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Jetty Island beach looking west over the mud flats to Puget SoundDune grass on Jetty Island, looking east toward EverettThe Jetty Island shoreline at low tideThe Jetty Island ferry crossing from Everett

Chapters / US West Coast Open, 1 of 1 remaining

Ride Jetty Island, keep it open

Jetty Island is a two-mile island built from river sand off the Everett waterfront, and on hot summer afternoons its shallow west side turns into one of Puget Sound's best kite beaches.

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92 riders call this homeKite, WingJetty Island

Everything you need to know about Jetty Island

Live conditions

Why riders love it

What brings people here, from the people who manage it and the people who ride it.

  • The wind is a summer thermal from the northwest, side-onshore, usually filling in between 2 and 7 pm in June, July and August.
  • The water is shallow and flat with some chop. At low tide it recedes more than 100 yards; at high tide the beach nearly disappears.
  • Kiting is on the west side of the island, with launching and landing at the far north tip.

Sources: Kiteforum; Port of Everett

See the wind right now
Dune grass on Jetty Island, looking east toward Everett

Access and rules

Each site sets its own rules. The chapter publishes confirmed rules as each site answers in writing, and points riders to the official page before they go.

  • The Port of Everett lists kiteboarding on the west side of Jetty Island in spring and summer, weather permitting, with lessons by appointment through Urban Surf.
  • Kiters are asked to stay out of the lagoon and away from the crowds of families in summer. Tidal currents in the channel are strong, especially when crossing by raft.

Sources: Port of Everett; Kiteforum

Help hold the launch
The Jetty Island shoreline at low tide

Ecology and habitat

Stewardship rotates across the city's spots, so riders are known as the people who look after them.

  • The island began as a riprap jetty in the late 1800s and grew from sediment dredged from the Snohomish River. The Port of Everett has owned it since 1929.
  • In 1989 the Port and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a salt marsh from dredged material. More than 45 bird species use the island, and seals are often seen along the shore.

Sources: Wikipedia (Jetty Island)

Fund stewardship here
The Jetty Island ferry crossing from Everett

Good to know

Location, facilities and history.

  • Jetty Island lies in Puget Sound just off the Everett waterfront, about 30 miles north of Seattle. It is about two miles long and half a mile wide.
  • There is no bridge. A seasonal foot ferry runs from the Port of Everett boat launch in summer; the rest of the year riders cross by boat, raft or kayak, 200 to 300 yards over the Snohomish River channel.
  • The island has no plumbing, electricity or permanent buildings, only a seasonal floating restroom.
  • The summer ferry, now run by Argosy Cruises, charges a fare for riders over two years old.

Sources: Wikipedia (Jetty Island); Wikipedia; Port of Everett; Kiteforum

Meet the riders
Jetty Island beach looking west over the mud flats to Puget Sound

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Schools that teach on this water

Urban Surf

Jetty Island

Summer thermals blow from the northwest in June, July and August, usually starting between 2 and 7 pm.

Source: Kiteforum

Know the spot

Jetty Island

The island sits 200–300 yards offshore, reached by ferry, raft or kayak.

Source: Kiteforum

Know the spot

Jetty Island

At low tide the water recedes over 100 yards, leaving shallow, flat water.

Source: Kiteforum

Know the spot

Why Jetty Island needs a chapter

Jetty Island beach looking west over the mud flats to Puget Sound
US West Coast

Every summer, as the land heats up, a northwest breeze fills in over Possession Sound in the afternoon. Off Everett, the shallow water on the west side of Jetty Island stays flat while the wind blows across it, which is why kiters have crossed the channel for years.

92riders call this home
1local schools teach on this water
Kite, Wingdisciplines riding here

Jetty Island chapter, World Wind Sports

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Dune grass on Jetty Island, looking east toward Everett
US West Coast

The island is a park owned by the Port of Everett, shared with families who come over on the summer ferry, and with more than 45 kinds of birds. Kiters keep to the far north tip and stay out of the lagoon, and that good behaviour is all that holds their place there.

92riders call this home
1local schools teach on this water
Kite, Wingdisciplines riding here

Jetty Island chapter, World Wind Sports

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The Jetty Island shoreline at low tide
US West Coast

A chapter makes that arrangement visible: a named group the Port can call, stewardship days on the island, and riders trained to share a crowded summer beach.

92riders call this home
1local schools teach on this water
Kite, Wingdisciplines riding here

Jetty Island chapter, World Wind Sports

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Photographer credits Back this chapter

The riders, schools and crew of Jetty Island

Riders from Everett, Mukilteo, Marysville, Lake Stevens, Snohomish, Mill Creek, Lynnwood, Edmonds, Bothell, Kirkland, Seattle and the schools that teach them.

See the rider directory Talk on the board
UUrban SurfLocal school teaching on this waterWWSThe chapterHolds the line on access: one standing voice with whoever manages the launch.WWSThe chapterRuns stewardship days, so the people who manage the beach see riders as an asset.WWSThe chapterRuns sponsored certification weekends, so riders are trained and self-policing.UUrban SurfLocal school teaching on this waterWWSThe chapterHolds the line on access: one standing voice with whoever manages the launch.WWSThe chapterRuns stewardship days, so the people who manage the beach see riders as an asset.WWSThe chapterRuns sponsored certification weekends, so riders are trained and self-policing.
Mitchell DroppInstructor Level 1, BothellJiri RichterLevel 3N, SeattleMicaela Unda UndaLevel 3K, SeattleMark PopichLevel 3N, SeattleAbraham PinedaLevel 3M, SeattleGuillermo Villagra VerduLevel 3K, SeattleAlexander SizeminLevel 4Q, SeattleJeffrey PaceLevel 3L, SeattleDiana ScheelLevel 3J, BothellMegan Rockwell RockwellLevel 3J, SeattleRyan WarrenLevel 2I, SeattleBruce DawsonLevel 3J, KirklandJanie BoothLevel 3L, SeattleYulia KolesnikovaLevel 3L, SeattleBernard RossLevel 3K, SeattleDerek KingLevel 3J, SeattleBenjamin Ben EmberLevel 3J, SeattleJohn MulliganLevel 2H, SeattleKereal SokolovLevel 4Q, SeattleShawn SigafoosLevel 3N, MarysvilleTeddy Favre Gilly Favre GillyLevel 3N, SeattleAlisa VitelloLevel 2I, SeattleAlexander RomanovLevel 3L, SeattleBrent LewisLevel 4Y, BothellDavid MordekhovLevel 3L, SEATTLEEkaterina VaginaLevel 2I, SeattleSally PeachLevel 2I, SeattleColin EvansLevel 3K, SeattleMicaela UndaLevel 2I, SeattleCameron StuartLevel 2I, SeattleMya SchmitzLevel 2H, SeattleAnna GalaevaLevel 2G, KirklandMike MihataLevel 2I, BothellNeeraj JhawarLevel 2H, SeattleChristi MasiLevel 2F, SeattleEmily RobertsLevel 2I, SeattleHugo AnacheLevel 2H, SeattleMark SlivaLevel 2G, SeattlePreston BarnidgeLevel 3K, SeattleJacob WhiteLevel 3J, BothellMitchell DroppInstructor Level 1, BothellJiri RichterLevel 3N, SeattleMicaela Unda UndaLevel 3K, SeattleMark PopichLevel 3N, SeattleAbraham PinedaLevel 3M, SeattleGuillermo Villagra VerduLevel 3K, SeattleAlexander SizeminLevel 4Q, SeattleJeffrey PaceLevel 3L, SeattleDiana ScheelLevel 3J, BothellMegan Rockwell RockwellLevel 3J, SeattleRyan WarrenLevel 2I, SeattleBruce DawsonLevel 3J, KirklandJanie BoothLevel 3L, SeattleYulia KolesnikovaLevel 3L, SeattleBernard RossLevel 3K, SeattleDerek KingLevel 3J, SeattleBenjamin Ben EmberLevel 3J, SeattleJohn MulliganLevel 2H, SeattleKereal SokolovLevel 4Q, SeattleShawn SigafoosLevel 3N, MarysvilleTeddy Favre Gilly Favre GillyLevel 3N, SeattleAlisa VitelloLevel 2I, SeattleAlexander RomanovLevel 3L, SeattleBrent LewisLevel 4Y, BothellDavid MordekhovLevel 3L, SEATTLEEkaterina VaginaLevel 2I, SeattleSally PeachLevel 2I, SeattleColin EvansLevel 3K, SeattleMicaela UndaLevel 2I, SeattleCameron StuartLevel 2I, SeattleMya SchmitzLevel 2H, SeattleAnna GalaevaLevel 2G, KirklandMike MihataLevel 2I, BothellNeeraj JhawarLevel 2H, SeattleChristi MasiLevel 2F, SeattleEmily RobertsLevel 2I, SeattleHugo AnacheLevel 2H, SeattleMark SlivaLevel 2G, SeattlePreston BarnidgeLevel 3K, SeattleJacob WhiteLevel 3J, Bothell
iSportsKite, WingiWind spotJetty IslandiKnow thisJetty Island, off the Everett waterfront, about 30 miles north of Seattle.iKnow thisSummer northwest thermals in the afternoon over shallow, flat water.iKnow thisReached only by boat; kiting is on the west side, launching at the north tip.iSportsKite, WingiWind spotJetty IslandiKnow thisJetty Island, off the Everett waterfront, about 30 miles north of Seattle.iKnow thisSummer northwest thermals in the afternoon over shallow, flat water.iKnow thisReached only by boat; kiting is on the west side, launching at the north tip.

Live conditions

Wind right now at Jetty Island

Full forecast

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Your gift keeps the chapter running and the beach cared for: cleanup supplies, signage, certification weekends and the costs of being the group the park can call.

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