48° 30′ 36.85″ N, 122° 48′ 39.34″ W

Decatur Island is a small private island and does not have any public moorage available. There is one public boat ramp in Davis Bay on the east side of the island, though there is no town and no store. It has been noted that the island does not encourage visitors. Tough the San Juan Preservation Trust allows public day-use of their property on the southern tip of the island.

Anchorage:

• Cove at the southwest tip - it is possible for a small boat to anchor (though all tidelands are private)

  • 48° 29.11′ N, 122° 49.43’ W

• Reads Bay - Active area for Read Brothers Shipyard and there are several piers extending into deep water (all floats in Reads bay are private). Best anchorage is north of the cable area. There is no shore access

  • 48° 29.81 N, 122° 49.59′ W

Interesting Tidbits:

The island was named by the Wiles Expedition in 1841 for naval officer Stephen Decatur. It is 3.524 square miles (9.127 km²) in area. The island is only accessible by private boat or plane (no Washington State Ferry service). The airport on Decatur Island is private, for residents of the Decatur Shores community only.

On the south side of the island there is a concrete structure which is what is left of an old kelp plant once used to extract potash for explosives.