UPDATE: Kelly’s Point and Yellow Bluff Saved!
February 12, 2018 – Beloved by residents, visitors, and boaters, the towering cliffs of Yellow Bluff and Kelly’s Point are an iconic part of the Guemes Island landscape. Upon learning that this beachfront area was at-risk of being developed, the Skagit Land Trust sprung into action to purchase and conserve this precious shoreline.
“We were facing a limited window of time to raise the money to buy and steward it,” explains Skagit Land Trust Executive Director Molly Doran. “But we had protected Guemes Mountain in 2009 with enormous community help. So we said, OK, let’s figure out how to get this done!”
Skagit Land Trust received an outpouring of community support to protect this precious shoreline. Over 450 families, businesses, and organizations donated towards the $1,380,000 purchase that conserved Island property. Other funds were provided by The Conservation Fund as a bridge loan while the Trust awaits a federal U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service grant award.
This February, the land trust reached its goal to purchase the 27-acres property of coastal forest, immense bluffs, and 3,000 feet of marine shoreline. Congratulations!
If you have ever taken the ferry to or from Anacortes, you have surely spotted the large sandy bluffs that stand as the sentinel to Guemes Channel. These bluffs are a geological showcase of over 70,000 years of ice age history.
And they are at risk.
This beachfront area, known locally as Yellow Bluff and Kelly’s Point, is up for sale and could be lost to development.
In response, Skagit Land Trust has partnered with community members in an effort to purchase and permanently protect Yellow Bluff and Kelly’s Point. The 27-acre property on southwestern Guemes Island includes the immense bluffs, undeveloped coastal forest, and over 3,000 feet of marine shoreline.
Generations of Guemes Islanders and visitors have walked along the beach at Kelly’s Point to take in the panoramic views, gaze up at the stunning cliffs, and appreciate the dynamic marine edge. Its undeveloped nature is one of the things that draws people to it.
“It’s a VERY wild beach!” says local Phil Fenner.
Feeder Bluff Exceptional
Yellow Bluff’s immense cliffs are termed “feeder bluff exceptional” because they contribute an exceptional amount of sand and gravel to island beaches. This sediment sustains both wildlife habitat, including the nearby Peach Preserve Wildlife Area owned by the San Juan Preservation Trust, and barrier beaches found in front of family homes.
The sediment also anchors marine eelgrass meadows used by surf smelt, mollusks, crabs, and shrimp. These creatures are the food source for small fish essential to juvenile salmon, seabirds, migrating waterfowl, and killer whales.
A Community Effort
Skagit Land Trust and the Guemes community are working to raise funds to purchase and protect this property. In partnership with the Washington State Department of Ecology, Skagit Land Trust has applied for a million dollar grant from the National Coastal Wetlands Conservation fund, and has received a bridge loan from The Conservation Fund. A local committee is helping to raise the remaining funds needed.
“We are thrilled to be working with the community to protect Kelly’s Point,” says Molly Doran, executive director of Skagit Land Trust. “We want to keep it just the way it is. It is such a beautiful place and has ecological qualities that are increasingly rare in Puget Sound.”