Dana Passage 2
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Dana Passage runs about 2 miles between Brisco Point on Harstine Island and the mainland. It's the main route into Budd Inlet and Olympia, and it also connects to Eld Inlet, Squaxin Passage, and Peale Passage.

Timing

Away from Itsami Ledge the channel runs clear, and a midchannel course is safe. Current here often runs 3 knots or more, so plan around it even though the water is otherwise open.

Coast Pilot, In Plain Words

Here is what the U.S. Coast Pilot says about Dana Passage and the water around it. The official text is below.

Read the official text

Local magnetic disturbance

Itsami Ledge, covered 1 fathom, lies 1 mile west-southwest of Johnson Point. It is surrounded by kelp and marked by a light. This is a danger in entering Henderson Inlet or Dana Passage. A fish haven is close north of the light.

Olympia

Dana Passage, between Brisco Point, the south point of Harstine Island, and the mainland, is about 2 miles long. It is the main route to Budd Inlet and Olympia and also joins with three other bodies of water: Eld Inlet, Squaxin Passage and Peale Passage. Squaxin Passage leads to Totten and Hammersley Inlets, and Peale Passage leads to Pickering Passage.

With the exception of Itsami Ledge near its east end and a fish haven about 0.3 mile north of Itsami Ledge Light 7, Dana Passage is clear and a midchannel course may be safely followed. The currents in Dana Passage frequently attain velocities of 3 knots or more.

Boston Harbor is a village in the cove of the same name just east of Dofflemyer Point. A marina here can provide limited transient berths, gasoline, diesel fuel, electricity, water, ice, some marine supplies, launching ramp and pumpout facility.

Source: U.S. Coast Pilot 10, Chapter 8, 7 ed. (NOAA, Office of Coast Survey). Updated weekly. Official Coast Pilot ↗

Local Knowledge

  • Watch out

    Itsami Ledge, covered by about 1 fathom and ringed with kelp, sits near the east end and is marked by a light. A fish haven lies just north of the ledge light.

  • Timing

    Away from Itsami Ledge the channel runs clear, and a midchannel course is safe. Current here often runs 3 knots or more, so plan around it even though the water is otherwise open.

Plan a Trip Through Dana Passage

1. Start from

Nearest harbor on each side of the narrows. Pick a side to start there.

2. Cross to the other side of Dana Passage

Boston Harbor Marina → Dana Passage · 2.0 nm · ~0h 15m at · from the southwest

Stations & Data

Times are NOAA predictions, not live readings. Open a station for its full tide and current charts.

Questions

What is Dana Passage?
Dana Passage runs about 2 miles between Brisco Point on Harstine Island and the mainland. It's the main route into Budd Inlet and Olympia, and it also connects to Eld Inlet, Squaxin Passage, and Peale Passage.
When is the best time to go through Dana Passage?
Away from Itsami Ledge the channel runs clear, and a midchannel course is safe. Current here often runs 3 knots or more, so plan around it even though the water is otherwise open.
What should I watch out for at Dana Passage?
Itsami Ledge, covered by about 1 fathom and ringed with kelp, sits near the east end and is marked by a light. A fish haven lies just north of the ledge light.
What does Class 2 mean?
Class 2 is BoatRoutes' own 1-to-5 rating of how costly a timing or judgment mistake is here — it is not a NOAA scale. Class 2 means one thing to plan around (depth, a schedule, or mild current); getting it wrong costs time, not safety.

Predictions, not observations · U.S. Coast Pilot 10 (7 ed.)

U.S. Coast Pilot text is a work of the U.S. Government and is in the public domain. Per 17 U.S.C. §403, no copyright is claimed in that text. BoatRoutes is not endorsed by NOAA.