Whidbey Island questions (Seattle, Everett, Oak Harbor: Home Depot, place to live, restaurants)

[washbound]

We are in the process of relocating to the area and are interested in Whidbey Island. While my wife will not have a commute, as she telecommutes for work, I may not be so fortunate. With the size of the Island, where are the better communities to consider, if at all?

I will be looking for work as a teacher, but also will be looking to find a competitive youth soccer club to continue my coaching career. I realize that there will not be a club on the island, but it looks as though there is one in Everett. Is this commutable?

How difficult is it to commute to and from the island?
What is the Clinton area part of the island like? Is it more secluded than the remainder part of the island?
How reliable is the ferry? Is there ever a time when the ferry will not run for some reason?

Thanks in advance as we are planning another couple of trips to the area as it is tough to research the area from NC.

[roharajustification]

The south end of the island is wonderful. Its a very quiet slow lifestyle. There should be a scoccer club on the island. There is a large soccer park off of Langley Rd. Everett is not far away. It would be an easy commute but ou would have to plan for ferry time. Getting on and off the island is easy in the winter, not so easy during summer. The ferry lines can be realy long duing the weekends (thurs-mon) in the summer. Dont plan on leaving the island during peak tourist times on nice summer weekends (2 hour ferry lines yikes!). Clinton is great. I live in Clinton. Clinton is about as secluded as the rest of the south end. Really anything Couville or below is a more rural lifestyle. It gets more city up in Oak Harbor. The ferry is reliable as long as there arent any crazy storms coming in. It usually runs as long as its safe (even if its really windy or choppy). Feel free to contact me if you have any more questions. Good Luck!

[WIGirl42]

[/quote]While my wife will not have a commute, as she telecommutes for work, I may not be so fortunate. With the size of the Island, where are the better communities to consider, if at all?[quote] There is not a better commute than the Clinton/Mukilteo Ferry to get to the mainland (Everett, Seattle etc) It is a 15 minute ride and is not usually a problem to get across except for the summer time especially on Sundays when most people are leaving the island. You can always check the Washington State Ferries website to see how long the line is and prepare accordingly. To get back on the island again, summer time is the worst and Thursdays and Fridays are up to a two hour wait (I haven't experience many of them and I have lived her for 30+ years but I don't commute to work either). Unless you drive a motorcycle or walk on then you board the first boat leaving. And since you are a teacher, you should be off for the summer and it shouldn't affect your commute too much. Winters there is not usually too much of a line for the ferry, the most you should wait is about an hour and you could always go grab something to eat or cold to drink at Ivars.

competitive youth soccer club to continue my coaching career. I realize that there will not be a club on the island, but it looks as though there is one in Everett. Is this commutable?

Everett is very commutable it is only 10-15 minutes off the boat, but there is also plenty of soccer on the South end of the island. Look up South Whidbey Soccer...you will find information online.

What is the Clinton area part of the island like? Is it more secluded than the remainder part of the island?
How reliable is the ferry? Is there ever a time when the ferry will not run for some reason?

Clinton you will find has banks, a few local grocery stores, restaurants, the basics...no Home Depot, Costco, Safeway, Olive Garden...that you must take the ferry for! Most folks here make a run to "town" (the mainland) or Oak Harbor (North end of the island) when they have to hit those kinds of places. The South end of the island consists of different towns but they are all within close driving distance(5-15 minutes) and you will find everything you need (for the most part). Greenbank (not much there but some may consider it the South end but is the farthest North), then Freeland which has grown and has all the banks you need, groceries etc..I would say it may be the busiest town on South Whidbey. Then there is Langley, it is a small tourist town. But it has some great places to eat and the place you take visiting guest it's "the village by sea"...something like that anyways. In between Clinton and Freeland is an area called "Bayview" grocery store, hardware store, restaurants etc.. It is a great mid place to live. But the ferry is not far from any of these locations...Greenbank is the farthest and your looking at about a 20 minute drive to the ferry.

The ferry won't run when it's broken down but luckily there are 2 running so you can always catch the one that's working. Very rarely do they not have a boat running...except of course late late at night...don't expect to find a boat running at 3am. They don't.

Hope that helps!