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TheKitsap Peninsula (/ˈkɪtˌsæp/) lies west ofSeattle acrossPuget Sound, inWashington state in thePacific Northwest.Hood Canal separates the peninsula from theOlympic Peninsula on its west side. The peninsula, a.k.a. "Kitsap", encompasses all ofKitsap County exceptBainbridge andBlake islands, in addition to the northeastern part ofMason County and the northwestern part ofPierce County. The highest point on the Kitsap Peninsula isGold Mountain. TheU.S. Navy'sPuget Sound Naval Shipyard, andNaval Base Kitsap (comprising the former NSB Bangor and NS Bremerton) are on the peninsula. Its main city isBremerton.
The 1841United States Exploring Expedition, led byCharles Wilkes of the U.S. Navy, named it the Great Peninsula or Indian Peninsula. While "Great Peninsula" remains the official name,[1] the name "Kitsap Peninsula" is more commonly used and is derived from Kitsap County, which occupies most of the peninsula. The county was named forChief Kitsap, a late 18th- and 19th-century warrior andmedicine man of theSuquamish Tribe.[2] The Suquamish were one of the historical fishing tribes belonging to theCoast Salish peoples, and their ancestral grounds were based on the eastern shores of the Kitsap Peninsula. The city of Seattle is named after the tribe's most famous leader,Chief Seattle.
ThePort Madison Indian Reservation, located betweenPoulsbo andAgate Pass, is the modern Suquamish tribal center. The Kitsap Peninsula is also home to thePort Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, another branch of Coast Salish people; their tribal center is thePort Gamble S'Klallam Indian Reservation atLittle Boston, located on the northwest coast of the peninsula. A third subgroup of the Coast Salish are theTwana, who historically also occupied the area around the Hood Canal. Their main center now is atSkokomish.
The peninsula is connected to the eastern shore of Puget Sound byWashington State Ferries, which run fromBremerton toDowntown Seattle; fromKingston toEdmonds; and fromSouthworth toWest Seattle viaVashon Island. Several passenger ferry routes are operated byKitsap Fast Ferries from these terminals to Downtown Seattle.[3][4] It is also connected by theTacoma Narrows Bridge from Point Fosdick toTacoma, and to the west, to the northeastern shore of the mainOlympic Peninsula by theHood Canal Bridge. Land connections through the isthmus atBelfair includeSR 3 and thePuget Sound and Pacific Railroad.
Kitsap Peninsula travel guide from Wikivoyage47°32′59″N122°49′05″W / 47.54972°N 122.81806°W /47.54972; -122.81806
