Discovery pass needed. Easy trek down to the beach. There's public restroom and water available…read morenear the beach entrance. We tried crabbing here twice. Definitely bring a spare lure; our first attempt, we had to cut the line as it got snagged on some rocks. Saw a lot of people on the beach, enjoying a picnic or even kayaking out to crab boxes in the evening. Beautiful park overall. Make sure you're sure-footed if you're going to climb the rocks.

The beach park section of Larrabee park is gorgeous. There's ample parking, then a decent that's…read moreabout a 45 second walk to a grassy lawn and a beautiful stage built in the early 1900s. There were people performing music on the stage and park goers enjoying on the grass. Just to the left of the stage there's a path to the beach. Another 2-3 minute descent brings you to a trail going left and right. The path to the left is a short trail to a rock you can sit on and climb down to get to the water. Further that way there's another beach. The path to the right leads to a nice beach with a great view and a shade tree. There were some bugs in the washed up kelp, but nothing too bothersome imho. We had a stand up paddleboard so we used the path on the right after the stage area. I would recommend anyone bringing gear down (scuba, kayaks, paddleboards) to use this beach. Larger crafts can use the boat ramp just north of this beach, and you can drive right up to that ramp (north of the stage and parking area). It was a beautiful park and a great place to picnic, enjoy the water, and view the sunset!

There isn't a more quintessential park in the Bellingham area than Berthusen Park. When you pull…read moreinto the driveway, you pass a red barn into a deep forest. There are several parking areas each by shaded playgrounds. There's a public restroom and trails that take you onto the forest with stunning Pacific Northwest views.

Super cool old growth park in Lynden. I came with my bicycle based on a recommendation and was not…read moredisappointed. There are so many trails that one can cover in a relatively short amount of time. Trail information can be obtained through a pamphlet provided at the park. I was able to ride through a few trails and chose to walk others due to hills. As a new cyclist, I'd have hurt myself because it was an especially wet day. There's a playground, facilities, and picnic areas. The information pamphlet also provides a short history of how the land became a park. Very cool and beautiful place. I'll likely visit anytime I find myself in Lynden.

I like it. If you didn't know Arroyo means stream so the park is aptly named…read more This is indeed a little bit of a secret garden once you descend from the parking off Old Samish the city disappears and you enter the land of the fey... oh wait... shit people don't pick up their dog poop here either!!! Sonofa... seriously people #scoopyourdarnpoop. Other than the poop, it is a neat place with all sorts of options for trails. You can connect to the Lost Lake trail and to the Chuckanut Falls trail from here. My fav: you can park here and take an easy walk about 1.5 miles down the interurban trail to get to Teddy Bear Cove. Just be careful when you have to cross the street at Chuckanut Drive.

Arroyo Park has been one of my favorite spots in Bellingham since I lived here 15 years ago…read more The salmon are just starting to return for their upstream run. (11/11/2018). Last year was very light so, hopefully there will be more this year. Two years ago, there were hundreds running upstream to spawn. When the water, "boils" with their efforts to climb upstream and place their eggs in the same location they were born, it is a marvel of nature we are incredibly blessed to witness. Please keep pets and kids from scaring the salmon as they are expending every ounce of their remaining life energy to reach their soaring location. But, certainly visit and look closely to find the well camouflaged salmon. Many are well over 2-3' in length. You can often see them molting and splashing as they spend their last moments working hard to continue the salmon life cycle.

Really lovely area to explore the rocky coast of Washington. Free entry, free parking, plenty of…read moreplaces to explore, hike, enjoy a picnic, play on playgrounds, you name it. A bit secluded which just adds to its allure in my book. Love the coupling of large trees and rock beach right next to each other, such a unique thing to experience.

Birch Bay is probably in the Top 3 of my favorite state parks. It's in an idyllic, bayside setting,…read morewith a huge campground and lots to do in the area. I spent many a summer weekend tent camping there with my kids, and recently returned to camp again for the long weekend over July 4th. As any local will tell you, the Birch Bay area is THE place to be to celebrate and over-the-top Independence Day. Since my tent camping with kids days I've upgraded to a small teardrop travel trailer. Luckily, the majority of sites at the BBSP campground accommodate smaller travel trailers. They even have water/electric hookup sites but these are almost impossible to procure. Still, it was fun to boondock for four nights at one of their many double/group sites - which we shared with some friends. I was thankful for having a trailer, because it rained HARD for two of the days we were there and everything was soaked. Our group site (107/108) was also located near a bog so it got especially muddy. Still, we didn't let it ruin the fun - but it was a good reminder that it's never a bad idea to bring extra awnings and canopies on these PNW camping trips. The park itself is well-managed, with rangers regularly circulating and a camp host on duty most of the day. The bathrooms are clean and serviced regularly, and there are coin-op showers to keep you clean. The beach is a short walk from the campground, and an amazing place to watch sunsets. We also rode bikes into the village - it's perfectly level and there's a bike lane most of the way. We ended up at the local brewery, which was right across from the beach and a great place to listen to some live music and enjoy the weekend. Birch Bay State Park will always be on my radar for great, not-too-far-away, family-friendly camping spots. Reserve early for best selection!

Good part for the kids to run around as well as trails to do Walks open area picnic tables very…read morefamily, friendly, pet friendly please clean up after your pet though.

We found this place by accident while on a different nature walk. It's gorgeous! The playground was…read morebeautiful, the grassy fields are perfectly maintained and the "watch tower" was such a great surprise! 100% will recommend this place to everyone I know! Pack a lunch and go enjoy some beautiful scenery!

It's a hike that you must do in the Bellingham area, hell, in the state. It's one of those gems…read morethat everyone talks about - and I know in Washington, everyone talks about hiking trails, but this is one of those that you have to do...if you like hiking and are in the area. We spent a weekend in Bellingham and not gonna lie, Oyster Dome was one of the primary reasons for spending time up north. Located along the Chuckanut Drive on Blanchard Mountain, it's a hike with a rewarding view at the end. So yes, it's worth it. This hike is about a five-mile, round-trip trail with an elevation gain of just over 1000. It's a good climb, but not difficult or challenging. The parking area can get filled up quickly, and you'll likely see many people along the trail and definitely up at summit. It's dog-friendly; we saw a lot of dogs on the trail and brought our little hiker, too. You'll need a Discover Pass to park here and in the lot is where there are restrooms. The hike goes through a forested area, providing tree canopy and cooler temperatures. But some parts can be rocky, especially towards the summit. Descending was worse as it can be sore on your knees, so it felt longer going down than up in my opinion. The views are incredible. You can see the mountains, the valley and even Canada. Pretty amazing.

Yet another great hiking trail we softly explored, to help our toddlers calm down before we headed…read moreback home. Oyster Dome Trail has multiple markers for guidance throughout it. Now that we've all thawed out from the winter, exploring WAs beautiful trails, parks, and landmarks come naturally; investing in a Discovery pass could be helpful. We will definitely return, and recommend!

Whatcom County parks are great to explore anytime of year. Silver Lake Park is no exception. The…read morepros: -Rustic cabins with killer views of pristine Silver Lake -Quiet, secluded and clean -Roomy camp sites with clear signage to direct you around the park Cons: -Rustic cabins. The cabins are old and only the Baker has a shower and toilet. Bring your own bedding, towels and kitchen supplies. The cabins are truly bare bones. -Lockboxes for cabin keys. Make sure you have the numeric code before you leave home because you'll need it to open up your cabin. No internet signal up here. You'll need to drive down to Maple Falls for internet access.

Fun place to hang out and launch a small motorized water craft, canoe, kayak or paddle board…read more Fishing is good in the morning and later in the afternoon--if you can handle the mosquitoes.

One of the more under rated parks in Bellingham. I came here and observed the tidal pool and marine…read moreenvironments. I found some of the coolest sea anemones, barnacles, star fish, and so many little critters. This park is also super close to Fairhaven and the perfect place to launch kayaks

I love this park, it's been one of my favorite places since we moved to Bellingham. The park itself…read morehas few amenities (it does have a restroom!), bur iron provides some of the absolute best sunset views and is the ideal place to take photos of inbound trains (like Amtrak). The last few times we've visited the park, there have been people doing polar dips too, so if that's you're thing, this is a great place to do it. Check this spot out!