"When most people see the pass, they see it from the bridge and they are usually intimidated by what they see below with the swirling cauldron of currents," said tour guide Rob Casey.
But when you get up close and personal, it's one of the best spots on the planet.
The Deception in Deception Pass comes from the churning waters.
"When they came along Deception Pass, they dismissed it as a large river due to how fast the currents are pushing out," said Casey.
"It's class II, sometimes class III whitewater. To do it, we are carefully timing our journey to be carried by the tide, which also makes the ride a little wilder for novices like me."
You can paddle yourself or you can hop aboard a Cool Cat.
"Oh looks like there's a harbor seal out there, dead ahead of us, barely sticking its head up out of the water there."
Only accessible by boat - is an island getaway where you can stay named after its resident from the 1880's.
"Ben Ure was a character, no doubt about that," said Deception Pass State Park Manager Jack Hartt.
So the story goes, Ben used to run rum into Western Washington from here...now you can rent out the rustic cabin that remains, or back on the mainland you can just go climb.
Deception Pass has it all and that's no lie.
Deception Pass is the 2018 winner for Best State Park in the 2018 Best Northwest Escapes contest sponsored by Washington's Playground.
