Patos Island

Active Cove:

  • 2 active mooring buoys 

  • The moorage area at Active Cove has strong currents flowing through it and is exposed to strong westerly winds from the Georgia Strait. Boaters should check weather reports and avoid anchoring at this site during weather forecasts which call for high pressure systems and westerly winds exceeding 12 knots in southern Georgia Strait. Boats commonly drag anchor and may go aground during these conditions.

  • The two offshore mooring buoys are in service year-round. Please observe mooring limitations posted on the buoys and at the onshore bulletin boards. Moorage fees are charged year round from 1:00 PM to 8:00 AM on a first come, first served basis. All boaters must self-register and pay required fees upon arrival. Boaters must also pay for boats rafted to another boat. Boaters need to obey rafting limits posted on mooring buoys.

  • Latitude: 48º 47' 6" N (48.785)  Longitude: 122º 57' 58.96" W (-122.9663)

Patos Island is a 207-acre marine park with 20,000 feet of saltwater shoreline that is owned by the Bureau of Land Management. Washington State Parks manages the campground at Active Cove on the west side of the island and maintains the two mooring buoys and a 1.5-mile loop trail. The group campsite is often reserved for the local volunteer group that maintains the lighthouse. There is no potable water on the island and visitors must pack out what they pack in.

According to the WA park site:  Up for a scavenger hunt? Find the Coast Guard international boundary marker in front of the lighthouse and take the paved path back to a former Coast Guard station, now a ruin, and spy the former helicopter landing pad. Patos is only a couple miles from Canadian waters, and is the northernmost of the San Juan Islands.

The park offers seven campsites, one picnic site, one composting toilets, and one vault toilet at Active Cove. Camping is available on a first come, first served basis. Campers must register at the bulletin board near the beach. There is no potable water or garbage service on Patos Island. Visitors must pack-out what they pack-in.

Lighthouse tours are offered on most weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day (weather and tide permitting). Please call Sucia Island State Park at (360) 376-2073 for information and availability.

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It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Make it stand out.

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Make it stand out.

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San Juan Island