On Lopez Island, there are many options for beautiful hikes along sandy beaches, through quiet forests and over rocky bluffs with amazing views. For maps and updated information, also check out the Lopez Community Trails network at www.lopeztrails.org. As you explore these favorite parks and shorelines, be sure to Leave No Trace and obey all park signage. Thank you for helping protect and preserve the Islands for future generations.
San Juan County Parks provides beautiful shoreline parks on the ferry-served San Juan Islands. Campgrounds offer waterfront campsites, beach access & scenic views and accommodate tents and smaller RVs (no hook-ups; check for size restrictions) for a unique "island” experience. Restrooms, picnic tables, fire-rings, picnic shelters, boat ramps.
Odlin County Park is just one mile from the Lopez Island Ferry Landing and three miles from Lopez Village. This 80-acre waterfront park features 30 campsites, separate group camp, a lovely sandy beach, a boat launch, hiking trails, a full-sized ball field and several picnic areas. Enjoy a hike or eat lunch in the picnic pavilion. There is also seasonal water, (no sewer hook-ups) toilets, five mooring buoys, and a day use dock.
Accessibility
To access the beach, you can walk down the boat ramp or go through the day use and camping area to a signed grassy path that is clear of driftwood. There are a couple of short trails, but they are rustic and narrow. The Sunset Trail is the widest at generally two feet wide and the most level.
Past Lopez Village on the island’s west side, Otis Perkins County Day Park sits on a slender spit in Fisherman Bay. Enjoy one of the longest beaches in the islands, and nearly a mile of waterfront to explore to the north of the parking area, with great views of the San Juan Channel and the distant shoreline of San Juan. It’s also a prime spot for watching float planes land and take off from the bay. If you’re a birder, the sheltered side of the shore, a salt marsh teeming with waterfowl, will keep your binoculars and spotting scope busy.
Accessibility
Access to the beach is level and fairly easy, though there may be driftwood.
Shark Reef Sanctuary is a hidden gem, tucked away on the west side of the island, where a short 10-minute walk through a forest will lead to a rocky shoreline with stunning views over the water and an almost certain seal (and perhaps sea lion and otter) sighting.—just be sure to follow the path around to the left. Length: 1.0 miles, roundtrip. Elevation: Gain: 40 ft; Highest Point: 60 ft.
Accessibility
There is a boardwalk at the beginning of the trail, but it is narrow and several inches high with no edge guards. The rest of the trail through the forest is narrow, eroded, and has several steep sections. Continuing along the bluff for the best views requires walking over exposed rocks. This trail is not recommended for people with mobility limitations.
Lopez Island’s largest freshwater lake, 80-acre Hummel Lake Preserve boasts beautiful lakefront shoreline, a dock for fishing (but no swimming), and about a mile of trails through a second-growth forest that ends at Port Stanley Road. The preserve includes 1,450 feet of lakefront shoreline, wetland, meadow, forest, and habitat for many bird species.
Accessibility
The trail to the lake is about .20 mile long. It is generally accessible for people with limited mobility but is not wheelchair accessible. From the parking area, head back towards the road and go right, behind the vault toilet. The trail starts three feet wide, compact gravel and dirt surface, declining at 5-8% through the forest area. It then transitions to grass and gravel and narrows to about two feet wide, continuing on a slight decline. The transition to the dock is eroded with a three inch lip onto the boardwalk. The boardwalk and dock have edge guards.
The forest trail that connects to Port Stanley Road is generally a narrow footpath with lots of exposed roots and several short, steep sections.
Spencer Spit State Park, on Lopez Island, is a 138-acre marine and camping park. The park is named for the lagoon-enclosing sand spit on which it rests. There are many sheltered and unsheltered picnic tables, and two miles of hiking trails. The park has a reputation for excellent crabbing and clamming. This is one of the few state parks in the San Juan Islands that is accessible by automobile.
Accessibility
The gravel trail down to the spit is only 0.10 mile, but it is steep – it loses over 50 feet in elevation and has a maximum 12% grade. Once you are on the spit, it is entirely flat and would be accessible to people with all terrain wheelchairs or using a walker, cane, or poles. The spit is a mix of grass and gravel and is sandy at the end. There is a replica wooden lodge with interpretive signs and picnic tables.
Parking: The main parking lot is paved and there is one accessible parking spot near the restrooms. There is a limited access disabled parking spot at the spit. It is blocked by a gate behind the ranger station and you may have to request access. You then drive down a gravel service road and park in a gravel parking area.
Amenities: Restrooms, picnic tables, and overnight camping.
