CAMANO ISLAND STATE PARK DRIVE
Camano Island State Park is a 244-acre camping park with 6,700 feet of rocky shoreline and beach. The park provides sweeping views of the surrounding mountains and offers opportunities for shellfish harvesting.
The park is open year round for camping and day use.
During the last ice age, the area was covered by an ice sheet approximately one mile thick. The glacier carved the shape of the island with its high feeder banks that helped build the beaches.
Earliest inhabitants of Camano Island were the Kikalos and Snohomish Indians, who used the island for a summer dwelling while gathering seafood and berries. They named it "Kal-lut-chin," meaning "land jutting into a bay." The island was renamed for Jacinto Caamano, a Spanish explorer.
The first European settlers came to the island in 1855 and began extensive logging operations. Farmers came later and developed the area agriculturally.
After the land was designated for use as a park in 1949, the initial development was accomplished in a single day by nearly 900 volunteers from Stanwood and Camano Island. The park celebrated its 50th birthday in July, 1999.
A Discover Pass is required for vehicle access to Washington state parks for day use. For more information about the Discover Pass and exemptions, please visit the
Discover Pass web page.
The five cabins at Camano Island are in a diverse mature forest with a peak-a-boo view of Saratoga Passage. A shared bathhouse with showers and restrooms is nearby.
The park has 77 standard sites, two hiker / biker sites, one marine trail site, five cabins, one dump station, two restrooms and two showers. Utility campsites are not available at the park. The upper camping loop has pull-through sites and are better suited for RVs.
The park offers one kitchen shelter and a group camp that accommodates a maximum of 100 people. The group camping area has restrooms and showers. Fees vary with size of the group.