Everett's Treasured island

The gentle surge of the surf on the warm Jetty Island sand, followed by the sound of sea gulls in the air, can easily make one forget that a city of about 100,000 people sits only a few hundred yards away.

For more than 50 years, people have made jaunts to the man-made island a recreational pastime in Everett, but the island's history runs much deeper than that.

Now measuring about 2 miles long from north to south and a couple of hundred yards at its widest point, Jetty Island was being constructed as early as 1895, and without any thought of how much fun an open beach could be on a sunny day.

Instead, the island's origins began with two rows of pilings — the tips of which can still be seen on the eastern side of the island — sunk deep into the water where the Snohomish River meets Port Gardner Bay. Built up between them came loads of riprap, wood and rock, as well as dredgings from upriver. The island's purpose was to divert the river's flow so as to bring it closer to the existing waterfront, creating a wider channel for commercial shipping. Before the island, boats had to wait until high tide to bring their wares to docks resting on mudflats, sometimes getting stuck should they stay too late.

The island was part of an elaborate plan formulated by a crew of elite Everett property owners, and if a New York tycoon named John D. Rockefeller hadn't pulled the financial plug on his investments in the area, there might also be a series of locks up the river, beginning at the island.

But without money, the community soon forgot what it had begun to make. Nature, however, had not, and it was the forces of wind and water that began to shape the island into what can be seen today.

As waters travel from the Cascade Mountains into the fast streams and rivers that flow toward the Snohomish, they bring a vast amount of sediment into the bay each year.

That sediment naturally deposits along the northern and western slopes of the island, said Kraig Hansen, Jetty Island's chief naturalist. Eventually, the island began to widen, and a unique ecosystem of plants and animals began to develop. By the 1950s and 1960s, recreational boaters suddenly found themselves with another location to picnic.

The city of Everett decided in 1965 to open the island to public access, providing the first Jetty Island ferry service during part of the summer.

"The department recognized that this was a great amenity for a city whose waterfront was mostly developed by the port and with industry," said Barry Martin, the city's recreation coordinator. "This gave people recreational access once again to the waterfront."

Budget cuts dampened public access until 1985, when the city again made Jetty Island an attraction, not long after the city added another 22 acres to the island with dredgings from the river.

The island's purpose now is to promote wildlife viewing, habitat education and summer fun.

For 10 weeks between July 4 and Labor Day, the city provides free ferry service from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. It offers guided nature walks, educational activities and a summer camp for children.

The city runs the island on an annual budget of about $113,000, much of that to pay Argosy Cruises to operate the ferry from the Everett waterfront. Departures are from the 10th Street Boat Launch and Marine Park, at 10th Street and West Marine View Drive. Donations are accepted.

About 700 people visit the island each day it's open, and the advice is to arrive early if you can. At times the wait for a spot on the ferry can run four hours.

But that hasn't stopped people from coming.

"The city keeps saying we need to advertise the island more," Hansen said. "I tell them I don't see why. The people know it's here, and they love it."

Christopher Schwarzen: 425-783-0577 or cschwarzen@seattletimes.com