Editing Bainbridge Island, Washington (section)

== Geography ==
[[File:Aerial view of Bainbridge Island and Agate Passage in Olympic Peninsula.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of the northern part of Bainbridge Island adjoining [[Puget Sound]], with [[Agate Passage]] in center, [[Liberty Bay]] on the [[Kitsap Peninsula]] in the background, and the [[Hood Canal]] beyond]]
[[File:Bainbridge Island aerial from southeast.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of Bainbridge Island from the southeast, showing the Bainbridge Island ferry from Seattle making the first of two turns to bring it into [[Eagle Harbor (Washington)|Eagle Harbor]], with [[Blakely Harbor]] to its left]]

Bainbridge Island was formed during the last ice age—13,000 to 15,000 years ago—when the {{convert|3000|ft|m|adj=mid|-thick}} Vashon Glacier scraped out the Puget Sound and [[Hood Canal]] basins.

Bainbridge Island is in the Puget Sound Basin, east of the [[Kitsap Peninsula]], directly east of the [[Manette Peninsula]] and west of [[Seattle]]. The island is about {{convert|5|mi|0}} wide and {{convert|10|mi|0}} long, encompassing nearly {{convert|17778|acre|sqmi km2}}, and is one of Puget Sound's larger islands.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=April 23, 2011 |date=February 12, 2011 |title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref>

Bainbridge Island shorelines border the main body of Puget Sound, as well as [[Port Orchard]] Bay, a large protected [[embayment]], and two high-current tidal passages, [[Rich Passage]] and [[Agate Pass]]. The island has an irregular coastline of approximately {{convert|53|mi}}, with numerous bays and inlets and a significant diversity of other coastal land forms, including [[Spit (landform)|spits]], [[cliff|bluffs]], [[dune]]s, [[lagoon]]s, [[cuspate foreland]]s, [[tombolo]]s, [[Mudflat|tide flats]], streams and tidal deltas, islands, and rocky outcrops. The high point is {{convert|425|ft|adj=on}} [[Toe Jam Hill]].<ref>{{citation |title=Toe Jam Hill |author=Greg Slayden |publisher=peakbagger.com |url=http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=47578 |year=2004}}</ref>

On the Kitsap Peninsula, [[Bremerton, Washington|Bremerton]] and [[Poulsbo, Washington|Poulsbo]] lie across the [[Port Orchard]] channel to the west, and the city of [[Port Orchard, Washington|Port Orchard]] lies across Rich Passage to the south. Despite the short distance over water and significant commuting population between Bremerton and Bainbridge Island, proposals to construct a bridge have been resisted on the Bainbridge side for various reasons.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kornelis|first=Chris |date=December 28, 2007 |title=The Bainbridge/Bremerton Divide |url=https://www.seattleweekly.com/news/the-bremerton-bainbridge-divide/|work=Seattle Weekly |access-date=November 12, 2023}}</ref>

The island is quite hilly and hosts the Chilly Hilly bicycle ride every February.[[File:Ferry Wenatchee enroute to Bainbridge Island WA.jpg|thumb|left|The ferry ''Wenatchee'' en route from Seattle to Bainbridge Island]]Bainbridge Island can be accessed by motor vehicle, bicycle, or foot through two access points, both on [[Washington State Route 305]]. Bainbridge Island is connected to the Kitsap Peninsula by the [[Agate Pass Bridge]], carrying SR 305 over Agate Passage at the island's northwest corner. The only other way off the island is by the [[Seattle–Bainbridge Island ferry]], the [[Washington State Ferries]] service from the dock at Winslow in Eagle Harbor to Colman Dock (Pier 52) in Seattle. Numerous public [[Right-of-way (transportation)|right of way]] access points to water around the island also exist, officially called Road Ends.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bainbridge Island Road Ends {{!}} Bainbridge Island, WA – Official Website|url=https://www.bainbridgewa.gov/741/Bainbridge-Island-Road-Ends|access-date=2021-12-28|website=www.bainbridgewa.gov}}</ref>

=== Communities ===
{{further|List of Bainbridge Island communities}}

When the city of Winslow annexed the entirety of Bainbridge Island in 1991, it absorbed numerous named [[Unincorporated area|unincorporated communities]]. Most of these are still referred to by name.