Cattle Point Beach Access

Cattle Point Beach is a breathtaking site. Its spectacular setting is at the end of Cattle Point, a rocky point protruding into Middle Channel along the remote southeastern end of San Juan Island. It lies adjacent to the American Camp portion of San Juan Island National Historic Park. To avoid detracting from the beauty of the site, J.A. Brennan’s design takes a low visual impact approach.

The design creates a stairway of approximately 30 stone steps, each selected to match the dark and exposed siltstone bedrock. A new access trail and viewpoint at the top of the bluff includes a swelling and undulating stone wall that rises from the ground and draws people towards the staircase. A mid-way viewpoint includes bedrock-carved art work and seat wall, where visitors can take in the amazing south facing view of Middle Channel, Lopez Island and several smaller islands, before descending the bedrock carved stairway to the beach. The design utilizes already disturbed land, minimizing any scarring or erosion potential along the bluff.

Costs were minimized by keeping improvements above the MHHW mark and avoiding excavation in an area of known cultural resources.

Client: Washington State Department of Natural Resources
Location: San Juan Island, WA