Port Townsend Tour: Day 4 Oak Bay County Park to Fort Flagler State Park

Another misty morning dawns but the day clears and warms quickly. We are not riding far today, our next campsite is only ten miles away and we have no need to hurry.

A small bridge connects the mainland to Indian Island, a green chunk of land composed almost entirely of a major U.S. Navy munitions facility. The road skirts the southern edge of the island with lovely views of Oak Bay to the south and barbed wire and signs warning of severe consequences to the north.

Marrowstone Island is connected to Indian Island via a narrow causeway at the southern end of the Kilisut Harbor. As we roll across the causeway, I look left and see a heron wading in the shallow waters. "Hey, look at the heron!" I yell out. Christine, who has been rolling a bit ahead, stops her bike and looks back. "Hey," she points, "look at the deer!" Sure enough, in addition to the heron, a buck is wading across the gap between the two islands.

Marrowstone Island on a sunny September day is a fine place to be. The traffic is light, the views are amazing, the boats and buildings are very interesting.

The only town on Marrowstone Island is Nordland and the town basically is the Nordland General Store. If the store doesn't have it, you probably don't need it.

We picnic at Mystery Bay. We think maybe a hobbit built this shed.

Boats come in all shapes and sizes. This Hydrobike caught my eye. Christine's comments were 1) "Yes that's quite nice." 2) "No, you don't need one." She's right, of course.

I don't need a big boat with a dog either, but this is a lovely vessel.

We pedal to the north end of the island and camp at Fort Flagler State Park. It's mid-week in mid-September and we have our choice of dozens of campsites.

Fort Flagler looks out across the water toward Port Townsend, tomorrow's destination. The evening sun on the water presents postcard perfect ending to another day.