encompasses over 25 lakes in an area of 1,600 km2 (620 sq mi). The park was named "Meadow Lake" after the city of Meadow Lake and Meadow Lake. The city and the lake are not in the park and are located about 40 kilometres (25 mi) south-east of the nearest park entrance, which is about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of Dorintosh. The length of the park stretches about 113 kilometres (70 mi) from Cold Lake on the Saskatchewan / Alberta border in the west to the eastern shore of Waterhen Lake in the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Janes Island State Park</span> State park in Somerset County, Maryland

Janes Island State Park is a public recreation area on Chesapeake Bay lying adjacent to the city of Crisfield in Somerset County, Maryland. The state park features some 30 miles (48 km) of marked water trails through the island's salt marsh leading to isolated pristine beaches. The park is managed by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Whidbey State Park</span> State park in the U.S. state of Washington

South Whidbey State Park is a public recreation area consisting of 381 acres (154 ha) of old-growth forest and tidelands with 4,500 feet (1,400 m) of shoreline on Admiralty Inlet along the west shore of Whidbey Island in Island County, Washington. The state park contains many mature specimens of western red cedar, Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, and western hemlock, some of the largest on Whidbey Island, including a giant cedar over 500 years old.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Townsend State Park</span> State park in Washington (state), United States

Fort Townsend State Park is a public recreation area located two miles south of Port Townsend in Jefferson County, Washington. The state park occupies a third of the site of the original Fort Townsend built in 1856. The park includes 3,960 feet (1,210 m) of shoreline on Port Townsend Bay, picnicking and camping areas, 6.5 miles (10.5 km) of hiking trails, and facilities for boating, fishing, and crabbing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jarrell Cove State Park</span> State park in the U.S. state of Washington

Jarrell Cove State Park is a Washington state park on Harstine Island in south Puget Sound. It consists of 67 acres (27 ha) of forest with 3,500 feet (1,100 m) of saltwater shoreline. Park activities include camping, hiking, biking, boating, scuba diving, fishing, swimming, waterskiing, clamming, crabbing, field sports, beachcombing, windsurfing, birdwatching, wildlife viewing, and horseshoes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joemma Beach State Park</span>

Joemma Beach State Park is a 122-acre (49 ha) Washington state park on Puget Sound in Pierce County. The park offers 3,000 feet (910 m) of saltwater shoreline on southeast Key Peninsula and opportunities for picnicking, camping, boating, fishing, waterskiing, crabbing, and beachcombing.

Doe Island Marine State Park is a public recreation area only accessible by water comprising the entirety of Doe Island in the San Juan Islands group in San Juan County, Washington. The 6.11-acre (2.47 ha) island lies .25 miles (0.40 km) southeast of Orcas Island and has 2,049 feet (625 m) of shoreline. The Washington State Parks originally acquired a portion of the island from the Bureau of Land Management in 1964 for $15.27, with a second acquisition in 1967 from the DNR at no cost.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brighton State Park</span> State park in Essex County, Vermont

Brighton State Park is a state park in Island Pond, Vermont. The park features a campground on the 102-acre Spectacle Pond, which is mostly undeveloped. There is also a day use beach and bathhouse located on 600-acre Island Pond just a half mile from the campground.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kayak Point County Park</span> County park in Snohomish County, Washington, United States

Kayak Point County Park is a county park near Warm Beach, in Snohomish County, Washington. The 670-acre (270 ha) park is located along Port Susan and includes a saltwater beach, a boat launch, a disc golf course, and public campgrounds. Kayak Point is the most popular county park in Snohomish County and is mainly visited for recreational fishing, crabbing, and birdwatching.

References

  1. 1 2 "Cama Beach". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. 1 2 "Cama Beach Historical State Park". Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  3. 1 2 True, Kathryn (June 12, 2008). "Launching a new era at Cama Beach State Park". Seattle Times. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Riddle, Margaret (November 16, 2008). "Cama Beach State Park on Camano Island officially opens on June 21, 2008". The Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History. HistoryLink. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  5. Lentz, Florence K. (November 1999). "Cama Beach Resort". National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. National Park Service. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  6. Lentz, Florence K. (November 1999). "Photos: Cama Beach Resort". National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. National Park Service. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  7. Hansen, Jordan (July 18, 2024). "State commission weighs permanent closure of Cama Beach cabins". The Everett Herald. Retrieved July 18, 2024.
  8. Scruggs, Gregory (October 10, 2024). "WA State Parks won't reopen Cama Beach cabins". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 13, 2024.
  9. "Center for Wooden Boats at Cama Beach". Center for Wooden Boats. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
  10. "Cama Beach Cabins". Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. Retrieved February 20, 2016.