Bainbridge Island

[madDawg228]

ilovebed , theoriginalbean, and I think mkate710 are especially familiar with the area.

H, Conan and I will be heading to Bainbridge Island on Saturday!  We're mainly going in order to visit the Bainbridge Island Brewery, but that doesn't open until Noon.  So, I want to make a day of our visit and do a couple of things earlier in the day, and maybe something after.

Any suggestions in the area that are dog-friendly?  Also, any good take-out suggestions to bring with us to the brewery (it looks like we can bring our own food since they don't have a kitchen).

Any Ferry tips are also welcome  We will be taking our car.

[spa]

I am not super familiar with that island, but there is a waterfront trail that is supposed to be pretty nice for a 1.5 mile walk, and a little outdoor mall where you can walk around with the pups and get a bite to eat at the outside cafes.

My only advice for summer ferry riding is to catch an early boat or be prepared to wait a few boats. I think Bainbridge is the weird ferry where they load you facing different directions based on destination.

[mkate710]

I'll send ya my recs later this afternoon. But catch an early boat, yes, and no, it's not a weird loading boat (that's Vashon!)

[InBetweenDays]

My ferry tip would be to download the WSDOT app. You can easily look up the ferry schedules and see how many tickets have been sold for the next boat (and also see if the boats are running late). And as mkate710 said - they don't board you in different directions. You just drive on one side and off the other. Personally I've never had much of a backup catching a random Saturday boat. If we get there 20 minutes early we make it on 99% of the time, but you never know so it can't hurt to get there earlier.

Since you have your car I'd head out to Gazzam Lake Preserve or the Grand Forest to hike around and wear the pup out before hitting the brewery. Or Hawley Cove Park has a nice short trail near the corner of Wing Point Way and Azalea that will take you down to the beach where you can watch the ferries. And you can hit up Mora Ice Cream after the brewery.

For food, the Fork and Spoon or Hitchcock Deli are supposed to be pretty good and are right in Winslow. If you want Thai we like Sawatdy, but it's about a 10 minute drive outside of town.

[spa]

Thanks IBD and Mkate for clarifying! I knew it was one of the Seattle to island boats but couldn't remember.

Hopefully WSDOT updates their schedules now I was so mad 2 weeks ago I checked the wait times and drove to Mukilteo because it said 70 free spaces for the next boat... there was a 90 minute wait. It was not important to go to Whidbey (dropping stuff off for the parents) so I went home, and wrote them a complaint

[mkate710]

It's the Saturday morning boats specifically in that direction that get really backed up. You won't have any issue on the return trip.

Hitchcock Deli would be a great takeout option for a "picnic" for the brewery. If you get over early, Cafe Nola does brunch and has a very vegetarian friendly menu IIRC. Coffee at Blackbird Bakery or Pegasus should definitely happen and promise me you won't come home without getting ice cream at Mora.

Not sure if they're dog friendly but Bainbridge Island Vineyards has some yummy wine. Other wineries are just ok but their tasting rooms are a fun stop.

Conan will love a walk at Waterfront Park.

Have fun! I love Bainbridge!

[InBetweenDays]

May 11, 2016 13:45:42 GMT -5 spa said:

Thanks IBD and Mkate for clarifying! I knew it was one of the Seattle to island boats but couldn't remember.

Hopefully WSDOT updates their schedules now I was so mad 2 weeks ago I checked the wait times and drove to Mukilteo because it said 70 free spaces for the next boat... there was a 90 minute wait. It was not important to go to Whidbey (dropping stuff off for the parents) so I went home, and wrote them a complaint

Yeah, unfortunately I think that's a problem with terminals that can only hold one boat load of cars. In Seattle that isn't as much of a problem because the terminal can hold more cars than the ferry can (at least it used to be able to - not sure if that's changed with all of the construction down there). But on Bainbridge that isn't the case. So they can't start selling tickets for, say, the 2:05 boat until the 1:10 boat has loaded. So at 1:20 it may look like there is a ton of room on the 2:05, but there may be a long line up of cars waiting to buy tickets. We usually look at both the times and cameras (to see if there's a line).

[ilovebed]

I second Hitchcock deli for take out lunch. You could pick up the grand forest trail at the Mandus Olsen entrance. I live within walking distance of that entrance and like it the best. That would be a nice thing to do with Conan. That entrance is also very close to bainbrisge island brewery. I love they place by the way! It's close to my house so I've been there a ton.
Wait, aren't you vegetarian? Hitchcock wouldn't be good for you. Emmy's Veg house is at the corner of Madison and Winslow and I know a lot of vegetarians love that place. It's all carry out.

[ilovebed]

Oh yea. And you must get Mora!! It's the best ice cream. I also really like a Pegasus for coffee and/or lunch and you can sit outside with Conan there.

[theoriginalbean]

Ditto Mora, for sure! Bene Pizza has a ton of great vegetarian options, and they're on the way to the brewery.

They had an AMAZING grapefruit IPA, last month. I hope it's still there, for you!

[madDawg228]

Thank you for all the suggestions

We ended up going on Sunday, because the weather on Saturday was so crappy. It was a nice, but chilly, ferry ride. We hit up the Strawberry Hills off-leash dog park, Bainbridge Island Brewing, and Mora (I got a scoop of the Mexican chocolate). We're hoping to go over there again on a sunnier, summer day