Touring San Juan Island, Orcas, and Lopez Using Public Transportation and Bicycles and Ferries

        Don't go to Friday Harbor and just stay there. If you do you are missing out.  About once an hour the San Juan Transit van/bus picks up and drops off passengers.  From the marina, simply walk over to the ferry lanes where cars are waiting to board and look for the small four foot wide island between the waiting lanes and the road.  There's a little sign saying Transit Stop - that's where you wait, the posted schedule will tell you when the next bus leaves.  For five bucks you can ride anywhere, and for five more you can ride back. For fifteen bucks you can ride all day back and forth everywhere.  Kids are cheaper.

       The talkative drivers will give you a mini tour guide talk while taking you over  to Roche or to whale watch at Lime Kiln.

        So, get on the bus, get off somewhere and hang around, get on the next bus, and repeat. When you've had enough, go back to the marina and talk to your neighbor boat people that went nowhere.

        Lopez and Orcas transit bus/vans are the same, except with different stops (you think?)

Click here to go to the page with all the schedules and links and much more
>>   getting around on public transit and ferries

all---aboard!

Where are the BIG grocery stores on Lopez, Orcas, San Juan Island?

       When you cruise somewhere with no local knowledge, you must bring it with you or make do as best you can. That's how you avoid buying $5 wine for $20, and getting outdated perishables.

        Just about all little landings have snack bars and minimally stocked shelves, and I admit I buy lots of stuff from these guys and so should you.  If we don't support them with our purchases they will not stay in business. When they are gone, everyone loses.  

        But,  what about the other products that the little guys simply don't have?

• Lopez Village
• Friday Harbor
• Eastsound
• Cap Sante
• La Conner
• Roche Harbor

These places have major stores with everything we want.

Lopez Village:  This is a hard one to get to from a dock, but you can dinghy ashore, here's a link to get you provisions.  Anchoring and Getting ashore at Lopez Village

The store is about a one block easy walk.  You can walk from the Islander in Fisherman Bay, but its further than I want to carry groceries.  You can bicycle from Odlin Park in twenty minutes.

Friday Harbor:   The marina will let you park in a slip or at the breakwater while you walk up to Kings Market. It's about two blocks right on the main street, you cant miss it. This is a big and busy place and so close you can run up from the boat when your cooking breakfast and need eggs.

Eastsound:  It's kind of a long run up East Sound to Eastsound but the store is big and only one block to walk from the county dock.  Note: the dock is small, you may not get to park the mother ship and may have to anchor and dinghy over. One time we dragged the dinghy up on to the dock because there was no room in the water, you can also beach the dinghy and climb up a trail.   Don't worry, you will get to the store one way or another.  BTW - Eastsound has a good assortment of places to eat, yum.

La Conner:  There are three public docks scattered along the city waterfront,  all right on main street.  (these docks are not the marina, which is a little longer walk)  Once on shore, walk to the  left on the main drag to the stop sign and then follow the only main street to the right.  Follow this street about one block to the towns grocery store, it's pretty big, keeps long hours and is only two blocks from boat at worst.   

The above map shows the five tie up floats at La Conner and the red dot is the grocery store, (no, not the dot marking the boat ramp under the bridge)

Cap Sante (Anacortes):  The store is a full size Safeway and is directly across the street from the marina.  Call the harbor master to arrange for a short term shopping slip.  If you are transiting Swinomish Channel, its just a small detour into Cap Sante to provision.

Roche Harbor:   Lastly, don't forget Roche Harbor for groceries.  The store is right at the top of the marina gangway.  You can get a free slip assignment for shopping or anchor out and dinghy over to one of several dinghy docks.  You could even walk upstairs while getting fuel.  The Roche Harbor store is the smallest of the bunch but is complete and stuffed to the gills.

More Stores: Yes, but those are the biggies with complete inventories.  The smaller stores include Blakely's, Rosario, Deer Harbor, West Beach, Shaw Landing, Orcas Landing, Cornet Bay at Deception Pass, and that's pretty much all of them. 

What's in your Galley? - improvements, hacks and tricks for our San Juan Cruising and Boat Camping

         First some background thinking - most of us simply use the boat we have the way the PO (previous owner) set it up, plus some of our own tinkering.  Once in awhile though we get to make a major decision. For example; about twenty  years back we acquired a boat with a pump up alcohol cook top, and of course it was a useless rusty piece of stainless (s)crap so over the side it went.  (dumpster) My cheap rush rush solution was to nail a piece of plywood over the gap where the alcohol stove used to take up, and set my propane camp stove on top. And then we took off for the San Juans or somewhere.

        Later I replaced the nails with screws and painted plywood for formica on plywood and created a pretty nice looking counter top.  Of course while underway the propane camp  stove is stowed away.  Boring - Ok, what I learned was how well the set up worked. Over the years several of our boats have had factory propane ovens, some with gimbals, and I admit they were nice, but they also took up precious space 100% of the time. Don't forget the propane bottle fills a locker too.

           So let's fast forward to Kraken to see what we do today.  Thanks to the PO, Kraken has a Dickinson diesel stove which gets zero use in the summer because its primary function is to blast us out of the boat in freezing weather, which it does very well. Our cast iron soot belching mini monster  takes forever to heat up and cool off, but for now, I put up with it in spite of the baggage, weight, space,  and occasional tantrums.

Our  Dickinson Bristol with door open - yes,  the oven on your boat is bigger.

      I could have set kitchen dishes etc. on the cold cook top, but I opted for a cleaner counter and varnished up a scrap of plywood with little spacer legs.

See!

But wait there's more.  I made sure my camp stove would sit comfortably on top.

I also whacked up a set of shims for leveling, which we use once in awhile when making pancakes.

Here's more in our galley bag of  tricks.

This cool Coleman oven fits just fine, and is just a smidge bigger than the Dickinson, (see the same tray)
It also heats and cools as fast as the flame can be turned on or off.  This set up makes fantastic biscuits, pizza and cookies, I highly recommend it

Wait, it gets better.

Our camp drip drip coffee maker fits too!
Hot cinnamon rolls and coffee anyone!
(guilt free boating at its best)

Everything gets easily stowed, and we get our counter space back.

The oven folds up into that little box and fits under the Dickinson next to the camp stove

And that's the way our galley stove works.

BTW - when the diesel stove is hot we place the camp stove on the counter to the left of the sink and  carry on.

The rest of the story, follow this link and then scroll way down to our last straw with soot and the diesel stove replacement.  new propane stove install

Broken Battery at Jones Island Hardly Slowed Us Down - Or is it more proof that paying it forward really works

This post could go several ways
  I'll list a few  

1. More proof that paying it forward is alive and well
2. Evidence that being prepared helps (well duh)
3. Dumb luck favors the ignorant (not true, but it reads well)
4. Redundancy - redundancy - redundancy
5. Do County Cops work late?
6. Do regular auto parts work on boats?
7. enough already

I'll try to just hit the important points. 

     We were on the hook at Jones for two days, the battery switch was clearly on #1, saving #2 for starting.  Lights and the fridge killed #1 as expected.  But what we did not know, was that #2 had shorted while we sat and only held 10 volts -it sounded like this -- #2 click click, #1 click click, oh crap!  #all click click, shit!  

I fired up the portable Honda 2000 and plugged in the shore-power cord, plus I plugged in my portable smart charger, only to discover that my on-board Guest 2 bank smart charger wasn't smart enough to coexist with my portable smart charger meaning nothin worked -  grrrrrr.

One and a half hours later, after separating wiring charging circuits and waiting and waiting, the diesel fires up.  We are of course not going to turn it off for anything.

Previously I had pulled the stern anchor, against my own advise to not pull anchors until the motor is idling. So I'm frantically re-anchoring my dead boat from the dinghy - nice show for everyone watching and wondering.

When we arrive at the San Juan County Dock in Eastsound 2 hours later, I squeeze our thirty feet onto fifteen feet of dock right under the sign saying four hours max. (or is it two?)and -no over-nighting-

At midnight the local constable wrote us a warning and taped it to the stern rail. It said -vacate immediately- or risk getting cited.  Midnight!  I know it was midnight cause he wrote 11:55 pm in the box.

The next day a really nice guy living offshore in a boat, gave us a ride to NAPA,(he owned a rusty Land Cruiser)(it was his inflatable I squeezed) and he carried the new battery down to the boat for me (see, paying it forward works).

By noon we were in good shape and on our way back to Jones Island.

        OK, lets wrap this up.   Our misadventure turned out to be slightly inconvenient at most.  We got to bike around Eastsound and had breakfast out.  The battery I bought, I would have bought anyway.  We met a nice guy.  It was creepy knowing a cop had been hanging around our boat while we slept.

The lessons learned are:

1. don't pull anchors until the motor is running or your ready to hoist sail
2. don't leave home without the Honda. (we have a Honda kicker too)
3. get an old fashioned dumb charger for the tool bag
4. have two batteries that work if your going cruising overnight
5. stuff happens, and things break at inconvenient places -  be prepared
6. be flexible, take it easy  (and bring a credit card)

Current Page Tables for use with the Canadian Current Atlas of the San Juans

Here is the url to find tables for use with the Canadian Current Atlas - I checked it and it worked as of  August 2015

http://code.borsboom.io/current-atlas-tables/


If you don't know what this is referring to, you need to go to the Current Atlas guide posting several years ago  >> go now by clicking this link 
Current atlas for San Juans and Gulf Islands


BTW if you find something you like, or helps you, you should say so.  Lots of people work for nothing, not even a thank you!

No No Not me, I work for nothing cause I'm bored
JR

What's new at Stuart Island Lighthouse

First I need to tell you that as of this posting date, Boundary Pass Traders is still in business selling T-shirts along the road to Stuart Island Lighthouse.  For those of you that don't know, Boundary Pass Traders is a local family business, they have two unmanned sales kiosks complete with fresh water.(after hiking up the hill you will appreciate a drink) They sell screen printed t-shirts on the honor system.  One booth, (more like an opening in the trees that resembles an upscale homeless camp) is next to the schoolhouse at the top of the long grueling hill coming up from Reid Harbor.  The other and newer location is at the intersection of the road coming from the county dock.  This means if you walk from the state park you will stroll by both, but if you walk from the county dock at Prevost Harbor, you will only see the one.  Moving along - You  make your choice from ten or more San Juan Island themed shirts, and then when you get home, mail them a check in the provided envelope. (or pay online) that's right, they trust you! We picked out an adult size replacement shirt for our youngest son, (think "Pirates of the San Juans")  to replace his stretched out, frayed, and faded child size he picked out many years ago.

Volunteers at Stuart Island Lighthouse keep a pretty spiffy privy

more - click here

Are you throwing away FREE MONEY ?

Why not Give it to someone that wants it!

Boat Dollars

Here is the deal. Lots and lots of people that you know have web sites (like this one) and advertise products. When a click is registered or a product is ordered the web site gets paid. (same as boat dollars)

For instance someone clicked an Amazon advertisement on this site and bought a $25.00 item, since they started here (this site) and ultimately bought something, this site got about  a buck (boat buck)

So, if you are planning to buy something from  Amazon anyway (You know they sell everything in the world) why not give someone the free money.  Go to your favorite site first,(this site) then click an Amazon ad, then buy anything you want, it does not need to be what is advertised.

Now go tell everyone you know to come here first -- to order anything Amazon sells.

(free boat bucks stop here)

~John~

TRY THIS link TO YOUR FAVORITE EATERIES AND COFFEE SHOPS -  Restaurant gift cards

Puget Sound is not the San Juan Islands, but if you want to try cruising somewhere new, it's a logical choice.

      Puget Sound is different things to different folks.  If you read a few articles  or listen to more than one traveler you will likely come away with some overlapping opinions. Lots of people think the San Juans and Puget Sound are the same.  They are not.  On your noaa chart, there is a place labeled Puget Sound, it's offshore from Seattle all the way up to Whidbey Island.  Virtually every body of water is named something.  Names sometimes include a descriptive hint, such as bay, passage, inlet, cove, strait, and of course sound. Did I miss any besides canal, and channel? Oh yeah, bank, shoal, flats...

       Some of us consider, Puget Sound (as an area) to encompass everything salty, from the Strait of Juan De Fuca south.  So this means both sides of Whidbey Island are included, but not the northwest side that faces the San Juans and Vancouver Island, or Anacortes, or Bellingham. I like to think of Bellingham as on Bellingham Bay and Anacortes as up Guemes channel a bit from Rosario Strait. So where does that put Olympia?

     We started in Olympia, at Swantown Marina, and so should you.  There are numerous ramps scattered around the area, but nothing compares to the Port of Olympia facilities, they have the welcome mat out more than any (boating) city we have ever visited, bar none.  I haven't forgotten the praise I lavish on Squalicum Harbor in Bellingham, but the entire waterfront at Olympia is boater friendly, which bumps them to the head of my list.

       At Swantown, is a two lane all tide ramp, open 24/7 with a long term parking lot for only $3/day.  Transient moorage is abundant, both at the ramp and a short walk away, at the old town waterfront.  Don't make a mistake and think of Olympia as simply a place to splash the boat and take off from.  Plan your trip to include one or more nights or days at the dock, and bring your bikes, you will be glad you did.

      Rather than gush over Olympia, let's get going north. On this trip our turnaround point is Lake Washington.  This means we will wander a circuitous course to Seattle, visiting as many Marine State Parks as we can.  At Seattle we will go through the Ballard Locks, through Lake Union (Lake Union is the downtown area you see from the freeway) and into Lake Washington to spend the night anchored at Seward City Park.  All total we will visit eleven parks, bike and hike most of them, spend seven nights at docks, one at anchor, and motor about 175 miles.  Wow-- when I write the specifics it sounds rushed, but we relaxed the entire time.

       Day One: We are in the water and on our way at 5pm, this may seem late to get going, but we only have 8 miles, maybe 16, to our first nights stop.  We ran the 8 miles to Hope Island State Park, but all the buoys were taken so we continued to the dock at  Jerrel Cove State Park, another easy 8 miles, and with plenty of daylight, why not?  You sail-boaters should know that we encounterrd a low 31 foot fixed bridge providing vehicle access to Harstine Island. You can avoid the bridge by taking the long way around Harstine. Jerrel Cove has two docks, and across the way is a private marina with a store and transient space.  The park is well kept with onsite rangers, car campers, a mile or two of trails that are rideable, and of course you can head out onto the island roads and ride to your hearts content.  Perhaps I should remind you that, unlike most of the San Juan destinations, all of the places we spent the night are car accessible.  This means you can plan a Puget Sound rendezvous with friends or family to re-supply or switch out crew members.

Jerrel Cove at low tide, the ramp is as steep as we have ever seen.

Day two: click here

Fast Track to the San Juan's and Patos Island State Park

In keeping with this sites purpose to help newcomers get to the San Juan's, you will find listed below selected posts and links.

These posts are the bare essentials needed to get you off on that trip to the San Juan's, the rest is up to you. (click on the links)

1. Where to launch your boat and park your rig!
• Where to Launch your boat and park your rig
• First choice = Bellingham - (Squalicum Harbor)
• Close runner up = Deception Pass State Park (Cornet Bay)
• La Conner city ramp (Swinomish Channel)
• Washington Park - Anacortes
• Cap Sante - Anacortes (sling only)
2. Suggested Itinerary!
• Suggested Itinerary
3. All the Parks with complete descriptions and chart snips!
• All the parks with chart snips
4. Rent if you don't have a boat!
• Rent a boat in Bellingham or Anacortes
5. 12 fuel docks- marinas - resorts - you should know about before you take off into the unknown!
• 12 Places you should know about

Is this all you need?

Of course not, but if you are a competent boater, the above posts will answer many questions you want answered.

Patos Island Anchorage

Did you know you can ask silly questions? Use the e-mail box on the left side somewhere.

Waterfront San Juan County Parks for Camping

San Juan County parks are pretty much ignored by the boating crowd, could it be that the lack of overnight floats keeps them away?

SJ County Park is an easy dinghy ride from anchor in Small Pox Bay.  This popular campground is great for  kayakers heading out to Haro Strait for Orca watching.

Shaw County Park Campground picnic shelter

     On Lopez Island is Odlin County Park, the only county park  with a dock.  You can load and unload but the sign says to limit your tie up to two hours.  Out in the bay are a handful of buoys and decent anchoring, but expect swells from passing traffic. This park would make an excellent rendezvous spot with friends arriving by ferry, or in twenty minutes you can ride your bike to Lopez Village for snacks or provisions.  Beachfront camping rounds out a really nice place.

     Shaw Island, boasts Shaw County Park in Indian Cove. (off Upright Channel across from Odlin county park) While offering a protected bay for anchoring, the beach is somewhat  flat making dinghy landing a chore and wet feet likely. The campground is cliff front in the trees requiring using a stairway to access from shore.  A wooden boat ramp gets your vehicle across the sand but leaves a lot to be desired at anything but high tide.

     San Juan Island County Park is located at Small Pox Bay on Haro Strait.  The road from Roche to Lime Kiln Park (Whale Watch Park) provides vehicle access.  The quite small rock free bay is easy to drive into from Haro Strait offering room to anchor one or two boats front and center in front of the ranger station. The beach is dinghy friendly and has a boat launch ramp provided your skiff is an easy launch and your car is four wheel drive.  This park is a favorite for orca watchers that crowd the point jutting from shore offering elevated unobstructed viewing equal to that at Lime Kiln Park.

 (FYI, you can make reservations up to 90 days in advance at all three San Juan county parks at https://secure.itinio.com/sanjuan/  or google San Juan County Parks) All the parks offer bike and hiker sections.

Odlin Park on Lopez island has a two hour dock limit -
find Odlin across from Indian Cove and  Canoe Island on Upright channel.

The house on right side marks the edge of public beach at Shaw Island County Park. Up in the trees are campsites, grassy fields, restrooms and a picnic shelter. This park is very hard to spot, none of the facilities are visible from the water.

North to Patos Island

Patos is as far north as you can get and still have some land to land on before entering Canada.(Okay, I know Point Roberts has some land, but we have no need for customs today)

        Patos is just north of Sucia, hardly two miles depending on where you measure, so you can run up there in just an hour or much less.  What you will have when you get there is two islands, Patos and Little Patos, together they create a pretty cool little anchorage. Run your boat all the way to the north end and enter alongside the lighthouse, have your camera ready, its a picturesque  place for sure.  There are no docks so puttster up to the dinghy beach and drop anchor in front of the picnic area. Back in the woods 75 yards or so is a nice campground along the trail to the lighthouse.

         Basically there are two trails to hike.  There is a one-miler or so that makes a circle in the woods and is sort of boring, so you have been warned. The other is a ten minute walk out to the lighthouse and most of it is akin to a road.  Be sure to visit the lighthouse, recently volunteers have been holding open house during peak summer months. Inside they have old photos, scrap books, artifacts and you can climb the light tower.  (it's hot up there if the sun is out)

         If you want to keep your walking to an absolute minimum on perfect concrete pathways, run your dinghy ashore next to an old concrete thing with a post sticking out of it.  It's left over from when the coast guard needed a landing spot. This concrete thing is well inside the protection of the anchorage bay, but its at least halfway or closer to the light house.  You will have to scramble up a rock or two, but right at the top begins a three foot wide concrete path that goes all the way to the light house. We choose this route if we are only headed for the lighthouse, its saves rowing and walking, and if we are anchored right in front, why not!

         A little warning about the tiny channel between Patos and Little Patos:
         Yes you can run your boat through there but, there may be a current and at low tide it gets a little thin. It's kinda creepy when you can see bottom on both sides of your boat. We take our boats through, but only dead slow into the current, never with the current.  If you are the least bit concerned, just go around, it's only one or three minutes and you get to take a picture of the lighthouse to boot.

          I recommend visiting Patos for lunch or spend the night, On our last trip to points further north we used Patos as a jumping off point and a return point, it was like coming home.

 This is the concrete thingy,  (you have to see it) the teensey dinghy beach and the trail is to the left between the rock and the post.  BTW, you could anchor here and stern tie to that post.  You can see the picnic area and main dinghy beach way, way beyond the anchored boats, so this saves some walking and rowing.

 This trail was built to US Coast Guard standards, it's probably a foot thick.

There is a lot of old foundation concrete out in the grassy areas on both sides, with a little sleuthing you can figure out where the buildings were, and imagine much of the original installation. Pictures and drawings inside the building show where everything was.

 Volunteers camp in the campground and maintain hours for visitors, you could spend several hours inside learning the history, its well on its way to being a museum.  Don't forget the Stuart Island lighthouse has a similar setup and they do call it a museum. 

Five Reasons for Taking the Boat Camping in the San Juan's

         I was all set to write a scathing article about the horrors of car camping and tropical cruises, thereby justifying why we go boat camping, but after giving it some time to rest, I admitted I like car camping and tropical cruises.  Some of you probably do too!  But why?  Change of pace and relaxation come to mind, in other words, getting away from it all, whatever "it" may be.

         So rather than list  potential horrible road trip issues lets concentrate on what a boat camping trip promises.

       For starters, the cynics of you (me too) have already thought "no promises."

         OK, enhanced expectations:  (satisfied?)

• relaxation  (doing nothing at all, nothing!) 
• change up in daily grind
• play with boat, meet and hang with other boat people
• be with friends and family
• do a little hiking-fishing-sailing-reading-writing

       We can make this list go on and on, but you get the gist.

      

       Relaxation, or being stress free to me is key to a successful vacation, and worrying about where we will spend the night (on a road trip) is a major stress factor.  You can say get a reservation, but there are many times, reservations are not in the cards, or severely limit what you do.

     

      There is one major difference between car camping and boat camping that is lost to non-boaters, and that is the freedom to come and go, anywhere, anytime, and never having to worry about a "sorry no vacancy sign."   When boat camping, there are no check in check out times, there are no camp hosts, no registration clerks. Docks at parks have some common sense rules, but are not reserved and first come gets it.  You will never, and I stress this, "EVER" be sent away.  Oh sure it may be crowded somewhere from time to time, but there will always be room to anchor. (the dinghy rides just get a little longer) When boat camping, unlike a road trip,  you never need to stress-out over getting a place to stay, just go, you will have a spot when you arrive, and you can count on it.  However if you (not me) must ruin things, you can stress-out over arriving in the dark, or other dumb self-inflicted pain, but that's another discussion.

So the answer is

 We go boat camping to relax and get away from  it all!

Orca Watching in the San Juan Islands

       One of the reasons we go to the San Juan's is to see the Killer Whales, except more often than not we are in the wrong spot and only get to see snooty seals.  Probably the same ones we see every year.

       Fear not! You can get in plenty of trouble interfering with any marine mammal you choose.  So even if you miss out on the orca sighting of a lifetime, you still have a chance at getting a big fine levied on you for messing with their smaller cousins.

     With just a little online research, I came up with these rules. Keep in mind that new regulations and changes to existing laws happen all the time, and my interpretation is likely flawed.

      You know of course that you are not allowed to bring your boat closer than 200 yards (that's about the length of two football fields end to end)  of a southern resident whale. Which begs the question, how does one know if it's a resident, let alone from the south? What I knew once, but forgot, was that you are required to put your transmission in neutral if you find your self inside the 200 yd limit.

     You are not allowed to position your boat, (and this includes kayaks, rafts, dinghy's, etc.) so that you intersect with a whale coming towards you.  The rule is 400 yards  ( that's about a quarter mile )

      So if I understand  correctly, when whale watching, you can hang around as long as you're two football fields away, but if they come at you because you cleverly set it up by getting in their way,  you may get a $1,025 fine.  Plus you may unwittingly get yourself in trouble for not putting the motor in neutral when  they approach closer than 200 yards. So all you kayakers, lift your paddles I guess.

      This means you are not supposed to turn tail and run away when you get too close, but stay put in neutral until the Orca has swam outside the 200 yard radius.  This sounds silly at first, but I think the logic is that others may be nearby that you can't see, and your spinning prop is a danger to them.

Now for seals or any cute marine mammals:  It's not legal to feed, harass, handle, jeer, taunt, or make fun of them, and this includes lost or abandoned pups.  Fines may reach $11,000, jail time, and losing the boat. Ouch.

My last words of warning:   Enforcement or compliance is a subjective thing, this means you might disagree with the grounds for your citation.

    To be safe, keep back a fair distance, and don't feed the non-human animals that hang around your boat.

  Happy whale watching! 

and for gosh sakes, have some fun!

BTW.  We have seen large groups of Orcas in Rosario Strait  off of James Island, and in Haro Strait off of Lime Kiln, which tells me they circle the San Juan's.  

Is your boat legal in the San Juan's?

            The answer is yes - probably

The laws in Washington State are pretty much the same as where you are coming from.

If  your yacht is legal at home it's legal in the San Juan's, but only for 60 days.  After 60 days you will be expected to leave the state or become compliant.

So you get a free pass for two months, but if your monster has expired tags, (vessel or rig) or you do not have a valid boaters card, you may be subject to re-training and fines.

And that's the way it is!

Lets go boating.

Good News & Bad News - boat camping fees in Washington's San Juan Islands

     Who can resist a headline stating "Good News" or is it the bad part that draws us in?
No matter. The good news is that anchoring is still free, the other news is that Washington State Park fees for boaters have gone up.

      The reported new fee for using park buoys is $15 per night.  Staying at the float has been increased to 70 cents per foot.  So your 30' mega yacht is now $21 per night.

      On this subject, you may remember an old post where I pondered float etiquette -  Case #1 - a 30' boat hogs the middle of a 50' float leaving no room for other boats, should he pay for 50' or 30'?  Case #2 - the same 30' boat scoots way down and hangs over the end leaving room for more boats, should he be rewarded and only pay for the 20' he uses?  Case #3 - and we all no the answer to this one - do you include the bowsprit, swim step and dinghy davits or go with the much smaller boat length stated by the boat builder, come on be honest, no one is watching.

      Other thoughts on fees:  Park fees are a very small part of our overall boating experience, and yet provide us tremendous benefit. The Washington marine parks are top notch, why wouldn't you want to support them?

Winter Maintenance

       Now is a good time to take care of all those little things you noticed needed taking care of last summer.

I'll bet you see a list coming!

Add caption

This list is for me, but I've added a few lines that may apply to you.

• whip or fuse unraveling lines
• I tie my dirty lines in a bundle, in a pillow case, and toss-em in the washer when Linda isn't looking, spin dry with no heat! (easy on the bleach)
• make better dock lines
• you need at least four dock lines and in my opinion two should be 1 1/2 times the length of the boat. I carry many more and some are very long.
• While you are at it, teach your self to make spliced loops, it's fun
• Note on loops: Loops on lines are not always desirable--sometimes they snag and get caught causing problems.  Loops on cleats can jump off.  I properly cleat my loops regardless.
• learn to tie a bowline (loop) behind your back or your eyes shut, it impresses little kids, (then try it one handed)
• patch, scrub and pump up fenders
• renew Rain-X coating on windows
• improve the bilge pumps
• get a hand pump and/or a bucket with a stout handle
• check for crevice corrosion telltale rust streaks, then actually test for weakness
• testing means to push, pull, sit, twist, and pound  while trying to break it
• change oils and antifreeze and filters at end of season
• use fuel stabilizer type products if needed
• run the kicker out of gas
• grease trailer bearings, get a spare tire and bottle jack, make sure lug nuts aren't rusted in place
• make the trailer lights and brakes work, and for once do it before you need them
• get new flares, if the date is expired the coasties will yell at you
• have you got the other required stuff? (whistle?)
• check pfd's, and inflation cartridges, clean off mildew
• check your anchor tackle, and re-mark the rode at 100 foot and other lengths
• I never anchor for long in less than 15-20 feet so my first mark is at 100 feet, then 150, 200
• get a second anchor set up if you don't already have three or four like me
• switch lines/halyards/rodes end for end if your able to
• tighten screws and bolts, there are hundreds
• this is when you re-bed cleats, rails, stanchions,windows, etc.
• I use white or black polyurethane (rtv or silicones are not welcome on my boats)
• some people will let a thick bed set a day or two before final torquing. Note: this is not appropriate for all situations. Some things should not wiggle-period! (my opinion)
• clean the bilge use perfumed detergent and make it smell good
• don't let laundry detergent get in the water, it's illegal!
• check electrical connections for corrosion and remedy any issues
• get a new battery if its past it's prime or you have any worries at all
• make sure you have a trickle or smart charger maintaining battery
• check your zincs
• be very, very suspicious of zincs not being eaten up
• A West Marine employee told me he didn't think his boat had any because it was fresh water cooled. You decide if he's right! (not)
• operate all your valves, make sure they still work
• I make a point of yanking on them every time I'm near
• hoses have a life span and will need to be replaced once in a while
• re-torque all your hose clamps, this will tell you which ones are garbage
• the screw is the culprit, many are rusted and break off when used
• simply being SS is not enough, they must be in good shape
• ignoring this may sink your ship!
• Touch up the varnish
• fix those little nicks and spots before they get worse and you will have less work in the long run (maybe!)
• I use this stuff (outside) and really like it  - Deks Olie D1 and D2 - made by Olwatrol, its a little hard to find, but Defender has it.
• re-sew stitched things, and patch vinyl stuff
• update ships log
• create inventory and location list for all my misplaced, lost gear
• totally empty all damp under-deck compartments and store stuff indoors
• skipped this last year and regretted it

• More to come, check back later!

This is important: You must test your boat and equipment on a trial outing before you take off for the big trip.  If your like me and do all this stuff over several months, you are bound to overlook something, and you don't want to find out what it is ten miles from shore, or two hundred miles from home.

Places to go and things to do in the San Juan's - I'm making a go to list!

My best places list is my - Go to List

If you have been following my rants, you know I realized long ago that our best times in the San Juans have been when I allowed things to just unfold from a very loose agenda.  That means, I set aside some time, go prepared for anything, and let it happen. But I do think about what I want to accomplish.  My partial list below, except for biking Shaw, is mostly made up of places and things we have done before.  If I remember, I will post a follow-up of what we really end up doing.  I already know one of my daughters may get involved, and likes biking so we'll see what really happens!

My To-Go List for 2015

and some notes

(not in order of importance)

Bike Shaw Island

1. try to avoid usual rolly anchoring overnight at Odlin Park if possible
1. Indian Cove for anchoring or ask to stay at store float by ferry dock
2. Indian Cove may be great place for dinghy sailing and hauling bikes ashore but there's no dock.

Get over to Victoria (not all that important, but always a good time)

1. visit museum 3-4 hrs
1. Almost forgot, they used to have free Wednesday mornings
2. hang out for one or two days watching street performers
3. dinghy sail around the inner harbor dodging taxis and planes 
4. order a tray full of those little glasses of beer somewhere
5. find Gracepoint filming location while biking shoreline roads
6. snoop around the Empress gardens
7. don't go to Butchart Garden (went two years ago)
8. explore the estuary

Go Orca watching off Lime kiln (this has been on many past lists, but gets bumped or heavy weather)

1. drift with current in Haro Strait  alongside San Juan Island 
2. maybe do this on way to Victoria
3. visit Smallpox Bay
4. have breakfast at the Lime Kiln Cafe at Roche Harbor 
5. visit English Camp after breakfast                                          

  Hike Eagle Bluff on Cypress  (high on list, probably do this list first, only 2hrs from Squalicum))

1. only after July 15th closure, if time, anchor at Cypress Head and hike to airstrip, if more time, run down to Deepwater Bay and watch salmon jump.
2. swing by Doe Island to see if the dock is fixed yet.
3. swing by Blakely's for my usual
4. while in Cypress area, try to find park at S. end of Lummi Isl.
5. Spending night at Cypress Head or Pelican Beach is OK

Plan two nights at Jones (whats another word for plan?)

1. shoot hike pictorial for posting on this site
1. include reopened west loop trail, and hike center trail to end.
2. pet some deer and have campfires
3. high on list, because I really missed kicking back here last year.
1. avoid backing over dinghy painter again

Strongly consider a romantic dinner at Friday Harbor

1. anchor out and use money saved for splurging
2. not the pizza place up the hill either!
3. dinghy over to Turn Island for a picnic hike, but don't spend night.
4. go to whale museum before Orca watching makes good sense
1. some years ago they told us where the Orcas were recently sighted.

Plan to put in at Squalicum Harbor for free parking

1. eat dinner at that great buffet uptown
2. visit with Bill for breakfast before casting off
3. Try to arrive on a Monday to miss crowds

more notes:

Don't forget free hot showers at Lopez Village

1. Maybe stop by Lopez Village after a week for a shower, and fudge recharge, or bike over from Odlin Park
1. Anchoring off Lopez is very rolly, and shallow, but the walk and dinghy ride is short.
1. Saturday Market is a good reason to stop by on Saturday 
2. I think my daughter is planning for Aug 1st. arrival, but I don't know where.
1. She did mention getting bike camping reservations at Odlin Park
2. I might suggest we consider a bike ride to top of Mt Constitution from Olga or county dock. (this could be a fantastic or horrible idea, and Linda wont go)
1. Update on daughter: she has suggested  meeting  on Orcas somewhere, she wants to ride her bike (with camping gear) from Anacortes.

Even with going to Victoria, this is only about a week, we may have to slow down some, I would like to spend about 10 days (I think) I will come back to this post and make updates/changes as my July cast off date approaches. I am really looking forward to this cruise, I have a cast off date of late July, so the hard work is already done.  That's right, setting the date is the hard work!

There you have it, 

my barely thought out list of places to go, 
and things to do in the San Juan's this summer.
I truly hope some of you benefit. 

We ended up here?
This is the Eastsound dock where we came to get a new battery and pick up Ryan and Kiraney after they rode bikes over from Anacortes.

We never made it to Shaw for bicycling, but it is on my next "to go list"
We also never saw any whales, but didn't try very hard either.