New cabins are going to be available for rent at Fay Bainbridge Park.
Designed and built by Bainbridge Island Metro Parks and Recreation District staff, the two new cabins will feature arched roof construction and 288 square feet. Cabin 4 is centrally situated in the forested cabin loop. Cabin 5 will be located near the bluff and feature a deck with commanding views to the north.
Because of the popularity of the first three cabins built five years ago, in 2019 two additional cabins were slated to be built. Construction for cabin 4 began in January 2021 but the project was shut down due to COVID until the fall of 2021. It was completed this spring. Then, construction of cabin 5 began and is anticipated to be complete by fall. Both cabins 4 and 5 have recycled materials used in them from the original kit log home.
Cost to construct the cabins is approximately $20,000 each. Using recycled and efficient design, along with park labor, helps keep the cost down, park officials said.
All the cabins can be rented by day or week; cost is $95 per night. Rentals are limited to a 10-night stay in any 30-day period. Cabins cannot be reserved less than 10 days in advance; if not reserved, first-come, first-served. Cabins have no indoor water, kitchen or bathroom. Water and restrooms are in or near each site. Cooking is to be done outside. Each cabin has electricity and heat. Bring your own linens.
Cabins 1 and 2 are 198 square feet with a 108-square-foot deck with two chairs and a table. Inside is furnished with table and chairs, futon, double/single bunkbed, end tables, heater and electrical outlets. Cabin 3 is 240 square feet with a 168-square-foot covered porch. The new cabin 4 is 280 square feet, with a 100-square-foot patio. Other furnishings are similar to the first two cabins.
The new septic system will allow the park to stay open longer in the year. The campground also has 14 tent sites and 26 RV sites. There are two restroom facilities, one with showers. There is no longer a dump station.
In 2012 the district was considering an alternative camping experience for Fay Bainbridge Park. The option considered was yurts. After doing research and seeing how yurts performed in a forested environment and issues encountered with rodent infestation and maintenance operations, yurts were taken out of consideration.
In 2017 a district-owned Pan Abode log kit home was being dismantled at Williams-Olson Park. Three sections of the building were saved, two bedrooms and the bunkhouse. The two bedrooms were reassembled into cabins 1 and 2, the bunkhouse became cabin 3.
Fay Bainbridge Park is a 17-acre marine camping park with 1,420 feet of saltwater shoreline on the northeast corner of BI. The nearby Old Man House is located on the site of the home of Chief Seattle.
At the park entrance is a display of a bell donated by the Kitsap County Historical Society. The bell was brought to the area from San Francisco in 1883 by Capt. Jeremiah Farnham. The bell was to proclaim important community events to the citizens of Port Madison. The park was acquired for $5,000 in 1944 from Mr. And Mrs. Temple S. Fay.
Fay was a neurosurgeon who introduced the use of hypothermia in medical and surgical illnesses. He taught at the University of Washington.
