Come Saturday, chances are you’ll be able to see Kitsap County Commissioners Ed Wolfe, Rob Gelder and possibly Charlotte Garrido on the water in kayaks.

They say it’s the perfect way for them to celebrate the three to five years of work by the county and volunteers to ensure that the Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails happened. In 2013, it was designated as part of the Cascadia Marine Trail by the Washington Water Trails Association.

And with it now being designated as a part of the National Water Trails System, a celebration is truly in order.

The Water Trails Festival will take place June 27 and 28, with activities on Saturday at Silverdale Waterfront Park.

But it’s at Evergreen Park in Bremerton, where about 100 kayakers will put their boats in the water, along with Wolfe and Gelder. Wolfe and Gelder are experienced kayakers and Garrido has kayaked in the past.

“I’m just hoping the tide will be with us,” said Wolfe, who was elected to the commission last year. “The trip is about five miles and if all goes well, it will only take us a couple of hours.”

Wolfe said he and his wife like to put their kayaks in the water in Dyes Inlet just about anytime that the weather is good.

“I can leave work and go home and be on the water in about 20 minutes,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons I love living here.”

Gelder, in the past, was a serious kayaker who paddled and camped for week-long trips through the San Juan Islands. He is more a day kayaker now.

“I didn’t have room in my garage for the 17-foot kayak, so I sold it,” he said. “Now, when I go out, I just rent a kayak.”

For this trip from Bremerton to Silverdale, Gelder is looking forward to a “nice leisurely paddle.”

“It’s on an incoming tide,” he said. “It will be great to have nature help us paddle.”

The Peninsula Water Trails includes more than 371 miles of shoreline from North Kitsap County to Bainbridge Island, to the Tacoma Narrows Bridge and the waters of Hood Canal. There are 13 separate trails designed as a continuous tail experience, to make up the entire trail.

Kayakers can map out where they want to travel, based on their time and experience. At stops along the way, there are amenities such as connections to parks and trails for hiking, restrooms, places to picnic and rest, campgrounds and nearby stores and restaurants.

Visit Kitsap Peninsula actually developed the Water Trails map which started the process of applying for national trails status, said Patty Graf-Hoke, executive director of Visit Kitsap Peninsula.

According to Eric Baker, policy manager for the Kitsap County commissioners, the county’s role in the creation of the Water Trails has been to work with the various jurisdictions along the trail to make sure that everything came together in an orderly fashion.

“In general, there is a robust outdoor recreation community in Kitsap County,” Baker said. “The commissioners have been working very hard to see that the Waters Trails happen for the recreational opportunities it brings, and for the economic eco-tourism that comes along with it.”

In dollars, the county has spent about $50,000 in improving amenities along the trail, plus staff time. And there has been more than 10,000 volunteer hours put toward the project in the past three to five years.

Leading the pack of volunteers is John Kuntz, owner of Olympic Outdoors Center in Port Gamble. Wolfe said he was the power behind the formation of the Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails. Kuntz has been paddling in Kitsap County since 1996 and in 2008 he joined the North Kitsap Trails Association to work on trails on land and water.

“John has been passionate and persistent about the Water Trails,” said Wolfe. “He has so much to do with everything that has happened.” Kuntz said the water trails is a dream come true for him.

“It is something that I never imagined would happen but believed it could,” he said. “To take an idea I had almost 20 years ago and have invested thousands of hours of my time and many others and transform it into a reality is very gratifying and humbling.

“The thing that occurs to me most is how passionate and sincere this movement has become. It is truly everyone’s trail that touches so many lives and improves our quality of life through recreation, eco-tourism, environment, education, and more.”

Kuntz estimates that paddling-related activities bring $1.7 million annually to the Kitsap County economy. Wolfe thinks that’s just one of the great things about the water trails getting so much attention.

“Kitsap used to be known as the ‘Gateway to the Olympics,’ ” said Wolfe. “That’s true. But now we are a destination in and of ourselves.”

People come here and stay here for recreation, he said. That means they spend their dollars at local hotels and restaurants, too.

But, he said, it’s a quality of life issue, too.

“For people who live here, it’s a big deal,” he said. “They crave outdoor experiences. And it gives people a reason to stay here for their entertainment.”

He added that “natural pursuits” have brought companies like REI, Inc. to the area. A grant by REI was used to create the signage all along the water trails, he added.

While great strides have been made with the Water Trails creation, the work isn’t finished. The Water Trails Alliance, a group of about 60 members, will oversee any future growth.

Baker said the alliance will communicate with shoreline owners and recreators along the route in addressing issues that may face the water trails. Such things as keeping trail and rest stop standards equal and adding points to the trail are among things they will oversee.

All jurisdictions that have shoreline along the water trails are represented in the group, including the county, several port district, four Kitsap County cities, Gig Harbor, the community of Union, Visit Kitsap, Mason County, and Kuntz.