Advice from Puget Sound members

jssailem · Nov 16, 2018

I suspect you have a little time to discuss the opportunity to visit our beautiful country. The weather is always changing. Including the smoke filled days. Folks tend to be flexible and adapt to what Mother Nature gives us.

A stay in Rosario would be wonderful. But equally a trip to Vancouver Island or a ride north on the BC Ferry system with stays along the way might return life long memories. https://www.bcferries.com/
Or a stop in Roche Harbor might provide entertainment and is reachable by ferry. https://www.rocheharbor.com/

There are AirB&B's and VacationRentalByOwner opportunities in abundance. Each with it's quirks and tourist resources
https://www.vrbo.com/results?petIncluded=false&ssr=true&adultsCount=2&childrenCount=0&infantsCount=0&q=San Juan Islands, WA, USA
https://www.vrbo.com/results?adultsCount=2&childrenCount=0&petIncluded=false&infantsCount=0&q=british C

It all depends on what you want to experience.

John Nantz · Nov 17, 2018

Some more pictures to share with your friends. One is a satellite photo, another on the air quality "Weather" forecast, British Columbia fires (we get their smoke too, but then we share), and my car filters (before and after). Change frequently (engine and cabin air). If flying in, the airport, such as SeaTac, may be closed.

vetch · Jan 15, 2019

We love Rosario Resort. The entire facility is one of our favorite places in the San Juan islands. Having said that we have only ever stayed in the marina never up in the big house. The pools and amenities there are great and big bonus from the boating stand point the showers are free. You can hike up to Cascade lake for a swim in the summer or just stay down at the pool. My wife especially appreciates the 21 and over pool with bar service.

You can also rent a car for the day for a reasonable rate and explore the entire island. East Sound is a a fun little village and just has more of an island time vibe then Friday Harbor.

Roche Harbor on San Juan Island is nice as well has many of the same amenities but we just prefer Rosario.

vetch · Jan 15, 2019

I would also say don't worry about navigating out here it's all line of sight but I would pick a week with moderate tides. I'm not sure about your home waters but out here a 4' swing is a moderate tide.

But especially from Anacortes or Bellingham to Orcas there is nothing like "big water". Particularly in the summer we are not really known for strong winds.

Terry Cox · Jan 15, 2019

vetch said:
don't worry about navigating out here it's all line of sight

Yah, a piece of cake. Tide currents, not here. Tide rips, only in the southern hemisphere. Submerged rocks, nope. Reefs, only south of here. Fog, never. Winds, absent. Rain, always. Just like sailing in your bathtub.

vetch · Jan 15, 2019

Oh I'm not saying it's easy but anyone with their head screwed on straight and pays attention during the nav briefing when they check out the charter wouldn't have any trouble.

Just take your time and pay attention

jssailem · Jan 15, 2019

vetch said:
Oh I'm not saying it's easy but anyone with their head screwed on straight .....wouldn't have any trouble.

Vetch.. you should join us on our upcoming 2019 Winter Cruise (307NM). We'll be going right past Bellingham in route for the Vancouver Boat Show 8-9-10 of February.

Meriachee · Jan 15, 2019

Terry, I thought about sailing in my bathtub, and we did not plant the keel at Prevost a couple of years ago, but I can’t tell you how.

Terry Cox · Jan 15, 2019

Meriachee said:
we did not plant the keel at Prevost a couple of years ago

Yup. Sailing buddy came into Prevost from the north a few years ago, thought he had enough water and bang. Nasty reef right there. He headed to Sydney to have his boat hauled and keel repaired. Stuff happens, even in a bathtub.

Scott T-Bird · Jan 16, 2019

It seems that I am late coming to this thread and Justin may already have made plans, but I'll put my 2 cents in anyway. Sue and I stayed at Rosario's in early May, 2012 and we thought it was very nice. We were there for just 2 nights though. The resort itself is wonderful and very picturesque. It sounds like it has all of the nicest resort features, but it was too early in the season for us to enjoy anything outdoors at the resort. We had just one beautiful sunny day (cool-mid 50's) to spend entirely on the island so we did the hike from the trailhead at Mountain Lake to Mt. Constitution. I'd say that is a must see in the San Juans, but we had nothing else for comparison.

Orcas Island seemed very sleepy to us. Rosario's was virtually empty and so was the entire island. East Sound is very nice but it is also very small and about the only town center that we found. A half-hour wandering around and you have seen it in entirety. Actual shopping would certainly require more time … but not much. It seems that pure relaxation is the key activity on this Island and maybe most of San Juans. Of course, our vision was through a pre-season lens. There seemed to be a lot of artsy-crafty places scattered around the island, in isolated locations. It would probably require numerous outings to see them. We did have a great pizza in East Sound after our hike. It seemed to be about the only open place on the island other than Rosario's.

Friday Harbor was actually quite a bit busier. I can imagine summer-time mobs there. San Juan Island would probably be a much better center for activities in the Islands. Rosario's seems to be the kind of place to go to and plant yourself there. Honestly, I think I would be completely restless on Orcas Island and a resort setting after just 3 days. I could not imagine being cooped up in one place on that island for any longer. I think you would have to really enjoy being very sedentary to actually be able to spend a couple of weeks at that resort, even as nice as it is. I'm sure there are numerous activities that you can plan, but if you have to travel to the other islands to do them, it could be very stressful dealing with the congestion around the ferries. It would probably be nice to have your own runabout to get back and forth!

We stayed in Port Angeles before going to Rosario's and thoroughly enjoyed a few days in an around Olympic National Park based from that location. Those mountains are rugged and it was interesting to see really deep snow as we went up in elevation! It was also very interesting to travel by ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria, B.C., then drive to Sydney to catch the ferry to Friday Harbor with another transfer to Orcas Island. We made a single day of it, spending just a little bit of time in each location. It made for a very interesting travel day, but it would also have been very nice to take a few more days to see much more. Victoria can easily occupy a few days or more. Sydney was delightful! We could have spent more time there as well.

Scott T-Bird · Jan 16, 2019

It seemed to me that San Juan Island / Friday Harbor would be the most "central" location to gain access to all of the islands and probably the greatest concentration of activities. Leaving Orcas Island only has 2 choices, I think. Anacortes on the mainland & Friday Harbor. Orcas Island is the largest and the scenery is just stunning no matter where you are on the island. But I also got the impression that it is pretty private. I don't know how accessible all of the best locations on the sea front are when it seems that so much is private property. The locals would have to give you a sense of this. Public land in the interior parts of the island are really nice, based on our limited experience. Rosario Marina was virtually empty when we were there. Even so, there were a few friendly folks to chat with. I'm sure that the marina is bustling in the summer.

Mark Maulden · Jan 16, 2019

Anacortes is actually on Fidalgo Is..

vetch · Jan 16, 2019

jssailem said:
Vetch.. you should join us on our upcoming 2019 Winter Cruise (307NM). We'll be going right past Bellingham in route for the Vancouver Boat Show 8-9-10 of February.

I would love to but this is my busy time at work. I'll be on the go till at least May. But then I plan to head out to Matia and some of the Northern Islands.

Terry Cox · Jan 16, 2019

vetch said:
But then I plan to head out to Matia and some of the Northern Islands.

Matia, one of our most favorite islands. Hard to get into during peak season, but well worth the stop.

vetch · Jan 17, 2019

As a "local" I would agree with most of what Scott T-Bird said. We go to Rosario almost every summer but never stay more then 2 days. For a summer trip there you would definitely want reservations but that would be the same for everywhere in the San Juans.

San Juan Island (where Friday Harbor is) would be the "Hub" of the islands and there are several nice places to stay and lots to do. Especially if your bringing a car over from the mainland there is just tons to explore. (American Camp, British Camp, lavender farms, Roche Harbor) just to name a few. If I was spending a week out there that's where I would stay.

Unless they have changed it you only pay the ferry for West bound traffic and East bound is free (or pre-built into the cost) You could go to San Juan Island for a few days then hit Orcas on the way East and save some money on the boat ride.

Kings Gambit · Jan 17, 2019

vetch said:
I would also say don't worry about navigating out here it's all line of sight....

An astonishing statement.

Justin. One thing about trip planning. You can book a room(s) early to ensure a place to flop, but every resort or hotel I’ve done business with in PNW has a no-cost cancellation policy of perhaps a week’s to even a single day’s notice. Book now if that is your concern, update later. But yes, you must book and get your “marker” down if going in high season. That would include a vehicle reservation.

Also, regarding the ferries. Having done both sail charter and road trips in the PNW over several yr, I’ve figured out some “tricks.” You can make ferry reservations on line, and I encourage it strongly. The cost of a no-show in case you cannot cancel in time is much less painful than having to wait in a line, watching a ferry leave w/o you, then having to remain there for another hour and a half to get the next one, assuming it has available space, etc. It’s not like travel by bus!!

Consider. Once there, you’re on vacation! Not still shopping for the cheapest choice in a hundred mile radius. You’ll remember the wait much longer than the few bucks that might have gotten wasted that one time, etc.

vetch · Jan 17, 2019

Kings Gambit said:
An astonishing statement.

That seams to be a common thought to my statement. Maybe I'm dense but I'm not sure why. I'm not trying to derail the thread but am just genuinely curious.

Kings Gambit · Jan 17, 2019

vetch said:
That seams to be a common thought to my statement. Maybe I'm dense but I'm not sure why. I'm not trying to derail the thread but am just genuinely curious.

You have to view the situation from the perspective of a newbie to the area. Sure, you might, probably could even then, run a sight line to a harbor IF you knew its actual location and how to approach it. On my first charter out of Anacortes, destination Orcas Island, which we did not actually make, diverting to Sucia instead, I was impressed by how confusing the seascape of the San Juans actually appeared to me. The islands do not wear big signs identifying themselves. That was a long time ago, and there are many other navigation aids now available. But, bad things are still most likely to happen when you do not know actually where you are, etc.

My first charter mentioned above was arriving from FL. The SJ charts also confused me some. At first, I did not know what those squiggly lines meant

. I also did know what those asterisk-looking symbols (*) meant. They are on there for good reasons!! They do not appear, at least not often, on the charts of SW Florida.