Welcome to:
The Unofficial Map Directory to Fort Worden
And for those of you who do NOT have a helicopter . . . .
We have a few ferries!
You may click on the map for more up to date details
There are 5 good ways to get to Fort Worden,
Via the Hood Canal Bridge, from Sea-Tac Airport.
I will give you the two most common ways first.
The main difference between the first way and
all of the others is:
First way - Your Car.
All the others - Your Car and a ferry boat.
Any questions?
If your schedule does not allow you to
enjoy the journey you are about to take, or the ferries are not cooperating with
untimely arrivals, or you are just plain more afraid of water than you are of
traffic jams, then you can drive all the way around by car at any time of the
day or night. However it is 50 miles farther this way. So if you must, here you
go:
1:
From SEA-TAC Airport via the Tacoma Narrows Bridge $3.00 toll! Here is a
MAP
to get out of the Airport and on to I-5. (Follow the RED dots). You
start by going south on I-5 some 25 miles to Hwy 16, across the Tacoma Narrows
Bridge, then back up north toward Bremerton,
where you
will meet up with Hwy 3 at a quaint little town called Gorst. No, you can't eat
it! Now you
go
north another 27 miles more
to the Hood Canal Bridge, then 24 more miles up to the Fort. Now see Port
Townsend below.
This way may take more time depending on the traffic
thru Tacoma.
Usually VERY bad during the afternoon and early evening.
If you chose this route, prepare your self for
approximately 103 miles of driving from Sea-Tac to the Fort.
NOTE:
2, 2A and 3 below, Ferry Boat prices (as of 4-14-08,) are currently $11.55 car &
driver. Plus $6.70 for each additional passenger (EAP). Coming back is a little
cheaper.
2: From
SEA-TAC Airport via the Winslow Ferry.
This is one of the more scenic and much more relaxing route. You get to enjoy a 30
minute ferry boat ride and you get to see the Seattle city skyline from Puget
Sound, but it cost a ferry boat ticket. This way can be beautiful day or night, but watch for
ferry schedules. (The ferry cost will be paid for by the gas you save not
driving the 50 extra miles.)
To go this way, you leave
SEA-TAC (Follow the
BLUE dots) going north to 518, go west about 3 miles to 509, go north on 509
about 4 miles to the Duwamish River, you stay left and follow 99 north. From
here you will see NO signs to the Washington State Ferry's. Continue on Hwy 99 until
you get off Downtown on the
Senica St Exit, turn
right on 1st St. go 8 blocks to Main St, turn right again (Are you dizzy yet?)
and go under the Hwy 99 Viaducts to the water front. From here it should be easy
to see. It is 2 blocks to the right. Follow the signs from here! :) Total distance from Sea-Tac to Seattle is less than 15 miles. Get on the
Seattle Ferry Pier 52 to the Winslow Ferry dock on Bainbridge Island.
Take Hwy
305 all the way to Hwy 3, then north to the Hood Canal Bridge and on up to
the fort.
This trip is right at 60 miles driving distance from
Sea-Tac to the Fort.
2A:From
SEA-TAC Airport via the Bremerton Ferry. Voted (by me) best choice for visitors!
An
alternate route, and even more scenic, is you could float to the Bremerton Ferry Dock instead of the
Winslow Dock. This way in addition to the Seattle skyline, this route would take
you in view of the Bremerton Shipyards and several BIG Naval ships there. (USS
Missouri, and A very large Aircraft carrier, etc.
From the docks you would
make your way west, following the signs to Hwy 3 and go
27 miles north to the Hood Canal bridge and up to the Fort.
A total of 67 miles driving from Sea-Tac to the Fort.
Ready for more?
We have 1 more way to get to that Hood Canal Bridge.
3:
From SEA-TAC Airport via the Edmonds Ferry to Kingston Ferry Dock on
Bainbridge Isl. My usual choice, and fastest way to get there. You go from
Sea-Tac to the Edmonds Ferry terminal.
From the Kingston ferry dock to the Fort, you go west 3.5 miles to Hwy 104, turn north thru Port Gamble.
(Beautiful!) And your almost at the Hood Canal Bridge and up to the Fort
Total driving mileage is 64 miles from Sea-Tac to the
Fort.
The last 2 ways bypass the Hood Canal Bridge and go via Whidbey Island to the Keystone Ferry Dock which takes you directly to Port Townsend.
4:
2 FERRIES! From SEA-TAC Airport via the
Mukilteo to Clinton ferry $6.85 (+$3.95 EAP), and
the Keystone to Port Townsend ferry
$8.90 (+ $2.60 EAP). See #3 above to get as far as NE 205
St. - - -Keep going north 3 more miles to the
525
interchange where 405 meets I-5. Go west on 525, 8 miles and follow the
signs to the Mukilteo ferry dock. (39 total miles from Sea-Tac to Mukilteo.)
Go across a short ride to the
Clinton Ferry Dock on Whidbey Island, then
drive northwest 21 miles to the
Keystone Ferry dock on Whidbey Island and get another very short ferry ride directly
to Port Townsend. Your there! See note below for Port Townsend directions.
Total driving miles is 60 miles. And you get 2 very
short ferry
boat rides. You also get to buy 2 very tiny ferry boat tickets!
5: The last way is definitely the scenic rout, and most likely the hardest way to go because of the difficulty of the ferry schedule. This route will take you to the north end of Whidbey Island, and 3/4 of the way down to the south end of the island to the Keystone Ferry. The hard part of this trip will be actually getting on the ferry. It has been plagued with delays and no-go's for a long time now. Definitely, call ahead and confirm operation for this one. But if you must see the country and Deception Pass, then . . . . .
Go all the way north on I-5, 75 miles
to Burlington, turn west on exit #230 and take WA-20 for 12 miles. Turn left
on Gibralter Rd where WA-20 turns left and goes south toward Whidbey island. From
here you will go thru Howard's Corner.
Continue on to Whidbey
Island by way of the Deception Pass (Very cool), and you end up at
Fort Casey. Go down the hill and you will find the lineup for the Keystone Ferry, which will take you directly to Port
Townsend in about 12 minutes.
Total trip by car, from Sea-Tac, a short 134.2 miles.
If you haven't done it, you have to do it, at least once. It is really
beautiful. You get a view of some of the San Juan Islands, Mount Vernon,
Deception Pass, and most of Whidbey Island. But be advised, that the ferries
have back-ups and
you need to check here or call to be sure you have time to wait.
The final leg From the Hood Canal Bridge to the Fort is an interesting one. I hope you have your cow catcher mounted firmly on your car. The first town is called Shine Gri La. (You heard right.) Just move on another mile and turn right at Hwy 19 which is Beaver Valley Rd. Go north thru several little towns, Beaver Valley, Chimacum, (sadly it's true), then Port Hadlock-Irondale, (this one actually has a stop sign!) go further and bare right at Hwy 20, and a couple of miles you will be in Port Townsend. 24 miles total. Wasn't that lovely.
Port Townsend:
Now that you are in Port Townsend it is only a mile over the hill to the Fort, but it will be the hardest mile to navigate on the trip. The most important thing is to keep your eyes off the road, and on the architecture. If you are at all like me, you will eventually take every road possible there, just to see all the houses in this old town. Unbelievable! The most direct route however is to continue into town on Hwy 20, passing the Safeway. You will be on W. Sims Way. In about 2 block you will see a straight up hill, straight ahead of you. (FYI For the Keystone Ferry riders, see map below.) Make the left to go up that hill called Washington St. Go 2 blocks and make a left (north) on Walker St. (On the corner, look left at the Bed and Breakfast, and then right at the City Hall building. WOW!) Continue on Walker for a few blocks and it turns into Cherry St. Go another 3/4 of a mile and you will come to a fork in the road where if you go straight you go up a hill. Do it. It will go over the hill right to the gates of the Fort. Go to the stop sign, and take the next right into the alley. Just a short 100 feet on the left, (past the 204 building on the corner,) you will see the conference center and cafeteria . That's where check in is. Later that evening, be sure to bring your appetite, and introduce yourself at the FREE evening get-together with everyone else, in the officers quarters #3 house. (just to the right by the tennis courts, as you came in the gate. Third building down.)
Let me know if this helped or not.
Thanks for visiting our page here at the WKA site.
