Anderson Island is hiring!

Photo taken in December 2012

Ok at least the Riviera Community Club restaurant is.

If you are considering living on Anderson Island having a job on the island would make life much less complicated. Make sure you tell them Explore Anderson Island told you about the job opening. Next time maybe they will reach out to us directly and we can help them advertise their openings. The Lakeshore Restaurant is a casual restaurant that overlooks Lake Josephine.

You can find out more about the Riviera Community Club on Anderson Island by visiting their website here.

View Larger Map

Happy Holidays to all. We hope to see you on Anderson Island in 2012!

If you would like to promote your business, club, event, or just about anything else related to life on Anderson Island please feel free to contact us. We would be happy to help you promote your business, club or event.  Explore Anderson Island can be reached by emailing explorer AT exploreandersonisland.com

Changes to Anderson Island Ferry Coming.

Starting January 1, 2012 Pierce County is making changes to the Anderson Island ferry service. The ferry that serves Anderson and Ketron Islands will begin to charge new higher fares.

Adults will be charged $5.00 Seniors and disabled passengers will pay $2.50. Children under six ride free. This is the first fare increase for the Anderson Island Ferry since 2008.

Senior citizens and disabled passengers will have new procedures to follow with regards to their identification to receive the lower fares.

The first ferry run will leave Anderson Island at 6:45am on Sundays. There will no longer be a 7:00am Sunday ferry leaving from the island.

Ketron Island residents are now required to make a reservation at least 20 minutes prior to the ferry arriving. To make a ferry reservation call (253) 588-1950.

We covered the proposed fare increases back in November. You can read what we had to say about the Anderson Island Ferry fare increases here.

The Pierce County Ferry System has a flyer that details all of the fare increase and service changes. You can read about the Anderson Island Ferry changes here.

We’re still going to the island as often as possible and hope that we will all of you on Anderson Island in 2012!

Anderson Island Community Club Annual Holiday Bazaar

November 25th and 26th 2011 from 9am to 4pm

Food, Fun, and Shopping.

Photos with Santa from 11am to 2pm Bring the kids!

Snack bar open from 10:30 to 2:00

What a great opportunity to get out an see Anderson Island and do some holiday shopping! If you’re going to go over make sure you plan your ferry trip. Here is the Anderson Island Ferry Schedule.

Enjoy the island!

Hello Fellow Anderson Island enthusiasts.

The plug in we were using to provide the weather updates has been terminated by Weather dot Com. We are looking to find a new weather plug in and hope to have this situation fixed quickly.

Thanks for stopping by and visiting the site. We have some new Fall and Winter content we will be posting shortly.

The Pierce County Council is considering as part of the 2012 budget for Pierce County raising the cost of a ferry trip to Ketron and Anderson Islands.

Currently off peak ferry fares for a car and driver are $15.80 the budget proposal would raise the fare to $16.80

Peak rates are currently $19.00 for a car and driver. The budget proposal would increase the fare to $21.00

Due to the lowest tide for the remainder of 2011 travelers to Anderson Island might face some challenges with the ferry system.  Pierce County is placing load restrictions on vehicles for the remainder of the weekend through Tuesday July 5th.

If you are thinking of taking a large vehicle to either Anderson or Ketron Island this weekend please check with Pierce County for the tide chart and ferry schedule. Your large vehicle might have to wait for a later sailing to help compensate for the low tide.

For more information you can visit The Piece County Ferry Systems page by following this link.

Due to many conflicting projects we have not been able to update Explore Anderson Island as frequently as we would like.

We are looking for someone who would like to assist us with keeping the site up to date and fresh. If you are interested please leave a comment in this message with a way for us to contact you.

While most of the information provided in this post will be considered old news to residents of Anderson Island it is my hope that for people who are interested in visiting Anderson Island with the possible intent of living on the island either part time or full time this information will be of great value and interest.

In 2009 Pierce County put together a community plan for Anderson and Ketron Island. The plan is designed to help with the unique community planning challenges of both island. The 109 page document is a comprehensive effort to help provide a framework for growth in the future. The following is the vision statement from the community plan.

ANDERSON ISLAND VISION STATEMENT

Anderson Island is a historic and rural residential community with an attractive and compact central commercial node.

Growth on the Island is managed to retain the Island’s historic and caring character, foster a sense of community and diversity, and preserve the natural forested and marine environment and ecosystems.
Residential and commercial development is designed to be visually pleasing and integrated into the natural surroundings.

The Island contains well planned public infrastructure and services to support a diversity of residents’ needs including safe walking areas, recreational opportunities, parks and open space, schools and a transportation system coordinated between the local ferry and regional mass transit.

The plan strives to take in consideration the needs of the local residents while carefully setting parameters for future growth. The idyllic community of Anderson Island is very concerned about how future growth and future services will impact the overall island.
If you would like you can read the entire Pierce County Community Plan for Anderson and Ketron Island by following this link.

If you are considering living on Anderson Island it will be good for you to be aware of  Pierce Counties Anderson Island community plan. When you are ready to search for a home or piece of land to develop on Anderson Island you can visit Classic Homes Northwest and search all the homes and properties that are available for sale.

I was surfing the Internet tonight and while searching for things related to Anderson Island I found a webpage that has a list of the people who are buried in the Anderson Island Cemetery. At first this kind of gave me the chills then I realized that webpages like this one are amazing research sites for anyone who is interested in their family history.

Cherie Peterson compiled this list (here is a link to the list)  in 1999 and since it is 11 years old now I am sure that there are other names to be added. I am not into Genealogy I am not aware of how much information is available online for people to do research on their heritage. Perhaps there is a more updated list somewhere I am simply not aware of one if there is.

The cemetery was dedicated in 1883 and is located approximately 1/4 of a mile south of the General Store. The cemetery is located on the east side of the road.

Just another thing to explore on Anderson Island.

The old fashioned country island fair will be held  Saturday September 4th. All proceeds from fair benefit the Anderson Island Community Club. The Community Club is looking for volunteers to help with all aspects of the fair. If you are interested in helping out you can visit the Anderson Island Community Club by following this link.

The fair has two confirmed off island groups for the parade. The Tacoma Scots Pipe band and The Brothers in Arms Motorcycle Club.

The fair also will have the Tripolar Jazz Trio as the musical entertainment for the evenings dance. The dance will run from 7pm to 8:30pm.

Sounds like a fantastic time to go to Anderson Island and enjoy the island fair and take in the splendor of the island. Hope to see all of you there on the 4th!