Ferndale is located in western Whatcom County, Washington. It sits primarily within the fertile valley of the Nooksack River, which meanders directly through the city before emptying into nearby Bellingham Bay to the south. The city is positioned approximately 10 miles northwest of Bellingham, Washington, and 13 miles south of the Canada–US border.
The surrounding geography is characteristic of the Pacific Northwest, featuring rich riparian zones, evergreen forests, and rich agricultural soils deposited by millennia of river flooding. To the east, the landscape gradually rises toward the foothills of the Cascade Range, dominated by the snow-capped peak of Mount Baker. To the west, the land gives way to the coastal environment of the Salish Sea and the Strait of Georgia.
Natural resources in the area have historically included dense timber (Douglas fir, western red cedar) and highly productive soils, alongside rich fisheries in the Nooksack River system.
