| Padilla Bay | |
|---|---|
 The south portion of Padilla Bay with March Point (foreground) and the Skagit River Valley in the distance | |
  Padilla Bay  Padilla Bay  Padilla Bay | |
| Location | Washington,United States |
| Type | Bay |
| Part of | Salish Sea |
Padilla Bay is a bay located in theU.S. state ofWashington, between theSan Juan Islands and the mainland.Fidalgo Island andGuemes Island lie to the west of Padilla Bay. Guemes Channel, between the islands, connects Padilla Bay toRosario Strait.Samish Island lies to the north of Padilla Bay, beyond which isSamish Bay andBellingham Bay.
In 1791 the SpaniardJosé María Narváez explored and named Padilla Bay, calling it Seno Padillo, in honor ofJuan Vicente de Güemes Padilla Horcasitas, the viceroy ofNew Spain.[1][2]
Padilla Bay is a tidal bay.[3] It is entirely flooded at high tide and at low tide mudflats are exposed. Thesemud flats are habitat for many species of birds and animals. The bay is very shallow. Near Hat Island the bay is only 12 feet (4 m) deep. Part of the estuary tidal flats are contained by dikes built in order to make farmland out of the mudflats. TheSwinomish Channel is a salt-water channel in Washington State, United States, which connects Skagit Bay, to the south, and Padilla Bay, to the north, separating Fidalgo Island from mainland Skagit County. In the past, theSkagit River had emptied into Padilla Bay.
ThePadilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is an area of 8,004 acres (32 km2) of estuary located inSkagit County. The reserve contains theBreazeale Interpretive Center, which features exhibits about the natural history and ecology of the estuary and bay, fish tanks, a hands-on room and a video theater.
The site also features classrooms, research facilities, and public access to abeach site. It is a popular location forgraduate studies fromWestern Washington University and theUniversity of Washington.
Padilla Bay is a part of theNational Estuarine Research Reserve which it was incorporated into in 1980. It is managed by theWashington Department of Ecology. It has several trails. There is a wheelchair trail to the observation deck as well as a shore trail that is 2.25 miles (3.62 km) long and runs along the top of the dikes.
The research center is located in theSkagit Valley ofWashington. The nearest town isAnacortes, Washington about 6 miles (10 km) away.
48°30′57.5″N122°32′0.1″W / 48.515972°N 122.533361°W /48.515972; -122.533361
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| National | |
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