Itinerary
Paddle, Pedal, Hike
A boat on Port Gamble Bay in the morning, singletrack after lunch, and a forest loop before the beer. Bring your legs.
- 8:35 AM
An early boat, and a word about bikes
Bicycles ride the ferry and load ahead of the car deck, which makes a bike one of the smartest ways to arrive in Kingston on a summer weekend — no vehicle line, no reservation anxiety. Check the current bike fare on the Ferry page.
Map ↗ - 10:00 AM
Gear up at Olympic Outdoor Center
On Rainier Avenue in Port Gamble, about fifteen minutes west of the ferry. Sit-on-top, touring and pedal kayaks, paddleboards, mountain, gravel and road bikes, camping kit and dry suits — Monday to Saturday 10 to 6 and Sunday 10 to 5 in season. Last rentals go out ninety minutes before close, and they run free kayak demos daily, so turning up without a plan is a perfectly good plan. Rentals are weather permitting, and off-season hours can shift, so ring ahead in winter.
Map ↗ - 10:30 AM
Out onto Port Gamble Bay
Sheltered water with the mill town on one shore and forest on the other. Paddling here is calmer than the open Sound, which is the whole reason the rental shop is where it is. Weather permitting, as always on this coast.
Map ↗ - 12:30 PM
Refuel in town
Butcher & Baker Provisions is the serious lunch and House 11 Taproom the easy one — but both keep a Thursday-to-Sunday week. The Port Gamble General Store & Cafe is open daily and will feed you whatever the day.
Map ↗ - 1:45 PM
Port Gamble Forest Heritage Park
A large working forest at the edge of town, laced with a well-ridden network of singletrack and gravel that walkers and mountain bikers share. Ask at the rental shop which loop suits your legs and the day's mud — they ride it and you don't.
Map ↗ - 4:00 PM
Swap wheels for boots on the Greenway
If there is still daylight and appetite, drive north to Buck Lake County Park and walk the Hansville Greenway — nine and a half miles of trail across the network, with a 2.6-mile signature loop that's easy going and about a hundred feet of climb. Leashed dogs welcome. Buck Lake's gates close at 5.
Map ↗ - 5:30 PM
You have earned this
Friends and Neighbors Brewing on Highway 104 in Kingston — rotating taps, dogs and kids welcome, and a food truck outside midweek. Doors at 2 PM on Saturday and Sunday, 4 PM midweek; check Mondays before you bank on one.
Map ↗ - 6:45 PM
The boat, and a nap on it
Check the Ferry page for the eastbound line before you load up. Walk-ons and cyclists rarely wait; cars on a summer Sunday sometimes do.
Map ↗
Before you head back
Want a different kind of day? Browse all itineraries.