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State Park Series #4: State Park Summer Mini-Series-Deception Pass State Park: Wildlife Scavenger Hunts, Tidepools, and Breathtaking Views in the Pacific Northwest
41 Plays10 days ago
“Some of the most memorable family adventures are the ones that feel exciting and full of discovery without requiring a complicated plan or an exhausting schedule.”
In this episode, I continue our summer state park miniseries with a visit to Deception Pass State Park in Washington State. I share why this beautiful destination stood out to our family and how it offers the perfect mix of movement, wildlife, outdoor exploration, and flexibility for families–especially those raising children with ADHD, autism, anxiety, and other behavioral differences. From scenic beaches and tide pools to wildlife spotting and forest trails, this park creates opportunities for adventure without the pressure of a packed itinerary.
You’ll also hear practical insights on choosing activities that match your child’s comfort level, why movement and nature can be so supportive for regulation, and how simple outdoor experiences often become the most meaningful travel memories.
Topics Covered:
- 00:00:00 – Introduction
- 00:00:10 – Welcome to Family Travel that Supports ADHD, Autism, and Anxiety
- 00:00:47 – Introduction to Deception Pass State Park
- 00:01:56 – Crossing the famous bridge
- 00:03:14 – When is it best to visit?
- 00:04:02 – Movement and exploration benefits
- 00:05:06 – Bridge crossing considerations
- 00:06:31 – Flexible ways to explore
- 00:07:18 – The benefits of tide pooling
- 00:08:53 – Who this park is best for
- 00:09:54 – Simple adventures matter
About Your Host:
Dr. Josette Bianchi is a board-certified pediatrician, mom of three, and a travel lover who believes families should feel confident exploring the world together. Through Family Travel that Supports ADHD, Autism, and Anxiety, she shares practical tips, real-life experiences, and encouragement for families raising children with big feelings, sensory needs, or behavioral differences.
Combining her medical background with her perspective as a parent, Dr. Bianchi helps families plan flexible, sensory-friendly trips. Each episode offers simple ideas, honest stories, and helpful tools to make travel more manageable and more meaningful for neurodiverse families.
Connect with Dr. Josette Bianchi:
- Email: familytravelsupport@gmail.com; josettemarie@gmail.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josette-bianchi-40902943/
- Instagram: @familytravelthatsupports
Resources:
- State Park website: https://deceptionpassfoundation.org/plan-your-visit/
- Kayak tours: https://www.anacorteskayaktours.com/kayaking-day-trips-srengine7/family-trips/
- Whale watching: https://deceptionpasstours.com/
- State park approved vendors: https://deceptionpassfoundation.org/vendors/
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Transcript
Introduction to Deception Pass State Park
00:00:00
Speaker
Looking for a destination where your kids can search for seals, cross a dramatic, maybe scary bridge, explore beaches, and burn off some energy on the trail? This next stop in our State Park miniseries to the most visited state park in Washington State might be perfect for you.
00:00:17
Speaker
Today we're heading to Deception Pass State Park. Welcome back to our State Park mini-series here at Family Travel that supports ADHD, autism, and anxiety.
00:00:28
Speaker
I'm Josep Bianchi, a mom to three children, a board-certified pediatrician, and a travel
Exploring Deception Pass: Location and Features
00:00:33
Speaker
lover. If you're raising children with ADHD, autism, anxiety, or other behavioral differences, and the idea of travel feels both exciting and overwhelming, this podcast is for you.
00:00:45
Speaker
For today's State Park mini-episode, we're heading to Deception Pass State Park in Washington State. This is located between Whidbey Island and Fidalgo Island. It's famous for its dramatic bridge, really high dramatic bridge, incredible views, beaches, forests, and amazing wildlife.
00:01:05
Speaker
I went here a few years ago with my oldest and my husband on one of our baby moons. It was awesome. We really enjoyed it. The scenery is incredible. This is Washington State's most visited state park.
00:01:18
Speaker
And interestingly, for some of the moms out there that might be closer in age to me or even a little younger, it's one of the filming sites of 2002 The Ring.
Accessibility and Travel Tips
00:01:28
Speaker
So if you were a horror movie fan pre-kids, you may recognize some of the scenery while you're there from that movie.
00:01:35
Speaker
It's about two hours from Seattle. Definitely worth the drive for Seattle families looking for a weekend or a day trip during the summer or the fall. Or if you're already heading to the Pacific Northwest for a summer or fall itinerary, this is great to build into it. Again, it's only about two hours away.
00:01:53
Speaker
Before we go any further, i probably should let you all know something, that this bridge was really scary for me. So, you know, I think you want to approach the pedestrian bridge of across as like a maybe for your itinerary when you're here. For me, I did it. I did it for my daughter. i was terrified, but I did it. I think if you have littles, you may want to consider whether it's better to just view from below. And we'll talk about that a little bit more as we dive in.
Activities and Adventures for Families
00:02:22
Speaker
What really stood out for me about Deception Pass State Park was, of course, the bridge because I think it did leave a little bit of a mark on me, but also just the awe-inspiring, beautiful views, the wildlife, how many different things you could see, and how it really felt adventurous without like overwhelming or without tons of effort on the part of our family. like It still felt very adventurous without having to book a lot of things or go to a lot of different parts of the park.
00:02:49
Speaker
Really, all the parts of the park just inspire adventure. A few notes about the park itself. All parking within the park requires a Discover Pass. You can get that online or one of the automated pay stations within the park. If you're there for camping, you don't need the Discover Pass for parking because it is included with the camping fee. Some other things to note is that summer is the busiest. It's probably the best time year to experience this park. We went in May. We got a great week in May, so the weather was actually really nice. It was beautiful. But summer can be busy, so you may want to go earlier in the day if you're there in the summer or during a weekday so you avoid some of the crowds.
00:03:29
Speaker
This park has some decent physical accessibility. Not all areas are physically accessible, but there are specific areas that are great for that. So the Sand Dunes Trail is paved. It's 1.2 miles. It's ADA compliant. It offers really nice scenic views. There's also some beaches and areas that are quieter to get away from some of the noise of the bridge or some, you know, if it's a busier day on a weekend in the summer and take a calmer pace.
00:03:55
Speaker
Okay, so why does this state park work really well for families? like mine and hopefully yours as well. Movement and exploration without having to feel like you're a super warrior. Really everywhere in the park encourages movement for kids and interaction with nature.
00:04:11
Speaker
They can climb over driftwood. They're walking on trails. There's rocky shorelines. You don't have to really do anything specific. Just being in the park is really conducive to just movement, experiencing nature, kind of running to the next viewpoint. The kids really like that. For many kids like mine who regulate best through movement, that opportunity to move can really make a huge difference.
00:04:36
Speaker
There are also trails, as we said before, that are designated as ADA a compliant, like the Sandu's Interpretive Trail at West Beach. Also, what's really great, I think, for kids and families that listen to our show are the tide pools at Rosario Beach. Those are great for exploring and getting a little wet on a hot day. So we really liked those two things.
00:04:56
Speaker
There's also crossing the famous Deception Pass Bridge itself, which, full disclosure, i don't think is for every kid or maybe not even every adult because it was kind of hard for me, I thought. It can be noisy, overstimulating. The path is a little narrow. So i think you want to take a peek, look online, kind of know your crowd before you commit to doing that experience.
Wildlife and Nature Interaction
00:05:20
Speaker
You can still appreciate the wonder from below. You don't need to walk across. So if you have very young children or people that are uncomfortable with heights, the trails and the beaches below the bridge are nice alternatives to experience the bridge and get some great pictures.
00:05:36
Speaker
Another reason that this park works really great in addition to the movement and the adventure is just the wildlife. My kids are really curious. They love scavenger hunts. They love animals. So this park is really great for that. I mean, you can have a scavenger hunt that includes can you find a seal? Can you see an eagle? That's a pretty cool scavenger hunt, I think.
00:05:57
Speaker
So there's just so much to keep the kids engaged. It's really great for kids who are curious, again, who love animals. So I think that was really nice and something I really look forward to if I go back to the park with my younger two, doing a scavenger hunt and really enjoying the wildlife a little bit more because they're really into that. Another reason this park works really well is just the flexibility and variety. Some state parks and national parks are really about one main attraction, but that's not the case at Deception Pass. There's several different experiences that you can have.
00:06:30
Speaker
If you like to fish or do water sports, if you like to paddle, be in a kayak, you could do that. If you want to just hang at the beach or beach comb or be at the tide pools, you could do that. You can camp.
00:06:42
Speaker
You can really scale the level of activity based on the physical activity level of your children, the ages, their energy levels, and their interests. So for us, we were there just for like about a half to three quarters of a day. We did the pedestrian walk across the bridge. We did a short hike and we spent some time doing tide pools. Rosario Beach is great for some calm tide pools. They have some nice educational signage.
00:07:09
Speaker
We talk a lot about tide pools on the show, which... may seem a little bit extra that we're always talking about tide pools. I think this is maybe the third or fourth episode we've covered it in, him but there's a specific reason for that. I really think for children with neurodiversity, particularly ADHD, this is really good for calm, focused observation. and I noticed that a lot of times working in tide pools or exploring in tide pools really helps with that ability to spend more than a few seconds somewhere before jumping to the next thing because it's that calm, focused observation. And my kids really sort of lock in and enjoy it. So I think that Rosaria Beach is a nice option for many families that listen to the show that go to this park to do the tide pooling.
00:07:58
Speaker
Next time I go back, I'd really like to try some of the kayaking and salmon fishing for my son. I want to say many of our listeners who are going to go here won't have their own kayaks to launch, or they may want to do a fishing charter, and they don't have their own fishing equipment because that's hard to pack, especially if you're trying to pack late with the kids.
Personal Family Experiences and Engagement
00:08:16
Speaker
So I'm going to put some links to companies suggested by the state park itself in the show notes. You could definitely use some of these tours to make this state park trip into a two to three day itinerary, or you could just pick one or maybe none at all and just be there for a half day enjoying the beach.
00:08:35
Speaker
I think Deception Pass State Park is best fit for families with kids who love wildlife and animal spotting, families who benefit from lots of movement and nature and being outdoors, but also want to include some water time in addition to the hiking or being on land, and any family that's visiting Seattle or Whidbey Island.
00:08:56
Speaker
One of my favorite memories from this trip was standing near the bridge watching my daughter look at the water. She was really calm and focused, and I was a little bit scared and focused mostly on being safely back on solid ground. But it really taught me that everybody in the family sort of experiences places differently. And that's OK. And maybe when you go back, you experience a place a little bit differently. Like I know when I go back with our now larger family, we'll experience it differently. But that's what makes family travel great, and that's what makes it fun. So I just wanted to share that with y'all and hope that you like the state park as much as we did.
00:09:35
Speaker
Deception Pass State Park reminds me that adventure doesn't always require a complicated itinerary. Sometimes you just need a place that's outside, encourages curiosity, space to move, and where the kids can discover things right around the next corner.
Personalizing Family Travel
00:09:49
Speaker
Remember, travel doesn't have to look like anyone else's version to be meaningful. Meet your family and your kids where they are and keep wandering without limits. You've got this. If this episode resonated with you, please follow or subscribe to the show. share it with another parent who might benefit as well.
00:10:04
Speaker
We'd also love to hear from you. Feedback, questions, places you'd like us to cover. Email me a show suggestion. can also give us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you're enjoying the show. it does help push it out to more people that might be interested.
00:10:20
Speaker
You can also find us on Instagram at Family Travel That Supports. We share tips, info on upcoming episodes. We also ask for listener input.
Listener Interaction and Feedback
00:10:29
Speaker
And remember, this podcast is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not to be considered medical advice for any patient.
00:10:37
Speaker
Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you next time.