Jacobs Point Park Anderson Island, WA 98303

"As advertised, this park has a lovely walking trail that loops the park, mostly shady, with beach access at one point and views of the Sound from several spots, too. On the rocky beach we watched many, many tiny crabs skittering among and under the rocks near the waterline. However, note these: 1. There are individual picnic tables at each viewpoint, clean and in good condition, but only one in each spot. Don't plan for many people to eat together. 2. Almost the whole hike included stepping or climbing over above-ground tree roots that criss-crossed the trail. You can't maintain any pace while navigating over and around. 3. There were zero trash cans for picnic garbage or anything else. And 4. August was a bad choice for picnicking, as each time we settled at a table, bees found us within a minute. The only place safe from bees was the beach close to the water."

"Trail maps are frequent and accurate. But be aware the trails are criss-crossed by above-ground tree roots so we did a lot of stepping over and some toe-stubbing and tripping. Still, we enjoyed the walk. Note that in late August, every time we tried to open our picnic food, aggressive bees quickly appeared."

"The trail is well maintained but is prone to get muddy during the rainy season. The signs have been recently updated and added some great info to the hike. The trail offers a get away from the mainland and is a perfect way to unwind. The overlooks provide beautiful views of the water and the trail gives a great look of the forest. Expect to see a lot of birds and some newts along the path in early spring. There is beach access, but it is not for swimming. Just for looking over the water and observing some marine life."

"What a nice find. All the marine books tell you that all the tide lands are private property, but there are actually two locations where boaters can access this park from Oro Bay. We appreciate the couple on the Fisher ketch who told us about the park and its access. One access point is a set of stairs on the beach between the two land points (across from the channel markers), and the other is where the old brick yard site is. The park has about a two mile loop with picnic tables, a toilet or two, and some interesting historical sites. There is another park (Andy's Wildlife Park and Trail) that we will save for our next trip here."

"Awesome park on this tiny island. Great hiking but hard to access any beach. However when we got to the point where the wetland meets the bay we saw thousands of crabs! That alone made the trip worth it!"