Whalen Island

Easy 1.5-mile loop

100 feet elevation gain

This sandy, forested island is almost at sea, surrounded by Sand Lake’s shallow estuary, just half a mile from ocean breakers. As a result it is home to a mix of land and sea creatures—crabs, deer, salmon, egrets, clams, and kingfishers. People, not so much. On the loop trail around the island you can easily find a sandy beach to yourself. On summer weekends you will, however, hear the distant whine of off-highway vehicles from the Sand Beach Campground across the bay.