USFWS · Washington

Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge

The Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge is located near the town of Sequim in Clallam County in the U.S. state of Washington, on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The refuge is composed of 772.52 acres (312.63 ha) which include Dungeness Spit, Graveyard Spit, and portions of Dungeness Bay and Harbor. Dungeness Spit is one of the world's longest natural sand spits, 6.8 miles (10.9 km) long and very narrow. A lighthouse, the New Dungeness Light, built in 1857, is located near the end of the spit. Access to Dungeness Spit is through a Clallam County Park which has hiking trails, picnic areas, and a campground. On January 20, 1915, it was designated as a National Wildlife Refuge by President Woodrow Wilson. Dungeness is one of six refuges in the Washington Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Complex.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Wildlife Refuge1,442 acresUSFWSWA1 campground within 10 mi
Official page at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ↗
Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge
Photo by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service - Pacific Region's, licensed CC BY 2.0, from Wikimedia Commons.

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Wildlife Refuge
Managed byU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
StateWashington
Size1,442 acres
FWS regionRegion 1
Center point48.16° N, 123.16° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 10)

Boundary map

8 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge30°40°50°60°70°January: 2.18 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowFebruary: 1.39 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowMarch: 1.49 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowApril: 1.23 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowMay: 1.16 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJune: 0.94 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 0.51 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 0.56 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 0.87 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 1.63 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowNovember: 2.64 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowDecember: 2.25 inches of precipitation, 1.4 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 39.2°F averageFebruary: 39.9°F averageMarch: 42.9°F averageApril: 46.8°F averageMay: 52.9°F averageJune: 57.1°F averageJuly: 60.8°F averageAugust: 60.7°F averageSeptember: 56.0°F averageOctober: 48.7°F averageNovember: 42.5°F averageDecember: 38.8°F average0 in1 in2 in3 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Sequim 2 E, 7 miles from the center point at 50 feet, station USC00457544 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 17 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 1 inch a year on the same inches scale.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

None of the 1 federal campground within ten miles sits inside the boundary. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · 5.1 mi
Dungeness Forks Campground
First-come10 sites

Most refuges do not allow overnight camping. The campgrounds listed are outside the refuge.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Historical Reserve · 20 mi
Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve
National Historical Park · 23 mi
San Juan Island National Historical Park
National Register listings within 15 miles · 68 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Washington

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Hiking Waterfalls in Washington
    Sawyer Scheer, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Best Tent Camping: Washington
    Ellie Kozlowski, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Washington's Fire Lookouts
    Amber Casali, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge?

1,442 acres.

Source: How acreage is computed

Who manages Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

What state is Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge in?

Washington.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge?

The refuge page says whether camping is allowed here. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge?

A point inside the boundary is at 48.163° N, 123.159° W. Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve is 20 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Which national parks are near Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge?

Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve (20 mi) and San Juan Island National Historical Park (23 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge?

The National Register has 68 listings within 15 miles, including Rose Theatre and Fort Worden Building 305 (Historic Quartermasters Office & Storehouse).

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundary layer.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Acreage: geodesic area of the published polygon. The agency’s official acreage can differ where the boundary includes water, easements or inholdings.
  • Photograph: the image Wikidata records for this refuge (Q1265701), the item linked to its Wikipedia article. Author and license come from the file page on Wikimedia Commons.
  • Description: Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.