History

Historic and nature preservation are cornerstones of Coupeville. The town is the heart of Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve, the first such unit of the National Park Service dedicated to preserving and protecting the rural character of this enchanting area, encompasses much of central Whidbey Island. Major portions of the area are protected by conservation-oriented private parties, The Nature Conservancy, The Trust for Public Land, and the National Park Service.
The Island County Historical Society Museum is an excellent place to get your bearings and get your map to a self-guided house tour. There are about 50 structures in Coupeville on the National Register of Historic Places.

Parks

Start in Town Park, where you can catch one of our Concerts on the Cove on a summer afternoon, or walk the trail down to the Penn Cove beach. A waterfront footpath from Town Park leads through the shopping area to Captain Thomas Coupe Park and the town boat launch.
Fort Casey State Park is a showcase for remains of a coastal artillery battery that included disappearing guns and mortars. It offers a campground, picnic area, the Admiralty Head Lighthouse, driftwood-strewn beaches, and an underwater park for SCUBA divers. The Admiralty Head Lighthouse is a maritime landmark. Climb the steps up the tower for a sweeping vista of Admiralty Inlet, the Whidbey Island shoreline, and the Olympic Peninsula.
" Fort Ebey State Park offers panoramic views of the Olympic Peninsula, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and Vancouver Island. Notable natural attributes are "kettles" left behind by the retreating glacier that shaped Whidbey Island geography, and dense second-growth forest. Kettles Trail connects the park to Coupeville.
Stroll Meerkerk Rhododendron Gardens to enjoy a memorable display. Continue at Rhododendron Park, which offers 140 acres laced with trails through wild rhododendron.

Flora

Plants common to central Whidbey woodlands include bald hipped rose, big leaf rhododendron, bracken fern, Douglas fir, grand fir, Oregon grape, ocean spray, red alder, red elderberry, salal, snowberry, sword fern, western hemlock, western red cedar, western white pine, and willow. Our saltwater lagoons and adjacent wetlands are home to cattail, orchard grass, pickleweed, slough sedge, silver cinquefoil, and hard stem bulrush. On the prairie, you may spot American vetch, bare-stem parsley, camas lily, chocolate lily, Columbia lily, Henderson's shooting star, Hyacinth brodiea, Nootka rose, Prairie smoke, Roemer's fescue, showy fleabane, snowberry, tall Oregon grape, two-colored lupine, and wooly sunflower. Around the beaches and bluffs, look for California oat grass, dune wild rye, English plantain, gum weed, Northern saitas, purple snake root, rock weed, sea lettuce, sea shore lupine, sea shore red fescue, tomcat clover, and wing kelp.

Fauna

Depending on the season and location, you may spot yellowlegs, western sandpiper, phalarope, ruddy duck, red-breasted sapsucker, rough-legged hawk, rufous hummingbird, western grebe, surf scoter, loon, oystercatcher, Peregrine falcon, merlin, harrier, bald eagle, northern shrike, marbled murrelet, goldeneye, turnstone, kingfisher, gulls, rhinoceros auklet, black turnstone, cormorant, and great horned owl.
While you're here, watch for white-tail deer, red fox, coyote, rabbits, red and gray squirrels.