Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
3 Gig Harbor
45 miles S of Seattle, 30 miles S of Bremerton, 45 miles N of Olympia
On the far side of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge from Tacoma is the quaint water-
front town of Gig Harbor. With its interesting little shops, art galleries, seafood
restaurants, fleet of commercial fishing boats, and marinas full of private pleas-
ure craft, this town is the quintessential Puget Sound fishing village. Framing
this picture of Puget Sound's past is the snowcapped bulk of Mount Rainier,
which lends this town a near storybook quality.
Long the site of a Native American village, Gig Harbor was not discovered by
Euro-Americans until 1841, when sailors from an exploratory expedition who
were charting the area from a gig (a small boat that had been launched from the
expedition's main ship) rowed into the bay. Settlers arrived here in 1867 and
soon Gig Harbor was a thriving fishing village of Scandinavians and Croatians.
ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE
Gig Harbor lies just across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge
from Tacoma off Wash. 16.
VISITOR INFORMATION
For more information on this area, contact the
Gig Harbor Peninsula Chamber of Commerce,
3302 Harborview Dr., Gig
Harbor, WA 98332 (
&
888/553-5438
or 253/851-6865; www.gigharbor
chamber.com).
EXPLORING GIG HARBOR
Gig Harbor is a boaters' town. Up and down the length of the town's waterfront
there are marinas crowded with sailboats and powerboats, and shops along the
waterfront cater primarily to the boating crowd. However, all the boats, and the
backdrop of Mount Rainier, also make this a very pleasant town for a leisurely
stroll. There are also a couple of options for casual visitors to get out on the water.
On the waterfront you'll find
Gig Harbor Rent-a-Boat,
8829 N. Harborview
Dr. (
&
253/858-7341;
www.gigharborrentaboat.com), where you can rent a
sailboat, powerboat, or sea kayak. Rates range from $12 an hour for a single sea
kayak to $70 an hour for a 19-foot powerboat. If you are an experienced pad-
dler, guided sea-kayak trips are available from
Gig Harbor Kayak Center,
8809
N. Harborview Dr. (
&
888/429-2548
or 253/851-7987; www.clearlight.com/
kayak). A half-day paddle costs $40.
Most visitors to Gig Harbor come because of the boating opportunities, but
landlubbers can stroll the town's main street, Harborview Drive, enjoy the view
of the harbor, and stop to browse in dozens of interesting little shops and art gal-
leries. Toward the south end of the waterfront, you'll find Jerisich Park, which
has a public dock and is a good place for a picnic. At the north end, after you
make the bend in the bay, you'll come to the Finholm area. Across from the
water here stands the Finholm View Climb, a flight of 90 steps that lead up a
steep hill. At the top of the hill, you'll find the quintessential Gig Harbor view
of the bay and Mount Rainier.
If you're curious about the history of the area, visit the
Gig Harbor Penin-
sula Historical Society & Museum,
4218 Harborview Dr. (
&
253/858-6722;
www.gigharbormuseum.org), which is located on the bend of the bay just before
Finholm. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10am to 4pm,
and admission is $2 for adults and $1 for seniors and children.
