SJI Summer Days 55 - 57 - Our favorite anchorage

Can you guess where we are?

We made the short trip from Friday Harbor (San Juan Island) to Fisherman Bay (Lopez Island) on Wednesday. It’s been a bit windy, which has mitigated the hot weather a bit. (Nick has been saying all summer that he thinks the weather is windier than usual, in general. Several locals have agreed.)

Fisherman Bay is our favorite spot. It may be about our comfort level with both the island, overall, and the anchoring conditions. We feel safe and protected here, and enjoy the quiet and the views. And it's the fish tacos at Bucky’s…and it’s the bike riding…and it’s the Lopez Village Thrift Shop…and it’s the sunsets…

Janine's bedroom window - Fisherman Bay sunset

As the window decal I saw yesterday states: Don’t change Lopez; Let Lopez change you.

We rode our bikes to check out the rental house we booked for next summer’s family trip. Quite nice.

It rained last night, and this morning is foggy. Our plan after the fog burns off is to head north to Stuart Island. (It’s the start of Labor Day weekend so we are prepared to see a lot of boats on the water!) After a couple of nights in Reid Harbor, we’ll head to Garrison Bay. This will put us back at San Juan Island, and just around the corner from Roche Harbor, where we will be for five days participating in the Ranger Tugs/Cutwater boats annual rendezvous. (200 boats!) Looking forward to connecting with Coorie Doon!

SJI Summer Days 51 - 54, Deer Harbor

Our second evening in Snoring Bay rewarded us with a lovely sunset.

We will add insect repellent to our shopping list. (Don’t have any on the boat but fortunately I packed two types of itch relief!) Sucia Island had a lot of mosquitoes. No mosquito will go near Nick, but if there is one within five miles of me, it will hunt me down and eat me alive.

We went back to Deer Harbor, Orcas Island, but decided to anchor rather than find room at the dock. Anchorage is really good, and there was plenty of room. The marina has a café (Lopez Village Creamery ice cream!) and a small gift shop. There is a resort there as well, but we didn’t venture into that. We did take a walk up the road a bit, over the bridge to the lagoon, and then to the neighboring marina. Also took a couple of nice kayak trips to the lagoon. Had to turn back the first time, as the lagoon drains at low tide. Really nice trip on our second try.

As we were eating our dinner – more about that in a minute – a large-ish barge came right up next to us, weaving between moored boats, to get to the second marina’s boat ramp. A couple of U-Haul vans got off, and then the barge turned around and left the harbor. I mention this only because I really enjoy watching working boats. They do amazing things in small spaces…this guy knew what he was doing.

Dinner: One of our go to meals, especially if we have veggies to use up, is a one-plate assembly of sautéed vegetables (in this case – cabbage, carrots, onion, cilantro, peppers, & zucchini), rice, and a pouch of either garbanzo masala, or lentils (spiced, Indian style). We also have pouched brown rice if we don’t have either freshly cooked basmati, or leftover rice. These pouches all come from Costco, and are perfect for boating meals.

We returned to Friday Harbor yesterday. We’ll stay here for a couple of days to take care of the usual things: cleaning the boat, pumping out, filling the water tank, shopping, and charging various devices and equipment. One of our goals today is to go over the entire boat with a rust removal product.

SJI Summer Day 50 - Sucia Island

Before I begin my report about wonderful Sucia Island, I want to extend an invitation. I really like to see comments! Please comment! Remember...it's just the two of us on this boat…for days at a time. (We talked to a six-year-old on the beach yesterday…thank god.) I’ve only received one comment that was in any way objectionable. “Wind is no excuse.” Really?

The crossing yesterday was less-than-fun. We sped up and got it over with quickly. 2 to 4-foot swells aren’t scary, but they are uncomfortable. At one point, I turned around to look at our wake to see what things look like when we are doing 12 to 14 knots through lumpy water. This photo doesn’t seem nearly as turbulent as I experienced it.

We were headed for Fossil Bay, the largest anchorage around Sucia, and a popular place. As we passed the bay just before Fossil, Snoring Bay (named for a park ranger found snoring on the job), we noticed there was one boat tied to a ball, and one ball open. We continued a few yards more and saw there were docks, at least a dozen mooring buoys, and plenty of boats in Fossil Bay. We did an abrupt U-turn and tied to the second ball in Snoring.

Very beautiful here. The sandstone cliffs are dramatic. We motored to shore to drop off our park registration and took a short hike to one of the points. Oh, and had an interesting, if non-linear, conversation with a six-year-old boy about our boats, a whale (he changed that to seal), his camping plans, our plans, and a few other things.

unknown plant

View out from the point

View into Snoring Bay

View from head of Snoring Bay

We also watched a resident otter swim around. It dove for clams, came to the surface and awkwardly crunched and gulped, then went to shore, groomed for a bit, and then did it all over again. Do they really eat the entire clam, shell and all? (I have wondered about those piles of poop we see that seem to be crunched up shells…)

We rocked and rolled a bit last night, and it's raining this morning. Hoping for better weather so we can hike more trails on the island.

SJI Summer Day 49 - Crocheted Baskets

It rained sporadically yesterday, clearing a bit in the evening. We got our “spa” day at the resort. A dip in the hot tub, then Nick hit the sauna while I found a quiet room to catch up on my yoga practice. (I haven’t been keeping up with this – more about that another time.) Then we played Pickle Ball. This was a first, although I played as a kid a few times. We play tennis, so we did okay. We need to find a way to keep playing – it’s fun and a good workout.

When we first arrived here on Monday, the nice couple a couple of slips away, invited us to take a look at their houseboat. The smaller cruiser next to it is theirs as well, which they use for crabbing and day trips. They own these two slips. After they retired, they built this houseboat in their backyard! They live here six months of the year, then head to the southwest where they keep an RV. What a life.

We continue to be entertained by the zillion little fish, especially when they are being chased and start hopping out of the water. We can see and hear this happen all over the marina. As you can imagine, there are quite a few herons that hang out here. We watched one standing on the dock, easily picking fish out of the water. These birds sure don’t have to work hard for a meal. The heron in this photo did not move as I got nearer. I finally stopped because I just didn’t want to get any closer. If you look closely, you might notice that this bird is standing on a dock that is carpeted. Yes, the owners of the big and beautiful Helmsman that is just out of the frame behind the heron, laid a long runner down the dock.

I've mentioned how nice this marina is - I did a load of laundry for three bucks. That's pretty good.

I’ve crocheted some baskets for use on the boat. I like them because they are soft and flexible – perfect for small spaces, and the likelihood of getting tossed about. The two oblong-shaped baskets are in the v-berth, and fit nicely on the long, narrow shelf along the sides – great for reading glasses, earplugs, earbuds, tissues, etc. I use one of the round ones in the head for hair ties, and the other on the “dash” for little stuff we reach for all the time. Useful…and really fun projects.

It blew hard last night. This afternoon looks good for departing for Sucia Island. We’ll see…

SJI Summer Days 47 & 48 - Semiahmoo Marina

The water was relatively calm on our way north to Semiahmoo Bay. This is the water at the butt end of the Strait of Georgia, just south of Boundary Bay. We could see Vancouver in the hazy distance. In the few hours it took us to get here, we saw just a handful of other boats.

Just out of Inati Bay, we passed a WCC work-site – an old mine restoration project at Smuggler’s Cove.

Old mine at Smuggler's Cove, Lummi Island

The Semiahmoo Marina is very nice! Excellent docks, and the facilities are pristine. Free showers! The grounds are well kept, with nice spaces for hanging out if you want to get off your boat for a while. The resort and marina are at the end of a long spit that separates Drayton Harbor from Semiahmoo Bay.

Rounding the corner - Semiahmoo Resort

The entire marina is filled with small fish. Herring most likely, in large schools of varying sizes of fishies. (We were told this was once a herring fishery.) They are fun to watch, as they shimmer in the light and do crazy things when bigger fish are…well…fishing.

Yesterday we unloaded the bikes and rode twenty miles or so south to Birch Bay. We’ve been here a few times before, but off season. It’s a completely different place in the summer time. Everything looks a little more spiffed up, and the seasonal candy & ice cream store is open. It’s one of those quintessential coastal kinds of places, with salt water taffy and all kinds of candy made on the premises.

Dinner out was a treat at Packers Kitchen + Bar at the Semiahmoo resort, a favorite restaurant of ours. The marina and resort are separate entities but marina guests receive 10% off by showing the marina key fob.

View from the beach in front of Semiahmoo Resort

It’s Wednesday morning, and while it did rain overnight, the wind didn’t kick in as expected. The forecast doesn’t look great, wind-wise, for crossing open water. We may be “stuck” here for another day or two. Not a bad place for staying extra days as needed. Marina guests also receive a discounted day pass to the resort spa, so we may enjoy a soak – and maybe some pickle ball if the rains stops.

SJI Summer Day 46 - Stern Tie

Europa turned the corner into Inati Bay to find a couple of small runabouts, and a sail boat. Not crowded at all. Another sailboat arrived…then they all left and we had the bay to ourselves! For a while at least – a trawler arrived in the evening. Still, a pretty quiet night.

It was interesting, however. Shortly after we anchored, Nick suggested we stern tie. (When you run a line from the back of your boat to shore…keeps your boat from swinging.) We did this for a couple reasons. We wanted to practice for sure, but also thought it would mitigate some side rocking and rolling created by large boats going past the mouth of the bay. And…we were a bit close to a rock cliff, and this would keep us from moving closer to that. It went quite smoothly. We found that we needed to make adjustments a few times - in both the anchor line and the stern tie line. We have enough line to reach to shore and back so when we leave, we don’t have to return to shore. The line is just looped around a tree, rather than tied. We’ll just release the end of the line from the boat and pull it on board. A friend gave us a reel used for crabbing line. We had replaced that line before we left home with the 600 feet of line we purchased specifically for stern tie purposes – it worked well!

And then after dinner the wind picked up...we ended up closer to that rock cliff than we liked. So, we hauled in the line, moved to what looked like a calmer corner of the small bay, and redid the whole thing. It was a good move.

Our plan is to continue north this morning to Semiahmoo, in Blaine. We have stayed at the resort there many times over the years, and it is one of our favorite getaways. The spit and beach are nice to walk, and the inn is lovely. We are leaving things a bit open, as Nick’s weather research shows less-than-awesome conditions coming our way on Wednesday, so we need to plan around that.

Favorite hangout - on the bow, on beanbag chairs.

Mt. Baker in the distance

Stern tie

Line and reel

Inati Bay to ourselves for a while!

Inati Bay

Inati Bay

SJI Summer Days 44 & 45 - Oak Harbor & La Conner

The Oak Harbor Marina will go on our list of nice marinas to stop for an overnight along our way north or south, but not necessarily a destination in itself.  After docking, we took the mile or so walk into town, along the water. There are a few shops…ans I said to Nick that it felt like this town lost its mojo. It was our first visit so I have no comparison…it just seems like it has seen better days. Very different from our experiences in Langley and in Coupeville, both also on Whidbey Island.

We were confused by the entry to the marina – it has north and south entry points, around each end of the breakwater. We found the signage less than helpful. I mention this because, as usual, there are lessons to be learned.

We need to always make sure we get complete information from marina staffers – sometimes they assume we know things we don’t. (Even after asking if this is our first visit!)

Also, we have just two cruising references on board. We rely, too heavily at times, on the Waggoner Cruising Guide. (We don’t buy a new one each year – doesn’t seem necessary, and updates are online.) We also have A Cruising Guide to Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands (Olympia to Port Angeles), Migael Scherer, 2^nd ed. 2005 – which is old! These two books have different information and we need to remember to read both. Nick especially likes the quick rating system in the latter title – she assigns numbers to each destination, 1 to 5, representing aesthetic qualities and protection, among another things. Nick noticed afterwards that she provides some detail related to Oak Harbor Marina entry, whereas the Waggoner Guide did not.

We left Oak Harbor and continued on to the Swinomish (swin’ uh mish) Channel and La Conner. Transiting the beginning of the channel from the southwest it always exciting…it’s narrow, it’s shallow…and picturesque. And the current can be quite challenging. A quote from the Scherer book: “It goes this way, it goes that way, it does stuff in between.” I like that.

As usual, we looked for space at the public docks. None! We pulled up close to a couple of boats to ask if they were leaving soon – which I dislike, as it feels like hovering around a restaurant table. One person told us that the marina quest docks were also full due to a yacht club rendezvous. So…we hovered. Did a couple of turns around the channel and soon enough a couple of boats left and there was space. We noticed that quite a few of these boats were small craft, being used for crabbing, so they were coming and going. There is no power or water at these docks (both of which we don’t usually need), and the city charges just $.50 per foot.

We are excited to be on our way to another new-to-us destination. Inati Bay is “the best anchorage on Lummi Island” and a good distance for us to spend the night on our way north to Semiahmoo.

RT 41 (29 on steroids?)

Just for fun, here is a photo of one of the new Ranger Tugs 41. There are just 4 of these on the water, according to the last RT staffer I talked to. I am not sure which hull number this one is, but the crew of Stay Awhile saw her at the Des Moines Ranger dock. One. Million. Dollars. (Approx.)