Sea Kayak - Goat Island

We will start and end at the Conner Waterfront Park in La Conner, along the channel side of Sherman Street.

Please plan to be at the park by no later than 8:00am.  This is the meeting time and it was established to ensure everyone has enough time to prepare for our timely launch one hour later.  We cannot delay the launch time so if you feel you may need more time to prepare your boat and gear, please plan on arriving before the 8:00am meeting time.

I expect we will be done paddling by around 2:00pm.

This trip requires trip leader permission because it is intended for students working to complete their Mountaineers Basic Sea Kayaking badge. If you are a student in one of these courses, please contact the trip leader to be added to the roster when registration opens.

As is standard for Mountaineers Sea Kayaking activities, participants are responsible for making arrangements for their own boats, gear, food, water, etc.

Paddling style dry suits are required on this trip due to the possibly of cold water immersion.  

For the short hiking portion of this trip you may want to bring sturdy walking shoes that you don’t mind getting muddy.  And maybe hiking poles if you like to use them.  There is a short climb up a bank from the beach up to the fort trail and hiking poles might come in handy. There are also some rough areas around the fort itself. Be sure to keep a sharp eye out for abrupt edges along stairways and walls. And watch out for holes in the ground, as well as fallen branches and other debris!!! I have not had any trouble walking up to and around the place with my NRS kayaking booties but some folks may prefer tougher footwear and a hiking pole or two.

For the latest weather updates for this paddle, check the following links:

Pinpoint Forecast: https://marine.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=48.36413471149556&lon=-122.5200370978564#.YFvZzSVHaaM

Associated Zone Forecast: https://marine.weather.gov/MapClick.php?zoneid=PZZ133#.YF5D3C1HafB

Hourly Weather Forecast Graph: https://marine.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=48.3641&lon=-122.52&unit=0&lg=english&FcstType=graphicals

Skagit River flow reports:

(CONW1) SKAGIT − NEAR CONCRETE Station Summary

(MVEW1) SKAGIT − NEAR MT VERNON Station Summary

For information on Goat Island’s interesting military history, check out http://www.fortwiki.com/Fort_Whitman