Here are some Resources and Tips for the trip

 Click to Enlarge

Jan's Narrative: June 20, 2004 - Launched at Anacortes' Washington Park after a long drive up (following driving from San Diego and back for a workshop and fun).  Glenn had studied the tides and the timing was just right to get us to James Island-beautiful, sunny and  warm, gentle sail.  We got the one mooring there in the west cove (!) and dinghy-ed ashore. Hiked around almost the entire island, came back to the boat and fixed dinner. Played harp and flute for sunset (9:20pm) then went to bed. Slept great-I woke to the sound of the motor but it seemed we weren't moving-it was that flat! 6 a.m. June 21 - Motored through Thatcher Pass and raised the sails in Upright Channel for a gentle sail toward Fisherman Bay on Lopez Island. Arrived at F. Bay 9:45 - lovely! Went for a jog (to the airport and golf course), came back for a shower. Unfolded the bikes and went for lunch to a cafe with windows to the water. Rode to Lopez Village (most shops were closed) then back to the boat to relax and write this while sunning on the bow. :^) Went up to the pool, sat in the Jacuzzi for awhile, then went to dinner-ate outside, just above our boat, while the sun set. Beautiful day! June 22 - Foggy this AM-bundled up and rode to Isabel's Espresso and sat outside to enjoy the view. Came back and made a picnic lunch to take to Agate Beach, 12 miles south. Saw lush farmland, horses, sheep, cows, llamas-lots of bunnies. Sweet peas line the roads, with wild roses and purple vetch. Glenn took lots of pictures of this idyllic island. At MacKaye Beach we stopped to watch an otter-he even came up on shore to eat a fish. It was a river otter, with the long tail instead of flippers - I'll have to check that out...  Had a marvelous time at Agate Beach looking at all the beautiful rocks- all different colors and collected flat ones for the gourd, egg-shaped ones and baby ones. Of course that made the backpacks heavy! On the way back (about 3 miles into it), Glenn got a flat tire :^(  and we didn't have the fixit kit with us, so we walked the nine remaining miles back! It wasn't terrible-the day was gorgeous, the scenery spectacular. But we arrived very tired, ready to veg out for the rest of the evening. Had dinner, sat outside for the view, although inside had big windows- sat in the hot tub and had a shower-delicious! Tomorrow we sail to Orcas Island, Rosario Resort :^) June 23- Motored all the way to Orcas Island. If you wait for wind around here, the currents are all wrong. Cloudy and still, after a really windy night. Saw a bald eagle coming into East Sound. A seaplane landed in the harbor just before us and took off again. Off-loaded our stuff and a shuttle took us to the Mansion (100 years old) to register and then to our room, high up on the hillside.  A long uphill stretch, but the Cascade Lakes trail takes off right behind our room. It's a lovely room, with a view all the way to Frost Island through the fir trees. Took the bikes up the trail and rode them 5 miles to town-over a mile of downhill-so we knew we'd be in trouble on the way back! Stopped and talked to people on the beach by some curious looking rows of -something- in the water at low tide. It was an oyster farm. They were harvesting them and described the process to us. In town (also called East Sound) we found cute shops, coffee, ice cream, nice people and a shuttle back to Rosario. Showered and went to a concert & historical slide show at the Mansion-a huge pipe organ and 1905 Steinway piano-wandered around the mansion and grounds, then had dinner with a view-very expensive but yummy. Tomorrow we hike! (Saw a raccoon on the way back to the room.) Tough night for Glenn-bad tummy.                  June 24- Second day at Rosario- Took most of the luggage to the boat this AM-then got a ride up to Mt. Constitution and hiked down six miles. On top there is a stone observation tower-on a clear day you can see Canada and all over Puget Sound to Washington and the Olympic mountains. On the way down, passed by four waterfalls. Beautiful hike around 2 lakes-had lunch at Mountain Lake, and went along the shore of Cascade Lake. Saw beautiful stands of foxglove all along the way. I played some whistle tunes as we walked-there were water lilies (yellow flowers) on Cascade Lake. Even though it was cloudy, it was absolutely gorgeous. Back at Rosario, we went to soak in the spa, then swam in the outdoor pool (with a view of the whole bay), then in the indoor pool (with windows to the bay), then had dinner and spent the evening in our room looking out over the water through the fir trees. We sail for Sucia tomorrow. June 25- Sailed for Sucia Island at 8AM. Beautiful, steady sail all the way. I played whistle, flute and guitar- it was that calm. Got there at 2 pm- Saw a pair of bald eagles on the way. After grabbing a mooring we dinghy-ed ashore and walked nine miles, all over the island- Saw Echo, Shallow, Fossil, and Fox Coves. The sandstone is all carved out by erosion (or Chinese workers, according to the guy on Lopez) into beautiful shapes. We were in Ewing Cove. It has 4 little islands that look like bonsai gardens. The hike took us up cliffs for gorgeous views of the islands and to China Caves where we climbed up for a picture. We got back around 8 but had light until almost 10pm. Pretty sunset and a peaceful night's rest. June 26- Glenn got up at 6 to catch the tides to Stuart Island. We had breakfast underway. How lovely is a hot drink and instant oatmeal in the cold on the water! Saw the occasional seal. Arrived at 9:30, motoring all the way. Packed a lunch and took off for the Turn Pt. Light House. Beautiful sunny day! On the way, we visited the Stuart Island School, a beautiful, new, one-room school house (about the size of a standard elementary school multipurpose room). but all natural wood with lots of windows. They had 8 students at the beginning of the year, but only 2 by the end. There was also the 100 year old schoolhouse which is now the library. The old "teacherage" which is a museum. They have a little honor-system business there called the Treasure Chest-lots of t-shirts and hats-you take what you want and send them payment later. We shopped! :^) A mile and a half later we came to the lighthouse, also 100 years old but now automated, so no one lives in the lovely keeper's house, a beautiful place today but probably pretty severe in winter.  We had a crystal-clear view over to Canada (Sydney is straight across). Had lunch on the point and, here it comes! - watched a big group of ORCAS pass right in front of us for about 20 minutes! What a thrill! I was glued to the binoculars and Glenn the camera. They were so close we could hear them blow. Wow! On the walk back we saw the woman who operates the Treasure Chest. Her husband is a graphic designer and she does the printing and embroidery. The 2 students still at the school are hers and says it's too hard to go back and forth to San Juan Island every day because the weather and waters can get so crazy in winter, plus it gets dark by 4pm. What a different lifestyle! The kids just returned from a "field trip" to Alaska to study whales-yow! Back to the boat for relaxing in the sun...More hiking, dinner and music. June 27- Sailed at 6am for Friday Harbor on San Juan- arrived at 9, went for a run around Pear Point to Griffin Bay and back through town, showered, yay!  great after anchoring out. Fooled around in town, had lunch at a rooftop cafe (Maloula's) with a view of the harbor, did some boat cleanup and shopping, saw a movie (The Terminal) and had dinner after at the Ale House. A good night's rest...   June 28- Got up around 8:30 (luxurious), ran the same route as yesterday, did laundry and showers, coffee at the Doctor's Office, caught the Victoria Express to Victoria, beautiful ride! We've had gorgeous warm weather and sun every day but one. The Olympic Peninsula Mtns. were beautiful. Got a Pedi cab to the hotel (Queen Victoria) and we had to hop out and push it up the hill!  That's ok, it was cheap and he gave us some good information. The hotel is right next to the Royal BC Museum which is right next to the Parliament building and across from the Empress Hotel and half a block from the Beacon Hill Park- wow! Had dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory, then went to the Imax National Geographic show-fabulous-"Lions" and "Adrenalin Rush".  Parliament was all lit up tonight. A beautiful city, tomorrow the Buchart Gardens. June 29- Got up and ran through Beacon Hill park to the waterfront and back around to the hotel..another gorgeous day! Picked up the bus in front of the Empress Hotel and rode on the top deck. Got a narration on the way about some of the buildings.   The gardens are fabulous-I think we came at the perfect time. The rose trellis walkways were profuse with blooms-amazing what she did with that old gravel pit! After the gardens we had lunch in Chinatown, then to the Royal BC Museum. We spent most of our time in the "First Peoples" exhibit, learning about the "aboriginal" life. We had thought about renting bikes, but after running, walking around the Gardens and museum, we decided to rest a bit at the hotel. Went to a Thai restaurant for dinner and then to see "The Notebook"-we loved it!  A very sweet love story...then nighty-night. June 30- Slept 'til 8 so no run but we needed it. Sleeping with the window open was noisy, but it was too hot with it shut.  The Queen Victoria was a great place to stay-so close to everything. Took the ferry from Victoria and on the way we detoured a bit in order to view a pod of orcas. I was so glad the ferry captain stopped so long-one even breached! There were maybe nine or ten of them- spectacular! Guess I'll have to do a unit on orcas :^) Back at Friday Harbor we had lunch and did a little shopping. Sailed to Spencer Spit on Lopez at 3pm and arrived at 6. Rowed ashore to pay for the mooring and walked around the marsh out to the spit.  Lotsa bunnies! Saw a deer, too. Had a quiet night, played cards and went to bed. July 1- Wow! July already-it has been a fantastic vacation-sunny and warm (except for morning and late night) and we've seen eagles, whales, deer, raccoon, seals and otters. What a beautiful place! Now we're sailing with the tide - no wind to speak of, but we're going 6 knots with the current (according to the GPS)-wouldn't want to be going against it! Left Spencer's Spit at 8am-got to Washington Park in Anacortes to haul the boat out and the dock was sitting on the beach with 2 feet of land between it and the water (minus 3 foot tide). We anchored and watched people try to launch but, no workie-they gave up. We packed and stowed things- I flew the kite ever so briefly (flukey wind just like sailing), and played a couple of tunes. Had lunch and waited for the tide to come up :^)  Got the boat out of the water at 2pm and headed for home at 3pm. Thank you, Lord, for another wonderful experience!

Resources and Tips