Seabiscuit and Beyond: San Juan Islands

Location: Roche Harbor, San Juan Island, Washington

We have been exploring the San Juan Islands for the last few weeks along with spending some time with Ben in Seattle and visiting boatyards to get quotes for the installation of a diesel-fired hydronic heating system.

View from the stern, looking SW: at anchor, Blind Bay, Shaw Island

View from the bow, looking NW: at anchor, Blind Bay, Shaw Island

At the end of the last blog, we had just anchored up in Blind Bay on the north side of Shaw Island. The next morning, the sun was out and the skies were clear. We watched three otters play on and around a sailboat and float anchored to the east of us. We aired up the dinghy, launched it and motored in to the town dock near the ferry landing. Our plan was to have lunch at the General Store but it was closed for the season, so we hiked along the island roads instead. We saw several deer and a bald eagle, picked a few blackberries and headed back to the boat. We heaved anchor just after lunch and head west to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.

Seabiscuit at "D" breakwater dock, Friday Harbor.

Float plane landing, Friday Harbor.

Friday Harbor is a popular destination within the San Juan Islands and is a busy harbor. They have a 500-slip marina, a ferry landing, a float plane dock and plenty of working vessels. The town has a year-round population of about 2300 and has a good selection of stores, restaurants and bars. After getting settled in at the guest dock, we wandered around town and had seafood for supper. The next morning we pulled out our stock of winter clothes and stored our summer gear. Most of our winter stuff has been stowed under the bunks and in the mid-ship hold since we left Maine over 4 years ago. We found stuff we didn't remember having and traded our summer sandals for shoes more suited to the cold and wet. That afternoon we walked over to the U.S. Customs office to talk to them about the various "frequent boater" programs they have for expedited entry into the U.S. The Customs officer there was very friendly and helpful and, since they deal a lot with boaters coming and going between the U.S. and Canada, she knew most of the in-and-outs of the different programs. Since both Dave and I have Global Entry cards (GOES - part of the US trusted traveler program), we were able to sign up for Boater Registration numbers. This means that we can call and clear Customs over the phone instead of having to land and check in at a US Customs dock every time we return from Canada.

The next morning, Oct. 11, we left Friday Harbor and cruised to Sidney, BC, on the east side of Vancouver Island. Our route took us by Spieden Island which is privately owned and was once known as "Safari Island". The island was stocked with exotic game and was a destination for big game hunters. The hunting resort shut-down not long after it was opened but some of the animals still remain including Corsican Mouflons, Indian spotted deer and Japanese Sika Deer. You can see the animals grazing on the south side of the island as you cruise by.

We are also members of the CANPASS system, which gives us expedited clearance from the U.S. into Canada. Once we crossed the Canada/U.S. border between San Juan and Vancouver Islands, we called Canada Customs and got clearance over the phone. Our goal in Sidney was to meet with a boatyard to get a quote on the heating system, bottom paint job, saloon upgrades and several other maintenance items. As mentioned, we plan to install a hydronic diesel-fired boiler heating system this winter. We have a reverse-cycle heating system on board, but it isn't adequate for the late-fall, winter, early-spring cruising of the inside passage to Alaska we plan to do over the next couple of years.

Puddy borrowing a jacket to keep warm.

We met with the yard, did a walk-thru of the scope of work, walked into Sidney for supper and spent the night at Van Isle Marina. We left early Wednesday morning and headed south to Port Angeles. We stopped at the guest dock at the marina there and did a walk-thru with a local yard then headed east to Port Townsend for the night. There was a storm moving in and we wanted to make some miles to get to better shelter before it closed in. We tied up at the Port Townsend marina just as it was getting dark and walked into town for supper.

Lighthouse between Port Angeles and Port Townsend

Thursday morning we left the marina just after sunrise and headed to Seattle for the weekend. We stayed at Bell Harbor Marina right in the heart of downtown. The weather was moving in and they were predicting heavy rain and wind up to 60 mph, the worst they have seen in the last ten years. Because of this, two yachts clubs had cancelled their weekend reservations at the marina and we were able to get a slip that gave us good protection from the wind and sea.

Seattle skyline.

Seabiscuit at Bell Harbor Marina.

Ben, Dave's son, flew in to Seattle on Friday for a work trip. He took care of business and then met us at the boat Friday evening. We walked along the waterfront and had seafood for supper then stopped at a local blues bar to listen to some music before heading back to the boat. It rained most of Saturday morning, but cleared up mid-afternoon. We walked up to Pike's Place Market and wandered around then went to a local brew pub for some beers. Ben met us there and we walked over to a local pizza place for supper. The worst of the storm was scheduled to arrive around 7:00 p.m. so we called it an early night and headed back to the boat. It turned out to be a fairly calm night. The storm rotation took it further west than they had predicted and Seattle and the surrounding areas escaped the worst of it.

Ben, B and Dave at a Seattle brew pub.

We met Ben for breakfast Sunday morning. He had work obligations for the rest of the day so we picked up a few groceries and headed back to the boat. We met Ben for supper later that evening and then said our goodbyes. He was headed back to Austin the next morning.

Monday morning we left Seattle and cruised to Langley on the east side of Whidbey Island. We tied up at the dock around noon and walked into town for lunch at the local bistro. Langley is a pretty little town with lots of history; they call themselves "The Village by the Sea". We walked around town to stretch our legs and see the sights. They have a small, volunteer-run movie theater in town The Clyde Theater - Langley so we decided to have a "date night" and go out to the movies. They were showing "Hell or High Water", a modern day western based in west Texas. Good plot and good acting and we both enjoyed it. Rotten Tomatoes - Hell or High Water

B setting up the bow line as we come into Langley

View of the waterfront from the Langley Resort

Historic Buildings, downtown Langley

Next stop, La Conner, on the Swinomish Channel. The Swinomish Channel is a narrow channel that connects the Seattle/Everett area (Skagit Bay) to the Bellingham/Anacortes area (Padilla Bay). About 11 miles long, the channel is narrow, shallow and the currents can be strong so it is important to follow the channel markers and time your voyage based on the tides and currents. We timed our arrival for high slack tide and didn't have any issues. For another view on navigating the channel, check out this article Navigating the Swinomish Channel. La Conner is another small interesting town with a lot of character. We tied up at the marina and wandered along the waterfront into town for supper.

Oyster catchers at the south end of the Swinomish Channel, near Goat Island.

Log booms on the Swinomish Channel.

House at "Hole in the Wall", just before you take the dog-leg turn to the north
to enter the Swinomish Channel

Seabiscuit docked at the La Conner Marina

Looking west as we cruise the northern half of the Swinomish Channel.

On Thursday morning, Oct. 20, we cruised from La Conner to Bellingham to meet with another boatyard. We spent three nights there exploring the town. We wandered downtown, checked out a few local restaurants and took a nature walk along the waterfront to nearby Fairhaven.

View of Mount Baker

Nature trail along the Bellingham waterfront

Saturday, Oct. 22, we left Bellingham and cruised to Anacortes. About a month ago, when we were cruising the Columbia River, our fresh water pump failed. Our old fresh water pump was leaking and Dave had replaced it with an updated version. The new pump ran fine for ten days and then failed. It was running continuously and wouldn't shut down. We tried to do some troubleshooting and decided that the pressure switch was bad. Dave put the pressure switch from the old pump onto the new pump but that didn't solve the problem. We ordered new pressure switches for both pumps and had them shipped to Anacortes. Because of Hurricane Matthew on the East Coast, the switches were back ordered and took longer than expected to ship. We finally got notice that the parts had shipped and were due to arrive in Anacortes on Monday. For the last month, while waiting for the parts to arrive, we have been manually switching the pump on and off at the local power control. So, for example, when one of us showered, the other stood near the pump to turn it on to make sure there was water pressure for the shower and to turn it off to ensure that the system wasn't over pressured.

View looking west from the top of Cap Sante,
overlooking Cap Sante Marina and north Fidalgo Island.

Deer in the woods, Cap Sante.

Double rainbow, looking east from our slip. The boat at the end of the dock
is a Northern Marine Expedition Yacht, about 85 feet long.

Over the weekend, we took some hikes, went to the Saturday Farmer's market, tried our luck at the nearby casino and ate at a few local restaurants. Monday morning we walked down to the post office to pick up the pump parts. Dave installed them and... no joy, the pump was still running continuously and wouldn't shut-off. Plan B - install a new pump. It's 24V so nothing in stock locally but we found one on-line with 2-day shipping. We extended our stay at the marina for a few more days and sat back to wait on the new pump to arrive. It came in on Thursday morning; Dave installed it and voila, it worked.

We left Anacortes Friday morning. It was a beautiful, sunny day so we decided to stop at Fisherman Bay, on the west side of Lopez Island, and anchor out. We were past due on the replacement of our hull zincs. Anchoring out in calm weather and clear water gave us the opportunity to replace them. Earlier this summer, Dave had purchased cold-water diving gear so that he could do the work himself and this was our first opportunity to give it a try.

The old hull zincs, about 10 - 15% remaining, compared with a new one.

Dave inspecting the zincs on the port side.

Dave - zinc replacement finished. Calm and clear, the water temperature was 51F.

Sunset, Fisherman Bay, Lopez Island.

We left Fisherman Bay Saturday morning and cruised to Roche Harbor. Roche Harbor is an old limestone mining company town on the northwest corner of San Juan Island. The old company town buildings and the surrounding area have been transformed into a resort area with formal gardens, an historic hotel, swimming pool and spa. Hiking trails and pathways around the resort include informative signs about the history of the area. We have been enjoying to peaceful surroundings and the sunny weather and have taken several nature walks since we arrived.

Roche Harbor Limestone Mining Operations: