Patos Island

For the island in Venezuela, see Patos Island (Venezuela).

Patos Island is a small island in the San Juan Islands of the U.S. state of Washington. Since 1893, it has been home to the Patos Island Lighthouse, guiding vessels through Boundary Pass between Canada and the United States.

The island and adjacent islets comprise Patos Island State Park, a 207-acre marine park with 20,000 feet of saltwater shoreline. The entire island is owned by the federal government and is administered by the Bureau of Land Management's Wenatchee Office, and Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission operates a small campground facility at Active Cove near the west side of the island, maintains a 1.5 mile loop trail and has two offshore mooring bouys.

The name comes from the Spanish pato, meaning "duck", which was given to the island in 1792 by Commander Dionisio Alcalá Galiano of the Sutil and Captain Cayetano Valdés y Flores of the Mexicana.

See also

• Light on the Island (book)

External links

• Patos Island State Park, Washington State Parks

The History of Patos Island and Its Lighthouse

Early Spanish explorers named the northern most island in the San Juan group Isla de Patos; the Island of Ducks. Due to its many coves and caves, it became a favorite haunt of smugglers. In 1893, after the island came under the control of the United States, the first light station was established. The original station was a post light and third class Daboll trumpet fog signal, used as a navigational aid to ships traveling from Nanaimo, British Columbia to Alaska through the Boundary Pass. Improvements were made in 1908 when a 38 foot tower, housing a new fog signal and a fourth order Fresnel lens, was built. A 300mm solar powered lens was later installed and in 1974 the light was automated. Today the light flashes white once every 6 seconds with 2 red sectors covering dangerous shoals. The original light keeper’s house was torn down in 1958 and quarters for U.S. Coast Guard attendants were built. These quarters were abandoned after the light was automated. When the Bureau of Land Management gained possession of Patos Island in 2005, they contracted with the Orcas Island Fire Department to remove the Coast Guard quarters, which had become a safety hazard due to winter weather and roof damage. The original 1898 fog signal building with the 1908 tower is the only structure still standing on the island. The best known lighthouse keeper, Edward Durgan, moved to Patos Island with his wife and 13 children in 1905. He served there for approximately 8 years, until 1913. The Light on the Island, written as fiction but based on fact, by his daughter Helene Glidden, is a delightful and sometimes harrowing account of life on a remote island, as seen through the eyes of a young girl. Today the island is open to boaters and has campsites, pit toilets and a hiking trail. The fog signal building and tower are currently closed to the public. In 2007, the non-profit group, Keepers of the Patos Light, formed with the goal of renovating the lighthouse and preserving the unspoiled environment of the island. The Keepers will work with the Bureau of Land Management; Spokane District, and the Orcas Island Fire Department to achieve these goals. Kopl can be found at www.patoslightkeepers.org