Birch Bay State Park
Managed by Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
661 acres1.2 mi of trail
Terrell Marsh Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Julius Reque of Traveling12feet · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Birch Bay
Birch Bay has 1,177 acres of parks, 109 for every 1,000 residents
17% of Birch Bay’s land is conserved, about 1,901 acres. The biggest trail networks: Birch Bay State Park (1.2 mi), Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve (0.7 mi). 53% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns · #111 of 285 in Washington. What drives it
Conserved land
17%
1,901 acres · of 17.1 sq mi of land
Trails
5.5 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,177 ac
109 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
53%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.7 mi
2.0 mi lanes · 3.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
3
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Birch Bay?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Birch Bay have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Birch Bay is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns, #111 of 285 in Washington. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Birch Bay’s overall grade.
Conserved land17% of the land · typical WA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · WA 0.8 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land109 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,177 acres) · WA 11 · U.S. 13AParks close to home53% of residents within a half mile of a park · WA 92% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 78%
LessMore
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)Ahead of 61%
Water is 27% of Birch Bay’s area (6 of 23 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 13%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A−. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Birch Bay State Park, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve
Managed by Whatcom County
54 acres0.7 mi of trail
Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve Trail
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
British Petroleum Wildlife Area
Managed by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
824 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 8 parks & preserves
Birch Bay State Park661 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
DirectionsPoint Whitehorn Marine Reserve54 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Whatcom County
DirectionsBay Horizon Park73 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsHalverson Park5 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
British Petroleum Wildlife Area824 acres · Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Cherry Point Aquatic Reserve620 acres · Washington Department of Natural Resources
Sunset Farm Park67 acres · Whatcom County Parks and Recreation
DirectionsLake Terrell Wildlife Area12 acres · Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Who protects it
1,901 conserved acres
17% of Birch Bay’s land. Water is left out: Birch Bay has 17.1 square miles of land and 6.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Birch Bay’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife848 ac
State parks661 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits253 ac
County82 ac
Regional agency71 ac
Bureau of Land Management1 ac
State Conservation Area · 848 acState Park · 661 acUnknown Easement · 202 acLocal Park · 153 acPrivate Conservation · 51 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 198 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 13 of 21 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| British Petroleum State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 824 | Open |
| Birch Bay State Park | State parks | 661 | Open |
| Whatcom County Parks & Recreation Local Park | County | 82 | Open |
| Bay Horizon Park Local Park | Regional agency | 71 | Open |
| Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 51 | Closed |
| Whatcom Wildlife Area Complex State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 12 | Restricted |
| Lake Terrell State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 12 | Open |
| Spokane Wenatchee Field Office National Public Lands | Bureau of Land Management | 1 | Open |
Things to do
7 places to go in Birch Bay
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Birch Bay
Bay Horizon PlaygroundIn Bay Horizon Park
DirectionsPlus 2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Birch Bay
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Birch Bay
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Birch Bay
Birch Bay State Park CampgroundIn Birch Bay State Park · Washington State Parks
DirectionsBirch Bay State Park North CampgroundIn Birch Bay State Park · Washington State Parks
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.2 mi
Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve Trail0.8 mi
Terrell Marsh Trail0.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
5.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
3.2 mi
off-road bike paths
0.5 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
11Tennis
8Pickleball
2Basketball
1Equestrian
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Birch Bay: May to September
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.7 | 10.1 | 11.7 | 13.6 | 15.3 | 16.2 | 15.8 | 14.4 | 12.5 | 10.7 | 9.1 | 8.3 |
| High (°F) | 46 | 49 | 52 | 58 | 64 | 68 | 73 | 73 | 68 | 58 | 50 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 5.0 | 2.9 | 3.5 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 1.6 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 3.9 | 5.2 | 4.8 |
July is the driest month (1.0 in) and August the warmest (highs of 73 °F). 5.2 inches fall in November, the wettest month. The climate in Birch Bay →
Next door
Birch Bay and its neighbors
Birch Bay has the most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birch Bay | 17% | 0.3 | 109 | 53% | A− |
| Blaine | 4% | 0.8 | 17 | 82% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Birch Bay
Where can I hike in Birch Bay?
The longest trail networks: Birch Bay State Park, 1.2 miles; Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve, 0.7 miles; Bay Horizon Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Birch Bay is conserved land?
17% of its land, against a typical 4% for a Washington town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Birch Bay’s trails?
Birch Bay State Park and Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Birch Bay?
5.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.0 of painted or protected lanes, 3.2 of off-road paths and 0.5 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Birch Bay?
4,090 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Birch Bay or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,211 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Birch Bay have?
Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #111 of 285 in Washington. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Birch Bay neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →