Puget Sound

Understand

Geography

The Puget Sound is a big fjord, a semi-enclosed body of water. Salt water from the nearby Pacific Ocean mixes with fresh water runoff from the surrounding watershed in western Washington, in a sheltered arm of ocean between the "mainland" of Washington State to the east and the Olympic Peninsula to the west. The southern boundary is marked by where the mainland and the Olympic Peninsula meet, near Olympia.

Hood Canal, the westernmost feature of Puget Sound, is not a canal but an inland fjord that stretches for over 70 miles (110 km), separating the Kitsap Peninsula from the Olympic Peninsula. Near the southern end of the Kitsap Peninsula, it hooks inward at an area known as the Great Bend.

The Sound is the second largest estuary in the United States, with 2350 mi of shoreline. Its watershed covers nearly 16500 sq mi and over ten thousand rivers and streams drain into it.

There is some debate on the exact boundaries of what we call Puget Sound. The most widely used definition (including the one used by this article) marks the northern boundary at Admiralty Pass and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. However, the definition established by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) draws the northern border along the Canadian border and the Strait of Georgia.

In 2009, the area that contains the Strait of Juan De Fuca, the Puget Sound and the Strait of Georgia into Canada was named the Salish Sea, in honor of the indigenous people of the region.

History

Puget Sound's complex series of waterways was formed from receding glaciers that left the area about 14,000 years ago, cutting deep into the land, forming valleys that eventually flooded, creating the intricate landscape that we know today.

According to scientific data, the first people arrived in Puget Sound about 12,000 years ago, but according to the native Suquamish people, legend says that all of the earth was water, then the Old One dried the land and created everything from mud; he used the last mud balls from the earth to create the people. Then he sent Coyote to teach the people how to live with the earth. Coyote traveled the earth teaching the people and making life better for them.

By 1792, when Captain George Vancouver named the area after one of his officers and declared the area for Great Britain, the Suquamish and Salish people had already developed a multifaceted and complex society of their own. The Suquamish people called Puget Sound the Lushootseed name 'WulcH, which simply means "Salt Water". For thousands of years, the Suquamish traveled the waters of Puget Sound in well-designed cedar canoes, and before settlers developed roadways, a complex series of ferries known as the ‘Mosquito Fleet’ was also the main way people and goods were transported around the area, and the waters of Puget Sound became the first regional highway.

Once the Washington Territory was established in 1853, the U.S. government began signing treaties with area tribes to acquire their lands. The Suquamish people ceded most of their land to the United States, and logging came into the area in full force. The area's once impassable thick forests gave way to farms, towns and industry, as lumber was shipped off to areas such as San Francisco or burned as fuel for the growing fleet of boats.

Today, the area has grown in international influence with economic powerhouses such as Boeing, Starbucks and Microsoft whose global reach is far beyond Washington State borders. Seattle is the largest cosmopolitan city, with millions of people, and the region's cultural influence is profound, with many artistic and cultural endeavors reaching an international audience. Yet, though all of this growth and change, the people of the region are still tied to Puget Sound not only for transportation and a source of food, but as the symbolic center of their area's culture.

Regions

While other definitions exist, this article defines the Puget Sound Region as the counties contained within Puget Sound (Kitsap and Island) and the counties that border it to the east (Snohomish, King, Pierce, and Thurston). This includes the land between the eastern shore of Puget Sound and the crest of the Cascade Mountains.

The counties to the west of Hood Canal are part of the Olympic Peninsula, and the counties north of the Strait of Juan de Fuca are part of the San Juan Islands and Northwest Washington.

Cities

• Bellevue — across Lake Washington to the east of Seattle. It is the fifth largest city in the state.
• Bremerton — the main city within the Kitsap Peninsula. This harbor town is fun place to explore.
• Gig Harbor — a small historical harbor town near the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.
• Olympia — the beautiful state capital at the southernmost bit of Puget Sound.
• Port Orchard — classic harbor town with downtown shopping area on the Kitsap Peninsula.
• Seattle — by far the largest city in the region. It is the heart of a vibrant metropolitan area and a major tourist destination.
• Snoqualmie — historic railroad and logging town, home to the impressive Snoqualmie Falls.
• Tacoma — another major city in the South Sound. Formerly mostly industrial, the city center has been beautified, and the city now offers attractions such as the famous Museum of Glass, Point Defiance Park, and the Washington State History Museum.

Other destinations

• Bainbridge Island — a residential island connected by bridge to Kitsap Peninsula and a 35-minute ferry ride from Seattle.
• Blake Island State Park – a popular island state park between Seattle and the Kitsap Peninsula, accessible only by boat, that was the birthplace of Chief Seattle.
• Deception Pass State Park – the fast-flowing waterway between Whidbey and Fidalgo Islands, with over 4,100 acres of forest, beaches, campsites, trails, and scenic vistas. During low tides, the swift current can lead to standing waves, large whirlpools, and roiling eddies underneath the historic Deception Pass Bridge.
• Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve – preserves and protects an unbroken historical record of Puget Sound exploration and settlement from the 19th century to the present. Historic farms, still under cultivation in the prairies of Whidbey Island, reveal land use patterns unchanged since settlers claimed the land in the 1850s.
• Mount Rainier National Park – a 14,410 ft volcano, the tallest mountain the Cascades and the most "prominent" mountain in the lower 48 states. "Tahoma" holds more snow and ice than all other Cascade volcanoes combined.
• Snoqualmie Pass — a Cascades ski resort along I-90
• Stevens Pass — a Cascades ski resort along US-2

Get in

By plane

• Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) is a major hub for Northwest and West Coast destinations, with direct flights from most major cities in the U.S. Internationally it handles frequent trans-Pacific routes, as well as direct flights from Canada, Mexico, the major European airports and Dubai in the Middle East.
• King County International Airport (BFI) is just south of downtown Seattle. It handles general aviation, and VIP flights.
• Paine Field (PAE) in Everett|wikidata=Q838219}} has a small passenger terminal open to the public for commercial traffic.
• Kenmore Air (LKE) is a seaplane airline based in Seattle, serving areas all around Puget Sound and Canada. Kenmore Air offers shuttle transfer from SeaTac to their terminal on the shores of Lake Union and King County International Airport (Boeing Field).

By train

Amtrak has three train services that serve the Puget Sound region. Cities served are Seattle, Tukwila, Tacoma, Olympia, Edmonds, and Everett: see the "Get in" sections of those cities for more details.

• The Coast Starlight train starts in Seattle and heads south through Tukwilla, Tacoma, Olympia, Portland, and ultimately San Francisco and Los Angeles in California.
• The Empire Builder starts in Seattle, goes to Everett then heads east across the mountains to Spokane and eventually Minneapolis and Chicago.
• Amtrak Cascades is a regional train service that goes north from Seattle to Vancouver and south to Portland and Eugene.

For more information about travelling by train in the United States see Rail travel in the United States.

By car

Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north-south route, going north to Vancouver, British Columbia and south to Portland, Oregon.

Interstate 90 (I-90) goes east from Seattle to Spokane, Chicago and ultimately Boston. Other east-west routes include US-2 from Everett over Stevens Pass and SR-410 from Tacoma over Chinook Pass (closed in winter).

By bus

See By bus under Get in in the Seattle, Bellevue and Olympia articles and By shuttle bus under Ground Transportation in the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport article for an extended list of bus and shuttle companies connecting travelers into the Puget Sound region from the airport, from around the state and from the nearby cities of Vancouver and Portland. See By bus under Get around in below for a list of bus companies serving the Puget Sound Region.

By ferry

By cruise ship

Cruise ships to Seattle may be docked at one of two terminals in the Port of Seattle.

• Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal at Pier 66, 2225 Alaskan Way S, near the middle of Seattle downtown's waterfront, serves as home port for Norwegian Cruise Line and Celebrity Cruises. Has bus, taxi and shuttle connections for transfer of passengers and luggage. For travelers with connecting flights, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is less than 15 mi (24 km) away.
• Smith Cove Cruise Terminal at Pier 91, 2001 W Garfield St, at the north end of Seattle's downtown waterfront, serves as home port to Holland America Line, Royal Caribbean and Princess Cruises.

By boat

The Puget Sound offers a wide variety of guest marinas throughout the area. Check city listings for specific marina information.

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission has the largest state-managed mooring system in the United States. The commission manages more than 40 marine parks in Puget Sound that together provide more than 8,500 ft of public moorage space.

Get around

By ferry

Washington State Ferries is the largest system of ferries in the country. Ferry routes cross Puget Sound from Tacoma to Vashon Island, Seattle to Vashon Island, Bainbridge Island and Bremerton, Edmonds to Kingston, Mukilteo to Whidbey Island, and Whidbey Island to Port Townsend.

There are also some county-run ferries to smaller destinations such as to Anderson Island.

Many ferry destinations are possible to reach by bridge, but would require a very long detour. The most extreme example of this is the Port Townsend - Keystone route on State Route 20. Only five and a half miles (9 km) via the ferry, it becomes a whopping 217 mi traveling by car!

By car

Public transportation is scarce outside of the Seattle metropolitan area and is not of much use for extensive sightseeing, so renting or arriving by car is advisable. Although distances can be long, most roads are paved and well-maintained. Be aware of distances between gas stations and plan accordingly when traveling in rural areas. Most ferries accept vehicles.

By train

• Sounder operates commuter trains from Seattle King Street Station to Lakewood on the S Line via Tukwila, Kent, Auburn, Sumner, Puyallup, Tacoma Dome, South Tacoma and Lakewood to the south and north to Everett via Edmonds and Mukilteo on the N Line, on two separate routes. Schedules are limited to weekday rush hours and Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Mariners home game days.
• Amtrak Cascades regionally they serve Bellingham, Mt Vernon, Stanwood (nearest to Camano Island); Everett, Edmonds, Seattle King Street Station, Tukwila, Tacoma and Lacey (nearest to Olympia). They operate 2x daily going north from Seattle to Vancouver and 4x daily south towards Portland on two separate routes. Check schedules. The Amtrak Coast Starlight runs the same route with the same stops (except Tukwila) as the Cascades between Seattle and Lacey. In Tacoma, the Amtrak station and the Sounder stations are in two different places.

By public transit

Each county runs its own transit system. Fortunately, in many cases they are interconnected to cover larger areas. In the Seattle metro area, Sound Transit operates intercity express routes.

County transit systems

Link Light Rail

Sound Transit operates the Link light rail, running every 8-15 minutes from 5AM to 1AM:

• The 1 Line travels through Seattle north to Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood, and south to Federal Way via Tukwila and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
• The 2 Line connects Downtown Seattle to Downtown Redmond to the east via Bellevue, Mercer Island, and from Downtown Seattle to Lynnwood City Center to the north with the same stops as the 1 Line.
• The T Line operates as a local light rail/Streetcar service in Tacoma from Tacoma Dome/Freighthouse square into downtown Tacoma via US Courthouse (old train station). From downtown Tacoma the route continues to Stadium District, Tacoma General Hospital and down MLK to St Josephs Hospital through the Hilltop neighborhood. Plans are underway to continue light rail service from Tacoma Dome/Freighthouse Square to the 1 Line in Federal Way.

ORCA Card

The ORCA card is a contactless fare card that enables you to ride and transfer seamlessly across most Puget Sound public transit agencies, including: King County Metro, Sound Transit, Community Transit, Everett Transit, Pierce Transit, Kitsap Transit, and Washington State Ferries. The card is $3, and you must put in a minimum of $5 in your e-purse to start using it. Day passes are available for $8 and can be used for all bus and train services. Monthly passes are also available. You can request a refund of unused e-purse funds.

Go next

• Olympic Peninsula – a remote region of rain forests and isolated beaches. Includes Olympic National Park, and the cities of Port Townsend and Port Angeles.
• Northwest Washington – fertile tulip pastures between the beautiful San Juan Islands and the rugged North Cascades National Park.
• North Central Cascades – take a scenic drive across the Cascades and taste Washington's famous apples on the banks of the mighty Columbia River.
• Southwest Washington – home of Washington's beach resorts and Washington's most explosive volcano.