This 700+ acre island is a state park, accessible by private boat or Argosy Tours.  Tillicum Village is a leased facility originally developed and operated by Bill Hewitt Catering Service of West Seattle until a few years after Bill’s death.  The tourist business was sold to Argosy Tours in 2008.  The marina and Indian longhouse are located on the eastern point of the island facing downtown Seattle skyline, which is a beautiful sight at night across Elliot Bay.  During the day there is ship traffic and Mount Rainier is visible to the south on a clear day.

Prior to ownership of the island by Washington State Parks, William Pitt Trimble, a prominent Seattle attorney, owned the entire island and had a summer home with dock on the southern shore of the point where present developments exist.  Remnants of the original foundation and tennis court can still be seen in the park.

Blake Island was one of the camping grounds of the Suquamish Indian tribe and may have been the birthplace of Chief Sealth (commonly referred to as Chief Seattle) around 1786 per records of Captain George Vancouver. Chief Sealth successfully led a band of warriors against some hostile mountain Indians and was made chief of six allied tribes. He was a friend to white settlers and they honored him by naming their city Seattle after him. During the Indian Wars of 1855-56 Chief Sealth made peace between the Indians and the settlers. He was tall in stature and respected by all. He died in 1886 and was buried at the Suquamish Cemetery, near Port Madison, where he lived in last years.

The island was logged in the 1850’s followed by Seattle First Bank repossessing the island until it was sold in 1904 to William Pitt Trimble, a prominent Seattle attorney. Though officially named after George Smith Blake, commander of the U.S. Coastal Survey in 1841, the island was known as Trimble Island while owned by William Trimble. Trimble used the island as a private estate until 1929, when his wife died and Trimble abandoned the estate. The estate fell into ruin by vandals and eventually was destroyed by fire. When ownership passed to Washington State the original name was returned to the island.

Various forms of wild life live in the park, which is mostly undeveloped forest land, with a network of hiking trails winding through the property.  See photos of trail map and animals on the island below.

The State Park recruits volunteers to help operate and maintain a friendly park environment.  Lowell and Inez Anderson served as hosts to the marina visitors in the summers of 2002 through 2007.  They stayed on their boat as do all marina hosts.  They did not serve in 2008 due to Inez in cancer illness.  She died November 4, 2008.

Wildlife is plentiful on the island.  Racoons, deer, sea otter, herron, eagles thrive here.  They can be seen near the marina or along the many hiking trails.

 A crow finds a good fresh water source.  A young buck grazes with little concern about all the people in the area.  A heron rests on some rigging watching for the next fish.

 

And these pesky, but kinda cute, little bandits turn over the rocks in search for small rock crabs or other edible critters down the food chain.

 

In the woods you can find wild huckleberries, blackberries, and other pleasing snacks that nature provides. 
 

Every day you meet a new family of friends in the woods.  You never know who it will be, but they all have their own ideas as to what looks good for dinner.  Crows and raccoons are not exactly connoisseurs of food, so you have to guard your own food supply.  We had a raccoon open our hatch door and eat an entire bag of potato chips that was unopened on the galley counter.  They know how to open coolers left outside, so the Park Dept. provides raccoon proof containers for campers.

Panorama of the Blake Island marina from the rock jetty

Sunset on a warm summer evening at Blake Island

Blake Island is a piece of nature, preserved as it was a hundred years ago, with the skyline of Seattle visible five miles east across Elliot Bay.  The contrast is breathtaking.  It is a refuge not only for the wildlife, but for the human spirit.

This is the Seattle skyline as seen from Blake Island with a 10 X zoom lens.

The west side of the island offers camp sites and mooring buoys for boaters.
The sandy bottom provides good anchorage if the buoys are all taken, but the current runs up to 3 knots though this passage, so boaters must make sure their hook is set before they go ashore and leave their boat unattended.

Here is a very unusual scene, with Tourmaline being the only boat in the marina on a nice August day in 2005.  We were the hosts, but there were no boaters to host.  Typically the marina is full or near full.  Rafting is allowed but not required.

From the Blake Marina entrance an aircraft carrier can be seen on its way to the Bremerton Naval Shipyard.  Numerous commercial freighters from around the world pass by daily and the cruise ships can be seen leaving for Alaska.

 

This is a far cry from the steam launch used by William Trimble to commute to his island (shown below) 90 years ago.

 

What do kids do on an island with no video games or skate board parks?

Climb Trees	Play Board Games
	Play on the beach
Roasting marshmallows is permitted in designated fire pits if no burn ban is in effect.	You may have guessed...These guys are two of my four grandsons, Luke and Mason.  All of my grandkids have been with me at Blake Island.  It is a destination that never seems to grow old.