English Camp
San Juan Island, WA
English Camp sits on sheltered Garrison Bay at the island's northwest end, a National Historical Park unit built around 1860s British military buildings still standing on the old parade ground. The shoreline trail loops past calm, low energy water, mud more than sand, better suited to a quiet walk than a swim.
Genuinely historic and free, a pleasant stroll along a calm bay, but the muddy, low energy shoreline makes it a walk more than a beach day.
How we score beachesCombine it with the recently expanded Westcott Bay shoreline next door; the park added roughly half a mile of additional beach access on land that used to be a private sea farm.
Free, no fee since it's an NPS unit.
Low tide exposes more of the bay's shoreline and mudflats. Any season is fine for the history and the walk.
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