Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
Garry Oak trees are Washington’s only native oak species and can grow to be hundreds of years old. The town of Oak Harbor is named for these magnificent trees, and many stand today that have watched over the landscape since long before European settlers ever knew of the island. While many were lost to the logging of early pioneers, there has long been a fondness for the trees by locals who have fought to preserve them.
The Oak Harbor Garry Oak Society has gone a step further. This group is not only dedicated to preservation and education, but reforestation as well, with the planting of hundreds of new Garry Oaks. You’ll see these efforts on display when you walk the Oak Harbor Waterfront Trail. Additionally, the non-profit group has embraced the rich heritage of the area and created a wonderful self-guided tour through some of the more ancient trees in town. You can read about it on their website or pick up a map at the Oak Harbor Visitor Center.
Beginning at the Oak Bowl and meandering through some of the oldest parts of town, the full route is two miles one-way and ends at Windjammer Park on the waterfront. Even if you are newly familiarizing yourself with Garry Oaks, by the end of this walk you’ll have a deep appreciation for these beautiful trees, and all the history they must have quietly witnessed.
By embracing some of the town’s very oldest denizens, you get a sense of how Oak Harbor must have grown and changed over the years. The building which has long housed the Whidbey Playhouse (originally a church) recently celebrated a 100th birthday, but the Garry Oak out front is already decades past its 200th.
At Smith Park is a grove of more than 150 Garry Oaks, along with interpretive signage and an impressive mural. These same oaks provided shade for picnics and parties in the late 1800s, well before the city was incorporated. Further along the route, a unique oak with several trunks still stands in what was once the yard of Oak Harbor’s first mayor in 1915. This pleasant stroll through Oak Harbor history takes you past many of today’s tempting storefronts, so leave extra time to shop or dine along the way.
The Oak Harbor Garry Oak Society is working hard to see the island’s oak population flourish from north to south, and you can get involved from wherever you are. Visit their website for a dose of history, explore the tree tour to live it yourself, or pull on a pair of gloves and get planting young Garry Oaks for tomorrow. Embrace your place in island history and help steward these grand trees that met our ancestors, or plant those that will watch over our descendants.