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Dash Point State Park - A place to kayak camp on a paddle north? Washington, USA

1/19/2013

5 Comments

 
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   {Maybe}. Dash Point State Park might be a good place to camp on a multi-day paddle - it depends on your gear and how peaceful you want it. We visited the state park recently, not to be confused with Dash Point Park, located just south of this place (Dash Point Park has an L-shaped fishing pier…and is actually on Dash Point). The state park is on the Puget Sound, about 6 miles north of Tacoma and 20 miles south of Seattle, located in Federal Way. We visited in the winter and the place was empty. It's a pretty hilly park, heavily wooded, with a nice beach, lots of hiking trails, and a campground. A Discover Pass is required to park a vehicle.
   A cool thing about the park for folks in the South Sound - there is sand on the beach (instead of the usual NW rocks)! People actually swim here in the summer. Now, let's get this straight - I don't recommend swimming the usually-40-ish-degree Puget Sound. However, people swim here. A minor slope extends out a few thousand feet into the water here making it super shallow. When the sun warms the shallow water it must make it bearable to take the plunge…or NW people are a little kooky and will swim in any temperature of water (one of these statements is correct:).
   Alright, settle down people. Back to winter hiking and the possibility of one day kayak camping on an amazing paddle from Olympia to Seattle…or wherever your plans take you. From the online reviews of the park (which can or can't be trusted…I haven't decided), it seems like the state park can get pretty busy in the warmer months. The question is, will you want to deal with car-camper-party-folks after a long day of paddling? Probably not. With that said, they do have discounted water trail campsites available. It's nice to know it's here if you really needed it on a trek north or south. 
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   The hiking trails in the park connect to a somewhat larger network that seems pretty popular with mountain bikers. I would be careful hiking on the mountain bike trails - it's a collision waiting to happen! At low tide it is possible to walk down the beach to actual Dash Point and Dash Point Park/the fishing pier. 
   A reason why it might-not be a OK place to camp on a multi-day paddle - the campground is a good distance from the water…and up a hill…only ok if you have a cart or an inflatable situation like us:) It really depends on your gear.
   On our visit we walked from the state park parking lot to the beach (it was close). We then hiked all over the place, including hiking out of the park on other trails that put us in a nice residential area (neighborhood pics below) and up what is apparently called "Heart Attack Hill". P.S. Our wives always get mad when we hike on trails without mapping it out first and then end up in residential areas…it has surprisingly happened quite a few times…but who's counting? 
   We left King county and entered it again, went off trail for a few minutes (our wives usually hate this too) and finally got back to where we started. It was nice to get out in the winter. The actual state park has around 11 miles of hiking trails and is just under 400 acres in size.

   So, Dash Point State Park is great for hiking and swimming, OK for camping, but you'd probably want to scope it out for kayak camping before you include it in you plans. They do take reservations in the summer months which is nice. There's a few links below to get you started, enjoy!
      ~Paul, Micah, John    ETC

Camping info from the state park website here.
Map of the park and campground here.
General info about the park (for camping) from www.stateparks.com
A nice little article about the park from NW Tripfinder.

5 Comments
Patty Graf-Hoke link
8/29/2013 02:24:22 pm

Beautiful photographs! Would love to have have you back to enjoy more of the 371 miles of the Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails!

Reply
Paul link
8/29/2013 02:33:59 pm

Thanks Patty - we love Kitsap Island (that's what we call it)…hey, why don't they make it an island anyway?

P.S. Dash Point (this post) is not on the 'island' or part of the Kitsap Water Trails, is it?

Reply
Brian Bassett
10/30/2018 05:42:24 pm

I find it absolutely disrespectful that not one person that has viewed this site has taken the time to leave a comment, and you know there have been many. Well let me say this, I appreciate the info and the layout. Professional and polished. I live about 15 miles away as the bird flies and am going to ride there and bike camp this month. . - https://imgur.com/a/UlaNByO

I will let ya know what I think. Thanks again.

Reply
Brian Bassett
10/30/2018 05:50:42 pm

I find it absolutely disrespectful that not one person that has viewed this site has taken the time to leave a comment, and you know there have been many. Well let me say this, I appreciate the info and the layout. Professional and polished. I live about 15 miles away as the crow flies and am going to ride there and bike-camp this month. - https://imgur.com/a/UlaNByO

Ok... take two. Now I know why other comments may not have made it through your guanlet of security. I have never seen a site that sent timed email conromation for comments. Luck I had copied my comment or you may still have less than 1.

Reply
Paul link
10/30/2018 06:12:19 pm

Brian,
Your bike setup looks sweet! Good luck on the trip! -Paul

P.S. - FYI: We don’t make any money on whether or not folks leave comments - only when you see/click on the ads over on the sidebar (or below if you’re on mobile). The security is just to keep the lazy millennials away haha!

P.P.S - Your original comment made it through as well.

Reply



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