Whidbey Island Is for the Dogs

Dog owners know the sign: no dogs on the beach, fines up to $500. Seattle's municipal code says so. The only way to get your dog to water (legally) is to take him to the Magnuson Park off-leash area--which Seattlest highly recommends for the giggle factor. But it's a small beach, crammed with ball-obsessed Labs. (The dog beach at the Marymoor off-leash area--outside city limits--is even smaller, and the area itself was underwater for much of January.)

There's hope on Whidbey Island. A group called Fetch has the Whidbey off-leash parks mapped on their website. Double Bluff Beach is the answer to your dog beach prayers.

Last weekend we borrowed an impossibly cute dog (pictured here on the beach) and headed to Double Bluff. Parked the car and walked, leash on, west to the sign that marks the beginning of the off-leash zone. Here, one of us became so excited that we ran around in circles, barking and jumping on the other one. (We went last week with a different pup who celebrated by eating clamshells.) The beach is long--we've been twice and haven't made it to the end yet--and sits at the base of a bluff (or two). The bluff is a tad on the scary, landslide-ready side. On our first visit, the tide was out, and the beach was wide and pleasant to walk on--we hardly noticed the bluff looming above us until the pup tried to climb it. Second visit, tide was up, and the beach was narrow. The views are south and west, which makes it extra lovely as an afternoon jaunt, or makes it a lovely last sight to see before the bluff slides and entombs you.

On the return to the car, we were asked to participate in a student film and did so, nailing our lines in one take.

To get to Double Bluff Beach, take I-5 north to the Mukilteo ferry. Hop out of your car and get some fish and chips at Ivar's--ferries run every half hour. Disembark and drive approximately 8 miles along Highway 525 to Double Bluff Road; turn left and head to the end of the road. Parking at the beach is free; there's a toilet but no running water--be sure to bring some for your pooch. (You can check the tide tables for Double Bluff here. Click on "Glendale, Whidbey Island" under "Possession Sound & Port Susan.")