Skip to main content
Doug Sowdon

Fidalgo Bay Day

Education & Outreach

Fidalgo Bay Day is Skagit MRC's signature educational event that has taken place each year since 2004. It is supported by many partners and volunteers and typically features a beach seining demonstration, a touch tank aquarium, kid friendly craft activities, face painting, interactive discovery passport stations with prizes, complimentary samples of seafood, and a traditional Coast Salish no-host Salmon BBQ lunch.  The purpose of this free event is to increase public awareness of the marine environment and foster environmental stewardship.  

The Skagit MRC is currently looking for volunteers or an organization to take the lead in planning and coordinating the 2026 Fidalgo Bay Day event. This event won't likely continue unless we are able to find someone to take the lead. Contact the Skagit MRC Coordinator for more information. 

Fidalgo Bay Day Reports

2025 Fidalgo Bay Day Report

Fidalgo Bay Day 2025

We hope you were able to join us for our 21st annual Fidalgo Bay Day event on Saturday, September 13, 2025, from 11:00am - 3:00pm at the Samish Indian Nation's beautiful Fidalgo Bay Resort in Anacortes.

The event kicked off at 11:00am with a warm welcome by Carolyn Moulton, Anacortes City Council member and Skagit MRC member, and Coast Salish Elder Rosie Cayou James, followed by a day filled with a variety of activities to help celebrate our local estuaries and their beauty, history, and wonderful marine life. 

Some of the event highlights included our popular seining demonstration at 1:00pm with knowledgeable Samish Indian Nation staff and volunteers, Shannon Point Marine Center's undersea zoo with live marine creatures, kid friendly craft tables, Corra the Heavy Metal Selkie - Mutiny Mermaid Pod on the beach, Deception Pass State Park's Grey Whale Skull, 33 educational exhibits staffed by local agencies and organizations and Discovery Passport Stations with prizes and a coloring contest sponsored by the Friends of the Salish Sea.   

In addition to all the fun activities, there were tasty complimentary samples of savory shellfish and delicious chowder thanks Taylor Shellfish, Adrift, Gere-A-Deli, and Island Cafe' and Rosie's Coast Salish Food's traditional no-host salmon BBQ lunch! 

Many thanks to all of our amazing volunteers and the participating outreach booths for another successful Fidalgo Bay Day event.  This event would happen without all of you!

A special thanks to Jenn Dumas, our amazing 2025 Fidalgo Bay Day Event Coordinator for making this event run smoothly and extra special for all of the participants. 

And our deepest gratitude for the generous contributions and in-kind support of local businesses and organizations:

  • Zero Waste- Skagit Soils compost deposit
  • Door Prizes for Volunteers:  Anthony's at Cap Sante Marina, Anacortes Oil & Vinegar, The Wishing Rock, and the Watermark Book Co 
  • Complimentary Seafood Samples:  Taylor Shellfish, Adrift, Gere-a-Deli, and Island Cafe
  • Traditional No-host Coast Salish Food:  Rosie's Coast Salish Foods
  • Refreshments for Volunteers: Skagit Valley Food Co-op and Skagit Gleaners
  • Discovery Passport Stations & Prizes:  Friends of the Salish Sea
  • Fidalgo Bay Resort Facility, Misc. Supplies, and Beach Seining Demo: Samish Indian Nation
  • Portable Microphone:  Saul Vest, Salish Sea Steward volunteer
  • Chowder Servers: Northwest Straits Foundation
  • Food Thermometers:  Skagit County Health Dept.
  • Popcorn Machine: the Salish Sea School

 

2025 Fidalgo Bay Day Report

2025 Participating Businesses and Organizations

Adrift
Anacortes Forest Lands
Anacortes Oil  Vinegar
Anthony's at Cap Sante marina
City of Anacortes - Stormwater
City of Anacortes Waste Water Treatment
City of Anacortes Water System
Corra the Heavy Metal Selkie, Mutiny Mermaid Pod 
Dept of Ecology
Department of Natural Resources- Aquatic Reserves
Forage Fish Interpretation
Friends of the Anacortes Community Forest Lands
Friends of the Salish Sea 
Gere-A-Deli
Northwest Straits Commission
Northwest Straits Foundation
RE-Sources
Orca Network
Pacific Mammal Research
Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve
Rosie's Salish Foods
Salish Sea Stewards
Salish Sea Stormwater Monitoring
Samish Indian Nation
Skagit Conservation District
Skagit County Health Department
Skagit County Natural Resources Division
Skagit County Noxious Weeds
Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group
Skagit Food Co-op
Skagit Gleaners
Skagit Land Trust
Skagit Marine Resources Committee
Skagit Soils
Swinomish Shore Friendly Program
Taylor Shellfish
The Salish Sea School
The Whale Museum
The Wishing Rock
Transition Fidalgo & Friends
Washington State Parks - Deception Pass
Watermark Book Co
Wolf Hollow Wildlife
Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
Fidalgo Bay Day