Pickering Passage 2
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Pickering Passage runs along the west side of Case Inlet, connecting Case Inlet at the north end to Peale Passage and Totten Inlet at the south end, about 8 miles in all. The shores are low and wooded, and depths run mostly 9 to 90 feet. Aquaculture farms sit along parts of the route.

Timing

The flood runs south from Case Inlet toward Hammersley Inlet, and the ebb runs the other way. Current builds toward the south end, where it can reach 5 knots near Hammersley Inlet.

Coast Pilot, In Plain Words

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

Read the official text

Local magnetic disturbance

A marina in Jarrell Cove at the north end of the island has berths, electricity, gasoline, diesel fuel, water, ice and some groceries. The pier here has 22 feet reported alongside. The 200-foot Jarrell Cove State Park pier is directly across the cove from the marina. A state park float, with a pump-out station, is farther up the cove.

Pickering Passage indents the west shore of Case Inlet, about 2 miles north of Herron Island. The passage extends in a general southwest to southerly direction for 8 miles, connecting at its south end with Peale Passage and Totten Inlet. The shores are generally low and wooded, and the depths vary from 1½ to 15 fathoms. The passage contains numerous sites of aquaculture farming and shoaling extends east from the mouth of Hammersley Inlet. A midchannel course is considered safe. In Pickering Passage the flood current sets from Case Inlet toward Hammersley Inlet and the ebb in the opposite direction. Strong currents are present throughout the inlet, especially near the south end approaching Hammersley Inlet, where velocities can reach 5 knots at times. The settlements are served by highway. A fixed highway bridge with a clearance of 31 feet crosses the passage from Graham Point to Harstine Island, about 2.6 miles north of the entrance to Hammersley Inlet. Private moorings can be found throughout the region in nearshore areas.

Good anchorage may be had anywhere north of Harstine Island, in 6 to 15 fathoms, muddy bottom.

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

Local Knowledge

  • Timing

    The flood runs south from Case Inlet toward Hammersley Inlet, and the ebb runs the other way. Current builds toward the south end, where it can reach 5 knots near Hammersley Inlet.

  • Watch out

    A fixed highway bridge crosses between Graham Point and Harstine Island, with 31 feet of clearance, about 2.6 miles north of Hammersley Inlet. A midchannel course is normally safe, but expect shoaling near the Hammersley Inlet mouth and private aquaculture gear along the shore.

  • Tip

    A marina inside Jarrell Cove, on the north shore of Harstine Island, has moorage, fuel, and a pump-out. Jarrell Cove State Park sits directly across the cove with its own dock and mooring buoys.

Plan a Trip Through Pickering 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 Pickering Passage

McMicken Island Marine State Park → Pickering Passage · 3.5 nm · ~0h 26m at · from the northeast

Full departure plan →

Stations & Data

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

Questions

What is Pickering Passage?
Pickering Passage runs along the west side of Case Inlet, connecting Case Inlet at the north end to Peale Passage and Totten Inlet at the south end, about 8 miles in all. The shores are low and wooded, and depths run mostly 9 to 90 feet. Aquaculture farms sit along parts of the route.
When is the best time to go through Pickering Passage?
The flood runs south from Case Inlet toward Hammersley Inlet, and the ebb runs the other way. Current builds toward the south end, where it can reach 5 knots near Hammersley Inlet.
What should I watch out for at Pickering Passage?
A fixed highway bridge crosses between Graham Point and Harstine Island, with 31 feet of clearance, about 2.6 miles north of Hammersley Inlet. A midchannel course is normally safe, but expect shoaling near the Hammersley Inlet mouth and private aquaculture gear along the shore.
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.