I have raced around San Juan county a few times, but I have never cruised in the San Juans. We changed that with our most recent trip. Our friend Penny joined us for a five day excursion to the San Juan Islands. The weather didn’t quite cooperate and stole a couple days from an already short trip. We made it to the self-described, “crown jewel of the Washington State parks system”, Sucia Island. Sucia did not disappoint.

Our overall plan had us depart Elliot Bay and make landfall in Friday Harbor. From there, we planned hop to various harbors until we reached Sucia. We wanted to stop by East Sound on Orcas Island to try a restaurant we had heard about, but things didn’t go exactly to plan.

Elliot Bay to Friday Harbor

We headed out on a Monday with 20+ kts of breeze, that’s at the upper end of what we are comfortable getting out in. With that much breeze, getting off the dock was a challenge. In normal conditions, Sarah goes dock-side to untie and leaves one spring line lead back to the boat. I use the engines to hold the boat onto the dock. Sarah boards the boat with the line in hand and does the final untie when she’s on the boat.

In the breeze we had that day, the normal method for undocking didn’t work. When Sarah untied the bow line, the engines couldn’t hold the boat to the dock using just the one spring line. We blew away eight feet from the dock. There was no way for Sarah to get on. We managed to secure the boat and reeled the boat back to the dock. Then, we lead a bow line and another spring line to the dock cleat and back to the boat. We used this two-line release instead of using our normal one-line release. Having Penny gave us the extra set of hands we needed to release two lines with all people aboard the boat.

There was a short steep chop in Elliot Bay. Fortunately, Spice is large enough that this type of wave wasn’t a bother. The wind was so strong that I wasn’t comfortable setting sails. Besides, the forecast called for a near complete abatement as we approach the south end of Whidbey Island. So we motored and motored. This would be a repeating pattern for us, and was a consequence of operating on a tight schedule, rather than a schedule and pace determined by the weather.

The wind died as predicted around Whidbey, but it didn’t return as we approached the straights. When we got to the straights, we found 5 knots of breeze and very lumpy seas. 5 knots is just enough wind to sail. The waves were large enough that Spice’s size wasn’t enough to prevent significant pitching and rolling. I was feeling queasy, as were others. Lillie got very quiet. It was clear she wasn’t feeing well. She didn’t eat any lunch. Soon after, Lillie laid down for a nap.

I was sure the wind would fill. I thought the sails might help stabilize the roll of the boat, so we set sails. However, sailing didn’t help. Our much slower speed made things worse, because we couldn’t run with the waves. I didn’t see any signs of more breeze coming. After maybe 15 minutes, I turned the boat into the wind and we brought the sails down. Sarah went up on the cabin top near the mast to bring down the main sail. While she was up there, a particularly large wave set rolled through. As Spice steeply pitched into the trough, I looked up to see the wave top. Sarah kept her grip, despite the steep pitch of the boat. These aren’t conditions we want to spend a lot of time in. Spice is large enough that she made most of the motion smooth, it takes something a bit larger to cause slamming or jarring motion. With the sails down, we steamed as quickly as we could for Lopez Pass.

By the time we approached Lopez Pass, the flood was running strong. There was 3+ knots of current running through the S-turn path that was our gateway to the San Juan Islands. Our boat cruises with the motor at around 7.5 kts, so more than 3 knots of current can have a major impact on where the boat is moving. There was strong eddy currents in the pass that suddenly twisted the boat one way or another, so I had to pay close attention instead of taking pictures and video. The sun was peaking through the clouds, the Islands were bright green, and the seas were finally flat. We had an inauspicious start, but our passage through Lopez quickly displaced any remaining apprehension about our trip.

We dodged ferries and crab pots as we weaved through the islands on our way to Friday Harbor. There was just enough breeze to sail, but I was in a hurry. I motored upon another sailboat, one that understood that it was a sailboat and not a motor boat. The other boat keeping up with us and was even gaining on our boat. I was feeling some shame. We had time, so we set sails and inadvertently gave dirty air to the boat that inspired me. Oops. I decided we were racing, so I didn’t feel as guilty about it.

In light wind and strong currents, our boat and the other boat tacked back and forth through the last passage before a straight shot to Friday Harbor. We had our jib, I was wishing it was a genoa. The small jib just doesn’t have enough oompf in the lighter breeze that a much larger genoa sail would have. Still we were holding point and speed relative to the similarly length monohull. The other boat was mostly content to follow our line on each successive tack. That all changed when I ran a port tack far into a beach.

The other boat tacked away from the shallows on a terrible angle, they pointed 160 degrees away from us. At first, I thought that they were making a mistake, until I realized just how bad the current was. We fought our way in the current making 1.5 to 2 kts of forward progress, while the other boat took the long way around, found a better stream of current, and then crossed well in front of us. I followed them trying to find the streams of current that were just a bit less terrible.

After a time, we were very near Friday Harbor, both of us were still sailing. We had made gains and coming into a port/starboard crossing situation with the other boat. We were on starboard and had the right of way. It probably wasn’t very cruisey of me (hey I’m still learning) but I held my course too long and forced them into a tack. I probably forced them into the Friday Harbor entrance that wasn’t their first choice. We took down the sails and docked at Friday Harbor without any problems.

Welcome to Friday Harbor

The next morning I checked the weather. The forecast had gotten quite a bit worse. Wherever we ended up that night, we would need to stay put through the next night. We expected up to 40 kts of wind to start around midnight and continue for more than 24 hours. 40 kts of breeze is enough to cause some boats to drag anchor. We considered our options. We wanted to get to Orcas Island for our dinner. Blind Bay is on Lopez Island just across the channel from Orcas and was a good option for big weather and might allow us to use the dinghy to cross over to Orcas. However, we were a little nervous about testing our anchoring skills and I was a bit worried about being stuck on the boat for a whole day. We could state put as another option, but I didn’t want to stay in Friday harbor for majority of our trip. We decided to head to Roche Harbor, the other other major marina in the area, and one that put us close to our Sucia destination.

Roche Harbor

Before we set out for Roche, we all explored Friday Harbor. We grabbed some lunch and got back to the boat in time for a 2:00 pm departure. We had 5 to 6 kts of breeze behind us, which isn’t enough to go anywhere fast. However, we weren’t in a big hurry, so we had enough time to sail. We used the main and code 0 and gybed back and forth for light wind sailing with the help of a favorable current.

After a bit of sailing, we realized that Lillie still wasn’t feeling well. We were suspecting something other than seasickness. On the way up, I received a contract trace alert that I had been exposed to COVID sometime the prior week. I tested negative the day before, but I was worried I exposed Lillie. I checked Lillie’s temp and got 102°, I checked again and again. Neither Sarah nor I trusted my temperature taking, so I brought Lillie down to Sarah and she got the same result. We got Lillie to take a COVID test with much cajolling and bribing; the result was negative. We suspect her most recent play date caused her to catch a cold. We set her up with Little Green Bunny, a bowl of crackers, lots of water and some Paw Patrol.

As we approached the North end of San Juan Island, the current was rushing right at us and was more than we could overcome with the wind we had. We struck the sails and started the motors.

Not long after we got underway again, our friends at the US Coast Guard paid us a visit. They rolled up on our stern as we motored along. I suspect they were unimpressed with our taped-on ink-jet-printed boat name and hailing port. These were our quick fix remediations for the warning we got from the Coast Guard during their last visit. This time, they didn’t feel the need to board us. They were statisfied with a number of shouted questions and answers. “Is this a charter boat? Where are you headed? Where are you coming from? Who’s on the boat with you?” They left us and found a different boat to board.

We were given an end tie at Roche Harbor, and we added a few extra lines in preparation for the storm we knew was coming. We learned that Roche Harbor was more than twice the price of Friday Harbor (doh!), but that it also had a swimming pool. We made plans to go to the pool, so Lillie could practice her swimming. In Roche, we would have many activities to occupy ourselves, even as we were hunkered down for the bad weather.

The next day Lillie was feeling fine so we set out for the swimming pool. It was just starting to blow like stink and it had a cold bite. Sarah assured us that the pool was quite warm. Lillie and I got into swim suits, then headed to the pool. Turned out we were the only people crazy enough to swim on a cold windy day, so we had the pool all to ourselves. I dipped my foot in and found myself with a terrible choice. I could stay half-naked in the cold blustery air, or I could jump into the, yes warmer, but far from warm water. I shot Sarah a bitter remark and jumped into the pool. Lillie was more eager to follow, she loves swimming and doesn’t seem as bothered by the cold.

We tried swimming for a good 30 minutes. We learned a new move. Lillie sits on my back while I breast stoke like a white baluga whale. These incredible moves just weren’t enough to warm us up. Lillie’s lips were blue, her body was shaking and I was grumpy. We got some decent swimming in, but it was time to be done. Lillie and I shivered in the showers for another 30 minutes getting warm, then dryish, then dressed. Lillie was crying nearly the whole time, I was too.

We headed back and stopped by the cafe for an outdoor lunch, then back to the boat. I planned to find a warm blanket and curl into a ball. The cold wind had sucked away all of my warmth.

Sarah ducked into the store to grab some sunscreen. Lillie and I stayed outside. Lillie likes to chat with just about anyone around. A gardener was near us cutting Tulips. Lillie asked, “What are you doing?” The gardener replied, “Oh, would you like some flowers?” Lillie said, “Yes!” As the gardener began to gather flowers Lillie said, “They’re for my momma.” The gardener said, “Oh, well then I’ll give you more”. Sarah was appreciativ and then a bit conflicted about the flowers. I told her that a gardener had given them out rather than Lillie helping herself.

A bit later, Penny returned to the boat after a day of walking the trails. She had apparently heard branches breaking all around her. She didn’t realize how large those branches where until one landed so close to her it touched her foot. Penny then realized that the branches were quite large, probably large enough to kill. She made her way back to the marina and away from the death-trees.

All of us made our way to dinner at the resort restaurant that night. We hoped this would be a substitute for our planned nice dinner out, but our lunch at the cafe set our expectations low. We were pleasantly surprised by our meal, and Lillie was well behaved. Lillie insisted on delivering a lengthy exposition about whatever was on her mind to our waiter every time he stopped by. The waiter was kind and patient. Sarah had a Salmon fillet that was incredible, buttery and flavorful. The fish was from New Zealand, maybe we’ll get more of that when we are down there next year. Penny and I had a Dungeness Crab bisque that was rich and delicious.

On our last morning in Roche, Lillie and I set out for the playground. The sun was out, the wind had abated and the resort was alive with activities. A large class of students was gearing up for a kayak trip while Lillie and I walked along the maze of weathered wooden docks. We walked through the garden, along the cobble stone streets of the resort then onto gravel paths. We diverted our path away from a large tree that had blown over the night before. When we got to the playground, Lillie played while I read my book.

Marina-hopping wasn’t quite what we had hoped our San Juan trip would be, and Roche Harbor isn’t quite our style, but it made for an excellent safe harbor during the big storm. We read a couple of accounts of boats breaking off of their moorings. I was happy that the biggest risk in our plan was potential for a popped fender as the boat was blow hard against the docks. We were well shielded from the worst of the wind and had a very secure mooring.

Sucia Island

The big storm had taken most of the breeze with it, so the next day was forecast for very little breeze. We were motoring again, and this time against a lot of adverse current. I started to make my way toward John’s Pass, knowing it was a very scenic channel. I changed my mind on seeing how much current there was. I opted for a much wider and straighter pass. We stayed on the east side of Waldren and approached Sucia from the South.

We rounded sand-stone outcroppings of Sucia and motored through a narrow channel into Echo Bay. This is what we were looking for. We drove up near the mooring balls and dropped anchor. There were maybe five other boats, which I suspect is a very small number for this very popular anchorage. We arrived with plenty of time to explore the island before dinner.

Penny unfolded her Kayak, we prepared the dink. Then we all set off to explore the nearby cove. The cove had a sand and pebble beach and was enclosed by sandstone caves and escarpments. Lillie and Sarah did a bit of tide-pooling, I walked up some stairs to survey the trails. Then, I walked across the island to check out Sunset Bay.

The next morning, Sarah dinked me to shore and I set off or a longish run/hike. I had ambitions of exploring every trail on the island, but I only managed to cover most of the trails on the south end with the two hours I had. I ran out to the end of a few outcroppings and bluffs. The trails were all classic northwest greenery, with pine trees, madrona trees, ferns and other lush undergrowth. The soil was rich and dark and the sandstone foundation was exposed from time to time, sometimes intermixed with roots on the single-track trail, at other times sandstone was exposed as a rocky stair-step scramble. The trails made for a dynamic run with lots of juking, jumping and an occasional climb.

The first trail ended on a bare sandstone point that disappeared into the water. Just off the point, a grey spotted harbor seal was lazily floating and napping.

I frequently stopped to appreciate some new hidden cove or another. There were a number of resident eagles, and I spotted one owl on my explorations.

I ran / hiked 6.8 miles, which is much more than I should have run for my first time out in a very long time. I felt great. After the run, there were no apparent injuries and my lungs, heart and legs got a much needed work out. I arrived back at the beach after almost 2 hours, the time Sarah agreed to check the beach to see if I was ready for a ride. A bit later, I saw Sarah dink toward me.

I even took a selfie. Did I do it right?

Back at the boat, we all had lunch. I suggested we all get in the dink to drive around the point and into the small marina I had found. That side of the island had lots of trails that were perfect for Lillie and her bicycle.

Sarah tried to set off on her own to leave Lillie and I to bike around. Not long after, Lillie sped off down the trial past me and closed the 300 yard gap to her mom. I caught up and we all walked the trail to see the beaches. We all climbed the bluff to view Fox Island. Then we all made our way down to the south-facing rock beach. I was feeling very tired after my run, so I sat on a rock and tried to read. Lillie and Sarah explored the beach, looked at tide pools and rescued a few starfish stuck on the beach. I got so tired that I made myself a bed on a pair of logs, using a branch spanning the logs as a pillow. I think I napped for a bit.

We were almost off of the beach and headed back when Lillie touched a log and got a splinter. Lillie really hates splinters, she wasn’t able to get it all out. So she spend the next 15 minutes crying. A snack stop helped, but didn’t fix the issue. A little further up the trail, Sarah left to go for a hike before our rendezvous time. Lillie finally settled down and was content to play in the sand on the beach for the last 20 minutes of our excursion.

We all boarded the dink to head back to Spice for dinner. Lillie took the opportunity to nap. That night was taco night, and it was delicious.

Back to Seattle

We decided to stay two nights in Sucia, which meant we’d have a 10+ hour day for our return trip. That was if we averaged 7.5 kts of velocity made good (VMG is the actual speed toward a destination, regardless of off-course tack angles). That meant another long day of motoring. Just past Marrowstone point we had 15 kts of breeze behind us, enough to make me think we could sail without losing too much time.

We set sail, and the wind tapered off to 8 kts. We weren’t making our speed numbers, but we kept sailing for the fun of it. We even put up the spinnaker, but it was not enough to overcome the current. As we neared Seattle, Sarah finally spotted Orcas, though they were all the way across the channel near Bainbridge.

We will return to the San Juans, five days with a stormy interruption is just not enough time to explore these amazing islands. I think we all enjoyed Sucia and wished we had more time there.