Coupeville is an adorable little waterfront town on the shores of Penn Cove on Whidbey Island. The architecture reminds me of a quaint little New England town and is very well preserved. Originally Lower Skagit Indian land, the area was settled in the 1850s by Thomas Coupe, for whom the town is named. Coupeville is a small town with a population of right around 2000 people. It’s also home to Ebey’s Landing National Historic Reserve, the first site of its kind in the country which preserves the old buildings and countryside of the 19th century settlers. I had a great visit to Coupeville, enjoying coffee on the pier and wonderful views out over the water. There are some lovely little Victorian buildings around including the immaculate Anchorage Inn and Kineth House. I loved all of the seasonal and Halloween decorations that were up when I visited as well. The highlight of my visit was probably the fish and chips at Toby’s, though. You can get fish and chips everywhere in Washington, but these were the best I’ve had in a very long time. You should definitely check it out if you visit. I hope you enjoy these photos of tiny Coupeville, Whidbey Island’s waterfront gem.
Long Beach, Washington is a wonderful little seaside town in the far southwest corner of the state. This area was originally home to Chinook Indians who later traded with European ships as they made their way up and down the coast. William Clark visited these beaches at the end of his Corps of Discovery’s overland voyage to the Pacific. White settlers started to arrive not long after the Civil War, originally coming to harvest the plentiful local oysters to ship to San Francisco. In the mid 1870s, steamships started bringing in tourists from nearby Portland and hotels and restaurants started to spring up. Long Beach has been a vacation destination ever since.
I absolutely loved my time in Long Beach. The beach itself is beautiful and the sunsets were magnificent. I really liked Dylan’s Cottage Bakery which is one of the best I’ve been to in a long time. I had a wonderful dinner at Castaways, drinks at the Long Beach Tavern and ice cream at Scoopers. The Marsh Free Museum is a wonderful old collection of oddities set around a modern souvenir shop. But mostly I loved the statues and public art, colorful buildings, hand-painted signs and the general laid back feel of the town. The attention to detail is amazing and even the parking signs and bike racks are adorable. I had a fantastic time in Long Beach and can’t wait to go back again. If you ever get the chance, you should definitely pop in. You may end up staying longer than you thought you would. I hope you enjoy these photos from beautiful Long Beach, Washington.
