It’s a great disappointment to many islanders that Madrona Point is officially closed to the public. And vandalism to the land does not help community efforts to mend bridges with the Lummi Nation.

On Aug. 3, deputies confiscated a human skull from a 19-year-old Orcas Island man who claims to have stumbled upon it while digging for arrowheads near property belonging to the Lummi Nation at Eastsound’s Madrona Point. The skull reportedly still had dirt embedded in it at the time it was seized by deputies.

The bones of Lummi Indians and mixed blood settlers have been buried at the point for centuries. According to Sergeant Steve Vierthaler, the FBI may investigate incidents that occur on Madrona Point.

Here is a little history.

In 1967, Seattle businessman Norton Clapp purchased the 30-acre land from the Harrison family. In the mid-1980s he announced his plan to build a condo development. Clapp also owned most of Turtleback Mountain. When word reached the Orcas community, a grassroots effort to save the point was launched. The project garnered support from the county, the Church Council of Greater Seattle, and eventually Congress, which negotiated with Clapp to purchase the property for $2.2 million. It was then turned over to the Lummi Nation.

In a memorandum of understanding signed by the Lummi Nation and San Juan County in 1989, the Lummis agreed to “manage the property as an open space, natural area and forest, open to individuals and groups for walking and educational purposes” with permission of the tribe.

In 2007, after 17 years of public access, the Lummis closed off the point to visitors, citing disrespect to the land.

Vierthaler says that if he sees people walking on the point, he escorts them off the property.

“We make every effort to enforce it,” he said.

If there is any hope of the land being re-opened, treating the area with respect is paramount. Please, stay off Madrona Point.