POSTSCRIPT: oops, forgot to mention....

While we were staying on Whidbey Island, we explored several hiking trails adjacent to the park. The North Whidbey RV Park is located across the road from the Deception Pass State Park, which  boasts 4,134 acres of ancient forest, and 38 miles of trails that lead to numerous freshwater lakes as well as saltwater shores. Here is a link to more information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deception_Pass

The pass was named by Captain George Vancouver
in June 1792. He named it Deception Pass after
feeling he was deceived by the nature of the
waterway

Deception Pass State Park is familiar to us.  My very first camping experience at the State Park was in 1981 when I was pregnant (and didn't yet know it was twins). We went one summer weekend with our next door neighbors and all I recall from that experience was that we set up our tent in the pitch dark, and the ground was cold and rocky which made for an uncomfortable and sleepless night. We have camped there since in better "digs" in our RV's and have also enjoyed family picnics on North Beach with its spectacular views.

On this trip we hiked to Cranberry Lake and North Beach, and we also scouted out the trails at the north end along the Goose Rock trail. 

We walked across the Deception Pass bridge one afternoon and then explored several trails leading to pretty beaches with riveting views. 
The bridge is actually two spans, the first a 511-foot arch across Canoe Pass, and the second a 976-foot span across Deception Pass.  According to Wiki information, the bridge was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It cost more in 1983 to paint the spans of this quarter mile bridge than to build them in 1935. 
The bridge is a popular spot for tourists who walk across the span along the 3-foot sidewalk on each side. The sights are fantastic and the height dizzying from the 180-foot height.

view of the first span over Canoe Pass on the left, and the Deception Pass
bridge span 

one of many secluded beaches along the strait

looking east from the bridge span

It also happened to be the weekend of the Oyster Run, an annual motorcycle rally held each September in Anacortes since the mid 1980's.  While we walked across the bridge, bikers zoomed noisily past in each direction, singly and in groups.  You can read about the origins of the event here http://oysterruninc.org/about
But in a nutshell, back in 1981 a few fellow bikers got together at the end of summer to go for a ride and eat some oysters. I guess they enjoyed it so much, they repeated the event the following year and over the years the word spread and eventually turned into one of the largest rallies in the Pacific Northwest. In 2006, the attendance was estimated in the tens of thousands. I am not sure of the exact number this year, but when we drove into Anacortes, it appeared as if every nook and cranny was overtaken by bikers, bikes, vendors, and on-lookers. The main street was open only to bikers and pedestrians.

this was an extraordinary sight along Main Street in downtown Anacortes
where the bikes were parked for several blocks on each side and down the
center