They say Canada visits are open after July 21st 2021

What is needed to go to Canada?   

  Note: Things change, you should check dates on all information before setting out.  

 I just read a website that says we can go back and forth after July 21st.  This is undoubtedly subject to change with current conditions and remember what the US says and Canada says may differ so check with both sides before you cross over.

     Interestingly,  the last time I had a passport problem (expired) and could not find the answer online.  I simply called the office in Friday Harbor and talked directly with an agent. He gave me the straight and current poop in a simple phone call.  It made me realize how much I had gotten away from talking to people who actually run the show.  Now if I can get certain people to quit texting for hours on end when picking up the phone is more expedient anyway.

Butchart Garden by Sea

    How easy is it to go to Butchart Gardens by boat?     It is so easy and close that you can make it as a day trip and not spend the night.  But I suggest that you spend the night so you can tour the gardens after dark. Plus, they have a fireworks display on Saturday nights.

Not part of the San Juan's or even the Gulf Islands, 

Butchart Gardens should be on everyone's bucket list.

         I'll cover some of what I think are important elements for this adventure, but leave your trip planning to you.

• We stayed at Jones Island the night before as our jump off point, but Roche or Stuart are closer. I wanted to be near to our Haro Strait crossing just in case some weather or other issues came up. Nothing did.

• We planned our nine-mile 1 1/2 hour crossing of Haro Strait to match up with low wind forecasts and slack tide waters.

• Port of Sidney was our obvious Canada check-in place.

• We did have a Canadian chart in our plotter, a larger scale would have been nice but certainly not worth paying for.

• You really should have a dinghy or kayak, but a dinghy motor is not needed. You only paddle a quarter mile or much less from where you anchor.

• I planned to get to the garden early enough to anchor by 5pm, and then tour on the same day (before dark), and then again after dark.

• Tod Inlet is big; you will have no problem finding a place to anchor.

• Coming back, we carefully listened to the weather report for Haro Strait and took off at 6:30 am the next morning to beat out high winds. We never felt any wind or waves.

• Checking back in at Roche Harbor less than 24 hours after we left was simple and quick.

• It would have been very easy to extend this Canada visit to multiple days and destinations, but we had other plans back in the San Juans. for us, this Butchart visit was simply a quick overnighter. We will be back.

        Crossing Haro Strait was a cake walk, we followed our gps pointer straight to Sidney. 
 We had no discernible current set to counter, no swell to deal with. 

 The Port of Sidney customs dock is the first float when you clear the marina breakwater.

 No other boats were there, so we glided in, tied up, and picked up the phone to check in.  Check-in took a few minutes, they asked for our names, ages, boat name, and when we were leaving. Oh, and of course, they ask about firearms.  They give you a long number which you write on a piece of paper and tape to your boat window.  That's it, you are free to go.
We were in awe at the beauty and flowers at the Sidney Marina, not to mention all the very expensive big yachts.

For customs, just pick up the phone.

More pictures and story>>>

Traveling to Butchart Gardens by Boat - Itinerary - Canada/USA Customs - Anchor in Tod Inlet

      What is the best part of cruising the San Juan Islands?        

The best part of cruising the San Juan Islands is the total independence and freedom your boat provides.

• No reservations needed: No rigid schedule, just drop the hook in a quiet cove or snag a park buoy whenever you arrive.
• You're the captain: You get to come and go as you like.
• Total flexibility: If the weather shifts or you just feel like exploring, you can change your plan and head wherever the day looks best.

  After a swift pit stop at the store to grab provisions, we set off, and just like that, the relaxation begins the moment the lines are cast off. Four days, five days, ten days—it hardly matters. Time bends and stretches with the tides, and I leave the world behind in an instant. Well, almost everything. The wine and Hershey bars? Tragically, mistakenly forgotten. But with the wind in my face and the horizon ahead, my thoughts drift only to the simple joy of the journey—unburdened, untethered, and blissfully carefree.

Yet, as any seasoned traveler knows, the best-laid plans are at the mercy of life’s unpredictable whims and, of course, family obligations. Some detours are mere nuisances; others, unavoidable. And sometimes, they come with a lesson in patience.

Take, for example, my quest to witness the flag-lowering ceremony at Roche Harbor—a seemingly simple ambition that took me four years and three thwarted attempts to fulfill. One year, I missed the cruise entirely. Another time, just minutes before the cannon signaled sundown, a wayward boat dragged anchor into us, throwing my evening plans overboard.

When I finally did witness the ceremony, it was purely by accident—I had long since abandoned the notion of seeing it firsthand. And so, as the baby cannon, a miniature yet mighty relic of medieval artillery, erupted into the evening air, it caught me utterly off guard. A fiery muzzle flash illuminated the perfectly manicured lawn, and before I knew it, a startled yelp may or may not have escaped my lips—not that anyone could hear it over the booming report. The sound wasn’t quite deafening, but it was certainly enough to send my heart into a gallop.

Then came the echoes, rolling like thunder across Roche Harbor, ricocheting off Henry Island, and sinking any evidence of my momentary shock. In the end, the ceremony was every bit as grand as I’d imagined—perhaps even more so, given the journey it took to get there.

Yes, cruising the San Juans is all about freedom and relaxation.

click below to read about Butchart Gardens!