There is a beautiful 3.5 mile loop hike on Whidbey Island’s west side of Coupeville, with continuous views along its entire length. Starting from Ebey’s Landing in Ebey’s Reserve National Historical Reserve, the loop first heads north along a pebble beach of Puget Sound. After a mile, a wide sandy extension of the mainland has trapped Parego’s Lagoon between steep bluffs and outer beach. After rounding the lagoon, a switchback trail meanders up the bluff to its top where wind-stunted, gnarled old trees greet you. The great views are then different and even better, looking out from a bird’s view across the beach to the waters of Puget Sound and Olympic Mountains beyond. The trail goes back south along the edge of the bluff and returns to the parking lot at Ebey’s Landing. The trail can also be extended further north, where it connects into Fort Ebey State Park.
This is one of the prettier and more accessible view hikes around.