South Whidbey

The shoreline from Possession Head at the south end of Whidbey north past the ferry terminal at Clinton is a mix of high bluffs and low spits that longshore drift has stretched north along the east side of the island. Possession Beach and Columbia Beach are built on long barriers out in front of the toe of the bluff, while Glendale was built on the mouth of a small creek (probably began as a barrier estuary with the stream mouth spit deflecting the creek northward - but that was long, long ago). There are a couple stretches of relatively natural shoreline left, including a beautiful segment just south of Columbia Beach where a little of the spit remains almost undisturbed with forested bluff rising behind (the hydrology is probably completely altered thanks to the development to the north (see air photo - click on title of this post), but it looks good from a distance).