Gulf & San Juan Islands

July 7-21, 2008
written by Jan Doney

(click thumbnails to enlarge and click here to view Map)

July 7, 2008 - Monday

Headed out for the San Juan's, leaving a smoky Chico behind. Wildfires are burning up and down the state and the last few days have been particularly bad. Went through Crater lake - beautifully clear, deep blue - though the California smoke has reached up here and made things a bit hazy. I went for a run on the trails while Glenn followed on the road, meeting me at turnouts. Had to cross lots of snow patches to keep the trail (even did some butt-skiing). Spent the night in Eugene - Olympic trials just ended yesterday and Jenn Stuezinski's pole was in the lobby.

July 8, Tuesday

Got up and ran along the Williamette River trail - wonderful treat after smoky, no-running days. What a beautiful trail along the river! It gave us a later start, but we arrive in Anacortes just at the right tidal and current conditions for making it to Sucia Island by dark - okay, it was really dark for anchoring, but it all worked. Saw sunset and sunrise a few times behind Orcas Island as we motored over, but at final sunset right over Sucia the clouds turned red and gold in a lavender sky, with just enough haze to diffuse the light conveniently over Echo Bay. A half moon painted a silver path across the water. Nighty-night! (Played a few harp tunes for a lullaby). Video underway.

July 9, 2008 - Wednesday

Got up early, put things away, made breakfast. Aahhh, the pleasure of dining in the cockpit in a serene bay! Lots of boats are here but it's quiet. Played the harp for awhile, then we dinghied ashore for a hike. Lots of kayakers, campers, kids at day camp are at all the beach areas. We spent some time at the sculpted sandstone area, then headed back to set out for Pender Island, B.C. - or maybe Stuart Island, US - trying to decide! Saw seals sunning themselves on a rock and a bald eagle. So - we decided on Poet's Cove on Pender - highly acclaimed in Waggoners (Cruising guide). Got in easily enough (had to clear customs by phone, as this was our first stop in Canada). It's pretty, but crowded. Ate dinner at the grill on the patio, had a swim, soak and shower - mmm - good!

July 10, 2008 - Thursday

A beautiful, sunny morning! So crowded here and we're not party people - so we're looking forward to a quiet(er) anchorage soon - Rented the resort's van for a trip around North and South Pender Island - very leisurely day. Explored Otter Bay - lovely cottages at the marina - had a nice lunch at Driftwood Center. Returned and had a swim and read by the pool. Then showered & had a delicious dinner (expensive!) on the balcony & just enjoyed the ambience - a nice cloud came and shielded the sun just as it was about to kill us. Back to the busy docks - looks like a yacht club just came in. Noisy! Dueling radios & ipods.

July 11, 2008 - Friday

Breakfast aboard & headed out toward Ganges (on Salt Spring Island). Another sparkling, sunny morning - chilly on the water though very warm in the marina. Rented scooters & went to Mt. Maxwell for a high view of San Juan Island & those between, and over to Maple Bay. Watched falcons doing impressive aerobatics, soaring & dive-bombing, spinning over, & fast-flying such that it was tough to follow them with the video camera - we'll see what turns out (or not). After returning the scooters we poked around town, then had dinner downstairs from the Oyster catcher - can't remember the name but it was yummy - live music there, too, at the Tree House Cafe. (Saw a seagull chasing a bald eagle.) Slept well.

July 12, 2008 - Saturday

Went for a run to find Nick Bantock's Studio (the Forgetting Room) but it was too early (7am), although the sign said OPEN - then on to the Hastings House, snooped around the beautiful grounds, then back to the boat for breakfast & a shower. Then we went to the Saturday market - delightful! It's really warm here - almost hot! (Bought a Simon Rompre ring - looks like waves). Missed meeting Nick Bantock by just a few minutes but we needed to get on with it. Such a warm day, even on the water - sailed/motored over to Montague Harbor on Galliano Island - anchored not too far from the beach & the dinghy dock (between them). Once on the beach, we asked about getting up to Bodega Hill. At the Nature Hut (?) the naturalist said it was about 15km. We rowed back to the boat to get the bikes and went ashore. Yikes! Steep and no shoulder but at least there weren't tons of cars. Most gave us plenty of room. It was a beautiful ride/hike. The view from the top was truly spectacular. We also saw another bald eagle. The ride back was a surprise - how is that it was uphill all the way to Bodega and also uphill on the way back? We arrived tired, but satisfied in an "I-can't-believe-we-did-that" sort of way. Dinner on the boat sure was good! Glenn counted 105 boats anchored here, but it's pretty quiet and doesn't feel crowded. We'll sleep well tonight!

July 13, 2008 - Sunday

After breakfast, dinghied ashore to explore the beach - Low tide exposed lots of bright purple starfish (the occasional pink or orange, too). The beaches are positively littered with oysters & clams. Saw some lovely oyster shells. Back to the boat, we had lunch & enjoyed some Ganges Saturday Market treats. Then we left for Wallace Island. On the way we saw seagulls pestering a bald eagle again. The occasional seal popped up to greet us. At Conover Cove, we anchored in pretty shallow water, and it's high tide - yikes! But we'll be okay because it's not low tide till tomorrow morning and we don't need much beneath us. After anchoring, we went ashore to explore to the tip of the island. There are some abandoned cabins and beautifully kept campsites. One of the cabins used to be a store, and people have filled it from ceiling to floor, all over the walls, and hanging both inside and outside with planks bearing their boat's name & the year they were there. We'll have to make one! The hike to the tip was lovely and we encountered an old rusted out truck & a water pump - at the end of the island, more starfish! It was easy to picture the First Peoples there. In fact, I wondered if I hadn't seen an illustration in a book of this exact view - very deja vu - so beautiful with the waterways between islands, mountains in the distance...Back to the boat for dinner, fussing with anchors and playing Scrabble. I played harp in the very quiet cove as the moon rose in a lavender sky.

July 14, 2008 - Monday

We've been out a week already - it's easy to see how one could just keep going from island to island forever. While eating breakfast in the cockpit, we saw a mink - kinda blonde-ish. Some people saw it eating crabs - I had never thought about what they eat. We were in just over 3 feet of water but pulled ourselves to deeper water (and set a stern anchor) before going ashore. We hung our plank (made it last night) over the table in the "store". Saw some "sun stars" - starfish with 18 legs! Learned their name from a 5 year old at the dock (:^)) We motored over to Thetis Island, to Telegraph Harbor Marina - very nice! Lots of flowers, pleasant showers and ice cream! Then took the ferry to check out Chemainus (a town across the Stuart Channel). It was 5 on a Monday so nothing was open - walked around the cute little town and looked at the murals - great idea! We'll try to get tickets to the theatre tomorrow. Had dinner before returning to do laundry & get some sleep. What a great day! The moon is almost full.

July 15, 2008 - Tuesday

We went for a run/bike to the Pilkey Point end of Thetis Island. Saw two otters eating breakfast - mussels off the exposed rocks at low tide - yum! We watched for a long time until an eagle screeched nearby and they disappeared. When it had gone, they came back up but now were wary of us, and didn't stick around. It's so quiet here! After returning to a shower & nice breakfast at the marina, we headed over to Chemainus. We checked out the anchorage on the north side of town, but didn't want to risk losing the dinghy if we stayed in town late, so went to the public dock and got a slip. Went into town for a delicious lunch (my favorite so far...curry chicken grilled wrap) at the Dancing Bear, then poked around town after having secured tickets to "South Pacific". We listened to music at the bandstand for awhile, then enjoyed the murals and shops. The horse carriages give a quaint flavor to the town. Dinner at the theatre was so-o-o good! I ate way too much, but how to resist such delicacies? The show was terrific, very pro. Walked home under a full moon. Stayed up way late reading (:^))

July 16, 2008 - Wednesday

Glenn got up at 6 to head down (whale blowing in Satellite Channel) to Sidney. We got there sooner than expected - 10:15am - so that gave us plenty of time to get checked in & bike down to Victoria (25+ miles). The wind was against us, but it's such a beautiful ride, scenery changing often, stopping for raspberries - such a pleasure! It took 3 hours on our fold-up bikes (gotta remember to bring helmets next time - they have laws here). We checked into the Queen Victoria Hotel & had a nice view of the back of the Empress Hotel & some of the bay. We explored a bit down at the waterfront after cleaning up. We walked through the Empress & got tickets for the IMAX later. Had dinner by the water at Milestones (very good). Saw the Rolling Stones movie (wow, do they ever look old! - Quite the phenomenon that they stayed together first of all (!) and that they still sound amazing and have the energy (Jagger never stops moving - it's actually a bit wierd). Tired tonight!

July 17, 2008 - Thursday

Slept well. Went out for breakfast, stopped at the museum and headed back - ah, the wind at our backs makes it much easier. Stopped at Maddick's Farm for a yummy lunch at Adrienne's Tea Garden (?). Back in Sidney we discovered there is a market on Thursday night, so we had a great, leisurely stroll around it, ate Filipino food, listened to nice music (even a marimba band a' la Orff playing Zimbabwean music). Fed the goose family at the boat & settled in for the night - very quiet out at H dock (1/4 mile from the bathrooms)!

July 18, 2008 - Friday

Heading for Friday Harbor (USA) since it's Friday (:^)) . Went for a run, then breakfast & a shower. Set out around 10-ish. Hey, we have wind! Raised the main sail but we still need the boost of the motor due to currents. Checked into customs right behind a big schooner - beautiful! Went into town after settling into the slip. There's an art festival tomorrow so we'll need to stay (:^)). Walked around a bit, got ice, emptied the john - top priority! Had dinner at Dos Diablos, then went to a movie. There was a blues band down by the marina - everything is very festive!

July 19, 2008 - Saturday

Got up to fog - our first on the whole trip. Went for a run around Turn Point Road & then looped back into town, where we thoroughly enjoyed breakfast at The Doctor's Office - we even got a table on the porch! Always busy - and for good reason - yummy stuff there! After cleaning up we went to check out the Adventuress - last night we talked with Rachel, the galley chief. She told us about a public sail, so we went to see if possibly it wasn't full. When we got there, they said it was full, but we waited anyway - it would be interesting to watch them from the dock. Then - the bosun said we could come! Yay! Very exciting. The ship was built in 1913 as a sort of luxury whaler (a rich guy was going to try getting a whale for a museum). It's 101 feet on deck, 137 feet including spars. We got to crew a bit, to sing sea chanties, go below & tour the quarters & galley, make tea or a sandwich and have classes like what they do with kids. They have school groups, elder hostel, not much just open to the public - we were so lucky (felt like we won a prize!) They do environmental education & team building. We'd love to bring our grandkids! After the sail (definitely a big highlight of our trip) we went to the Arts Festival - another marimba group was there - it was nice to take our time & just mosey from booth to booth. Had dinner at Bella Luna after lots of looking in cute shops. Back at the boat we watch a DVD and made plans to anchor out at Lopez Island for a laid-back last day. What a great day! Popeye, the resident seal, came to visit.

July 20, 2008 - Sunday

Got up around 8, took a shower, back to the Doctor's Office - got a table again! and then one last visit to the Arts Festival for Glenn to pick up a picture he ordered - oh, and I found something, too (:^)). We left for Lopez around 11 and raised the sails and turned off the motor - we're sailing! This is what I love most - quietly moving through the water, feeling the wind carry us. After dodging a container ship and the ferry (exciting!) we anchored at Spencer Spit (on the east side of Lopez Island). Rowed ashore with the bikes and rode to town for a few groceries (about an hour to Lopez Villiage on the west side of the island) - oh, and ice cream, of course! Watched a guy with his parasail in a pasture for awhile - tricky! Had dinner on the boat - it's windy and getting chilly.

July 21, 2008 - Monday

It's a cloudy morning - time to head back - what a fantastic two weeks! Made it to Anacortes in short order & had the dock to ourselves - we'll be back!