Suquamish

Suquamish is a community of 4,100 people (2010) on the Kitsap Peninsula in the Puget Sound region of Washington state.

Suquamish, located on the Port Madison Indian Reservation, is home of the Suquamish tribe.

Understand

Suquamish means "place of clear salt water" in the Native Lushootseed language, and has been the primary home of the Suquamish people since ancient times. It sits on Agate Passage, and is the site of Old-Man-House village, the winter home of Chief Seattle, the heart of the Suquamish people and of Puget Sound.

One of the most influential leaders of the Northwest, Chief Seattle, lived here and he is buried at Suquamish Memorial Cemetery behind St. Peters Mission.

Chief Kitsap for which the county and the Peninsula are named also lived in the area and was an influential leader.

Visiting the areas forested hills, clear streams and endless clear salt water will give insight into why the original inhabitants of Puget Sound chose this region to call home and navigated these waters in well-designed cedar canoes. Today Suquamish is culturally and economically diverse area, with a mix of native and non-native residents that include artists, crafts people, local workers, commuters and retirees. Suquamish Tribal traditions are celebrated throughout the year and are a visible part of the Suquamish experience.

Get in

By car

From the Seattle/Bainbridge Island Ferry

Follow Highway 305 North towards Poulsbo approximately six miles. Make a right on Suquamish Way NE at the stoplight, just after the Agate Pass Bridge. Follow Suquamish Way NE.

From the Edmonds/Kingston Ferry

Take Highway 104 to Poulsbo. Turn left on Highway 305 and continue south through Poulsbo toward Bainbridge Island. Follow on Suquamish Way NE.

From Tacoma

Take Highway 16 West to Highway 3 North towards Poulsbo. Exit at the Highway 305 Bainbridge Island exit. Follow through Poulsbo Toward Bainbridge Island. Follow Suquamish Way NE.

By boat

The Suquamish Dock, NE Pkwy. For thousands of years before European explorers came to the area the Suquamish people navigated the waters of Puget Sound and the Kitsap Peninsula utilizing well crafted wooden boats and they take their water travel pretty seriously. The Suquamish Dock is available for use by boaters but also has an important cultural function, making participation in canoe outings accessible to elderly and disabled tribal members. The public dock represents the Tribe's historical access and the town's connection to the water. The 526-foot dock is free to use for short-term for boaters to tie up to during the day to grab lunch, shop or explore Suquamish’s downtown core. Long-term or overnight moorage is limited to tribal vessels.

By shuttle

A free shuttle runs between the Bainbridge Island and Kingston ferry docks and the Suquamish resort.

Get around

The central area of Suquamish is accessible on foot from the central dock.

By bus

Kitsap Transit, ☏ +1 360 479-6962, toll-free: +1-800-501-7433, kitsapride@kitsaptransit.com. Kitsap Transit offers transit services throughout the area including pickup from all ferry terminals and connects with Mason Transit (Mason County), Pierce Transit (Pierce County), and Jefferson Transit (Jefferson County) offering connections outside of the area. full fare $2 and is part of the regional ORCA network system.

See

47.7067-122.5821 Suquamish Museum, 6861 NE South St, ☏ +1 360 394-8499. Daily, 10AM-5PM. Learn more about the first people of the Kitsap Peninsula including their wooden canoes and traditions. Adult $5, senior 55 and over $3, child 5 to 17 $3, child under 5 free, family $15. (updated Jun 2018)
47.7241-122.55772 Old Man House Park. For at least 2000 years this was the site of the largest Suquamish winter village and longhouse in the region. The Old Man House was home to Chief Seattle before it was dismantled and burned around 1870 due to attempts by whites to anglicize the tribe.

Chief Seattle's Grave (in the Suquamish tribal cemetery, next to a small Catholic church). pay your respects at this popular spot for tourists and historians. Seattle's gravestone is surrounded by a mound of grass and a walkway, and surrounded by two carved, cedar canoes. Visitors often leave gifts and mementos next to his grave and the city that was named in his honor can be seen across Puget Sound. Chief Seattle died in Suquamish June 7, 1866 however the spelling of 'Sealth' on his grave marker that was later donated in 1890 was probably an effort to render the pronunciation more correctly, unfortunately the result of this effort toward accuracy has been the spread of a completely inaccurate version of the Chief's name. No Puget Sound area newspapers covered the actual funeral ceremony, and there is no indication that any of the founding pioneers of the area came to pay last respects.

Do

Chief Seattle Days. third weekend in August every year. A celebration to honor Chief Seattle, a famous leader of the Suquamish for whom the City of Seattle is named. Since 1911 when the celebration started, many of the same activities are still featured including the traditional salmon bake, canoe races, baseball, drumming and dancing, and a memorial service honoring Chief Seattle at his gravesite in Suquamish.
Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort, 15347 Suquamish Way NE. Although this resort is known for gambling, it also offers a Luxury Waterfront Hotel Resort with 85 rooms offering commanding views of Puget Sound, a zero entry pool, a spa, 4 restaurants including Agate Pass Deli, all-you-can-eat Longhouse Buffet, Beach Rock Sport Lounge, and well known Cedar Steakhouse. If that is not enough to keep you busy, they also have the White Horse Golf Club built on 456 acres and a long list of incoming bands and various performances.

Sea kayaking

The Suquamish navigated these waters in well designed cedar canoes for thousands of years and much of the designs of modern sea kayaks owe some debt to these early designs. Suquamish is an excellent place to start a sea kayaking adventure exploring the many harbor towns that cater to kayakers with shops and restaurants accessible from the water. Harbor Seals, Otters, Sea Lions, Bald Eagles and Blue Herons are common sites while the occasional viewing of an Orca or Grey Whale is not out of the question.

Kayak trails

Organized trails offer overnight camping options and maps of appropriate and scenic travel destinations, many of these trails follow the same paths that the Suquamish have used for thousands of years.

Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails. PDF copies of the water trails map are available and Suquamish is centrally located on the trail.

Buy

Suquamish Farmers Market (Held Directly Across from Village Shell Gas, on Suquamish Way). Mid-Apr to mid-Oct: W 3-7PM. Locally produced goods, food and crafts. With seven miles distance to any full service grocery stores, this is a walkable way to pick up great food, flowers, handmade clothing, gifts, and art.

Eat

^{[formerly dead link]} Agate Pass Cafe, ☏ +1 360 930-0911. M W Th 5-9PM, F Sa 5-10PM, Su 9AM-2:30PM, Su 4-8PM. Locally sourced fresh ingredients and its Pacific Northwest wine list make this place a mainstay.

Drink

Suquamish is known for its highly rated casino and resort, but there are a few other places in town that offer coffee.

Coyote Coffee, 16174 State Hy 305 NE, ☏ +1 360 394-1800. Two drive-up windows, Grounds for Change coffee and tasty breakfast specials.
Masi Shop & Shell Gas Station, 16281 State Hwy 305 NE, ☏ +1 360 598-4066. It may seem a little strange to put a gas station/convenience store on the to do list. But this place is tribally owned, above par and has coffee, tea, beer and wine.

Sleep

47.71229-122.570991 Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort, 15347 Suquamish Way NE, ☏ +1 360 598-8700. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 11AM. Although this resort is known for gambling, it also offers a Luxury Waterfront Hotel Resort with 85 rooms offering commanding views of Puget Sound, a zero entry pool, a spa, 4 different restaurants including Agate Pass Deli, all-you-can-eat Longhouse Buffet, Beach Rock Sport Lounge, and well known Cedar Steakhouse. If that is not enough to keep you busy they also have the White Horse Golf Club built on 456 acres and a long list of incoming bands and various performances.