In my adventure along the river, I am now traversing the west bank adjacent to the north end of Kellogg Island. Last week I did a post around the island and some views of the southern end. If you wish to brush up on that first here is the link – Kellogg Island – Southern views
The featured picture gives you a good overall view of the island looking south toward its northern end. The sun came out and highlighted the water and the industry that surrounds this little natural place.
The T-107 park has a few informational signs showing some history of the area. Here is an 1875 map of the area showing where Kellogg Island sits. It was part of a larger island at the original mouth of the river before Harbor Island was created out of the tidal mud flats with fill.
US Coast & Geodetic Survey Sheet T-1406 – Duwamish Bay, Washington Territory 1874 – courtesy U of WA Burke Museum
The island is around 1/4 mile long and is a wild place with trees and brambles. Some folks have gone there via boat or slogged through the mud during low tide. I don’t recommend the latter method since the mud could be quicksand like. I took the next series of photos of the shore starting with mid island to the north tip.
Kellogg Island West shore with Cement Plant in distanceShoreline of Island in Duwamish RiverCranes and mist over Kellogg IslandKellogg Island looking East at north endCranes and barges at northern tip of Kellogg Island, Duwamish River
I leave you with a close up of the northern end of the island. The natural elements are overshadowed by the industry that surrounds this area.
Northern tip of Kellogg Island – birds & barges
To see more of my Duwamish Adventure I have a directory post that links all of the pieces together. You can find that post here – My Duwamish Adventure Directory
This is a special place on the Duwamish River. It is the only remaining piece of the original river before it was dredged and made the industrial waterway it is today.
Kellogg Island is really the tip of the much larger Edwards Island. The river had several salt marsh islands in the tide flats that stretched into Elliott Bay that sustained both man, fowl and beast.
On My Duwamish Adventure I finally got to the southern tip of the island and the backwater that goes around it. This is to the north of Lafarge Cement and to the south of Herring’s House Park. The Duwamish Trail until this point follows along West Marginal Way between the road and the industrial businesses that border the river. After one passes the cement plant it turns towards the river. Kind of unusual how there are two railroad cars parked to either side of the trail as it crosses the tracks. Like going down the rabbit hole.
trail disappears between these two railroad carsweird – they parked the cars around the trail entrance.
When you pass between the cars you go into a natural setting vs the mankind type. It gave me a good view of the southern end of the island and how the backwater has barges and tugs tied up there.
South end of Kellogg Island – Duwamish
You can see the cement plant on the right and the edge of Kellogg Island on the left. Straight ahead is the main Duwamish River Waterway where you see the Matson barges and cranes. While I was standing there I caught a tug chugging towards the bay. Behind all this stuff is the Georgetown Reach. That is another inlet left over from the straightening process. Maybe once I get done walking the west side of the river I can get some photos of it.
Duwamish River tug at south end of Kellogg Island
Back to the moored barges and tugs between Lafarge and the island. Wonder if they belong to the plant or someone else is just parking them there since it is out of the way of boat traffic and easy to get to. I have seen the backwater almost void of water at really low tides, so wonder if this end is deeper than the rest?
Barges docked in south backwater of Kellogg IslandTugs nestled near Lafarge cement plant
Back here in the wonderland behind the rabbit hole entrance (two rail cars), is a paved path more like what I encountered down the Green River Trail. On one side was the river with madrona trees and other brush. The other side is a chain link fence with stacked container trailers.
Trailers stacked beside Duwamish River Trail across from Kellogg Island
Down a ways from this shot I found a little landing where there used to be a homeless home dug into the bank. Now it makes a good site to take a few pictures of the water and island. The island is a natural place not much changed from when it was chopped off from the larger island. The north end is tidal flat like and floods at high tide but the southern end is high enough that it is a true island with trees, brambles and grass. Crows, Kingfishers, Herons, several species of ducks, gulls and cormorants all inhabit this place wedged between man and nature.
Kellogg Island looking north to West Seattle Bridge
Looming in the north is the high-rise West Seattle Bridge. That bridge has a history of its own and here is a little excerpt from Wiki.
The high-level West Seattle Bridge, officially the Jeanette Williams Memorial Bridge, is a cantilevered segmental bridge that serves as the primary connection between West Seattle and the rest of the city. It was built between 1981 and 1984 after the previous bascule bridge was deemed inoperable as a result of being struck by the freighter Antonio Chavez in 1978
West Seattle Bridge
If you look real close you can see the Seattle skyline and the Space Needle. I zoomed in a little more so you can see it in the next picture. What a combination of man and nature.
Space Needle & Seattle from Kellogg Island on Duwamish
I leave you with a float that is a bird hang out. Next visit will be to the northern end of Kellogg Island and the parks along the Duwamish there. And when I say the north end of the island, I won’t be setting foot on the island. That would take a boat I don’t have and swimming in the river during the winter is not an option either.
Row of birds on float in Duwamish off Kellogg Island
To see more of my Duwamish Adventure I have a directory post that links all of the pieces together. You can find that post here – My Duwamish Adventure Directory
Spotted a crow family when I went down to the Duwamish today. They were on Kellogg Island, which is the last holdout of the Duwamish’s natural channel. It was created by engineers who cut the waterway straight through a bend in the river, making an island that, at low tide, is surrounded on three sides by a brown mess of mud and a 30-foot-deep shipping channel on the fourth.
This murder of crows were hanging out in some containment booms that were washed up at low tide on the island. This is on the natural side of the island facing west. They were foraging for some good eats. Every few minutes they would fly up in a flock and then land back on the boom. Finally they landed with full stomachs in their family snag to watch the world go by.
Crow Family enjoys tid-bits stuck on shore of the Duwamish
Crow doesn’t mind the un-natural items on the banks of Kellogg Island
Muddy Kellogg Island protects Crow Family
Family digging through containment barriers for eats
Just to the North of Kellogg Island is a reclaimed natural habitat that is surrounded by cranes and barges. As I was watching the wildlife there, a barge full of containers passed by headed south or up river. Here is a short video to show you how this is area is so taken over by man’s machines. At the end of the video you will see a mud flat. That is the north tip of the Crow Family’s island.
