Highlights of Chartering in the San Juan Islands
By Zuzana Prochazka
You could spend an entire summer exploring the San Juan Islands off the coast of Washington state but you can also cover the highlights in a week or two of chartering. These compact cruising grounds are easy to explore due to short point-to-point distances and don't require an international plane ticket to reach. You'll find everything from secluded anchorages where yours will be the only anchor down, to charming towns where marina life is lively and the bars are filled with music and entertainment.
The San Juan Islands, explored by the likes of Juan de Fuca, James Cook, George Vancouver and Francisco de Eliza, are a part of the San Juan Archipelago in the Salish Sea between the U.S. and Canada. The archipelago is split into two – the San Juan Islands are part of the U.S. state of Washington, while the Gulf Islands are part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Of the total 450 islands, fewer than one sixth are permanently inhabited so if you're looking for a quiet respite to get in touch with nature, this is the place.
If you want to visit Canada, bring your passport and extend your charter because Victoria and Ganges harbors are not to be missed. But if your time is limited, pick up a boat in Anacortes and spend a week on the American side exploring some of these beautiful highlights.
Friday Harbor
Friday Harbor on San Juan Island probably gets the most press so it is well known nationally and it's an easy first stop from Anacortes. It's a real town so if you forgot anything on your provisioning list, there are grocery and drug stores as well as gifts shops, galleries and a movie theater. Downtown Friday Harbor glides down the hill toward, and then morphs into, the marina where the staff will make sure you can tie up even on busy summer weekends.
The town, which is said to be the oldest original fishing village on the West Coast, offers a variety of great restaurants, bars and organized activities including biking, kayaking and a walking tour. The whale museum is worth a visit as is the farmers market with 40 vendors offering locally grown goodies on most Saturdays. The town is walkable and filled with photo-friendly, quintessential Pacific Northwest scenery so bring your camera, have a bowl of chowder and relax.
Rosario Resort
For a bit of history, head north to Orcas Island and the Rosario Resort and Moran Mansion museum. Shipbuilder and one-time Seattle mayor, Robert Moran, purchased 7,000 acres here in the early 1900s when he was given less than a year to live due to overwork. In the next 40 years, he had time to build an Arts and Crafts style residence which is now a museum and is open to the public. Moran's nautical background is evident in all the furnishing and fixtures which you can examine on a self-guided tour. The mansion was built to last with 12 inch thick concrete walls, a copper roof, and the links of the fence made from the anchor chain of the USS Nebraska.
Inside, the elaborate music room features a 1913 Aeolian pipe organ, a 1900 Steinway grand piano, a Belgian stained glass window picturing the harbor at Antwerp and two mezzanine libraries overlooking a Tiffany chandelier. Six days a week at 4:00 pm, Christopher Peacock, accomplished musician and Rosario historian, presents a free concert which includes music and footage from the original silent film, Phantom of the Opera with Lon Chaney.
Outside, you can pet deer that wander the grounds freely looking for handouts and grazing on the lawn. The figurehead, carved from a solid white pine log from the clipper ship America, has kept an eye on Cascade Bay below since 1916 when Moran installed it there as a memorial to shipbuilding, which was becoming, in his opinion, a lost art.
The Passes
There are lots of passes in these islands, some are beautiful, others are exhilarating due to fast moving currents. Two you don't want to miss are Deception Pass for a bit of a thrill and Mosquito Pass for the scenery.
Deception Pass, which separates Whidbey Island from Fidalgo Island, is a short, narrow and rugged pass spanned by a picturesque bridge. Descriptions of this pass, named by explorer George Vancouver, always include words like "prohibitive", "impressive" and "tricky" because it can be an E-ticket ride. A prudent mariner would only transit the pass at slack water due to the strong currents and wild whirlpools, but if you arrive a couple hours before and go in on the current, it's like sailing a river as the boat speeds up to 12 knots. It's not advisable to do this at the height of the current because the pass is narrow, and strong engines, clear weather and good helming is key. Once through the pass you'll be in Cornet Bay where you might catch a glimpse of tall ships firing cannons in a mock battle in later summer when the Lady Washington and the Hawaiian Chieftain make the rounds of the nearby islands.
Mosquito Pass winds between Henry and San Juan Islands and is a shortcut to Roche Harbor from Haro Strait. It leads past two tranquil anchorages in Garrison and Westcott Bays. The Coast Pilot recommends this passage only to small craft with local knowledge but at slack tide and with good visibility (this second point is key as you maneuver marker to marker), it's a very pretty journey that will take a couple miles off your trip when heading north or south.
Roche Harbor
On the northern tip of San Juan Island, and only 15 miles from Canada, is Roche Harbor, a friendly marina with 377 slips and more to do than first meets the eye. The quaint Hotel de Haro which was built in 1886, is the heart of the town and is listed on the National Register of Historical Sites. It still offers 20 rooms to visitors and a lobby full of old photographs that tell the story of this former lime quarrying center, the ruins of which are still visible nearby. The gardens and grounds are reason enough to visit but the hiking is a good excuse to get off the boat as is the local cuisine.
On Sunday, you can visit the 100 year-old Our Lady of Good Voyage Chapel which was the original Roche school or walk further up the road to a self-guided tour through an outdoor sculpture garden with bits of art positioned on the small meadow and tucked between the trees. The McMillin family mausoleum is a ten minute walk into the woods and is a peaceful place to sit and ponder life a hundred years ago.
The days at Roche Harbor begin with morning bell carillons and end with the lowering of the American and Canadian flags with their respective anthems, followed by cannon and taps. Even people at dinner put down their forks, step outside and take time out for the ceremony.
Critters
One of the real treats of chartering in this area is the wildlife. Black-tailed deer, wild turkey and silver foxes roam the land while the water teems with harbor seals, sea lions, minke whales and dall's porpoise which are small dolphins capable of traveling upwards of 30 miles per hour. Of course, it's the tuxedo'd orcas that are the stars of the show up here and their favorite bit of water seems to be the Haro Strait that separates the US from Canada. This is the orca feeding place and playground and with a bit of patience, you're bound to catch a pod traveling the channel, breeching and splashing. Local laws ensure that boats stay at least 100 yards away from the whales but sometimes if you're lucky, they'll swim right to and around you. Whale watching boats are available and if your time is limited, local knowledge is key to spotting the orcas quickly so check out San Juan Outfitters, San Juan Excursions or San Juan Safaris out of Roche and Friday Harbors for a quick trip and an up-close and personal encounter.
Chartering Options
The busy season in the San Juan Islands is mid-July to mid-September and if you want an August charter, book well in advance. There are numerous places to charter in the Pacific Northwest but the most convenient might be to start in Anacortes on Fidalgo Island, a 2 hour shuttle ride from Seattle airport. The three most prominent charter companies here are the Moorings, ABC Yacht Charters and Anacortes Yacht Charters (AYC). Each has a good selection of well-maintained yachts with AYC offering a broad selection of both power and sailboats. Remember, that the distances are short and the winds are fluky and elusive so a powerboat might be a more comfortable option for these cruising grounds that are sure to charm you for a week or a lifetime.
Zuzana Prochazka. Zuzana is a freelancer and a regular contributor to Sea Magazine, SAIL, Latitudes and Attitudes, Lakeland Boating, Yachtworld and Boats.com. Her work has appeared in Santana, Voyaging, Good Old Boat, Reeds Nautical Almanac, and the Los Angeles Times Sunday Magazine, as well as online at underwatercolors.com, sailingbreezes.com, catamarans.comand floridascubanews.com. She is president of Boating Writers International (BWI) and has served as Innovation Awards judge at the IBEX, Miami, and MAATS shows for several years. Currently, she serves as the chairperson for the BWI New Products Committee and as a judging chair for the BWI Annual Writing Contest. Zuzana's gear and boat review blog is TalkoftheDock .
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