| San Juan Escape log (2003-09-07 -> 2003-09-12)
Leaders: Megan Moran, Mary Kathryn Williams
Students: Melissa Bunnen, Barbara Chandler, Susan Dunlap, Jane Head, Shannon Kinzey, Carol Lacy, Terry Malone, Jessica Maxwell, Mitzie Michelson, Bet Pope, Jayne Stockton, Lou Winship
As our seaplane landed in Friday Harbor of San Juan Island, we got our first glimpse of the islands in the Pacific Northwest. Blanketed with fog and a light mist, we truly felt like we had been transported out of the hot and humid South and into a land of orcas, seals, hemlock, cedar, ferries, and sleepy towns on the edge of islands. Arriving late afternoon, we had a bit of time to explore the shops of Friday Harbor and enjoy a hot drink while getting to know each other and the island a bit better. We relaxed at our inn with a glass of wine and hors d'oeuvres while others explored the hiking trails nearby. Soon after, we tasted our first seafood of the island at Vinny's, and prepared ourselves for the adventure to come!
Monday morning we met our guides from Outdoor Adventures who taught us the key components of paddling a sea kayak and we enjoyed a scrumptious lunch on the bluff. Before we jumped in our kayaks however, we were visited by 2 pods of orcas! This was such a treat and unexpected; pods hardly ever travel together. Each pod has approximately 20 whales so we were constantly watching them from the safety of the bluff! After lunch, we climbed in our boats to practice our steering techniques but the heavy wind brought us back to land soon after. Rather than fight the elements, we took a coastal hike along South Beach and toasted our trip on the point! Outdoor Adventures had lovely steaks, homemade mashed potatoes, and salad waiting for us when we returned! We slept in our tents for the first time and woke to a beautiful view of the water near where we lunched.
While Outdoor Adventures loaded our boats and shuttled them to the other side of the island where we were to put in later that afternoon, we headed into town to check out the whale museum and learn a bit more about the orcas we had seen yesterday. After a lunch on the water provided by OA, we climbed in our kayaks and paddled toward Jones Island-voted one of the top ten places to camp by National Geographic. The sun was shining brightly on the water, and our day was ideal. No 'wet exits' were required for practice and none were needed since everyone looked like a natural!
After a few hours of paddling, we reached our destination-Jones Island. It was beautiful! Perfect coastal views for our tents and two large picnic tables to enjoy our gourmet feast, as well as "couches" carved out of logs to watch the sunset. Though there wasn't a cloud in sight, we set up our tents just in case. We toasted to perfection and then enjoyed smoked and grilled salmon, homemade clam chowder, pasta with clam sauce, and salad for dinner! As we were soaking in our atmosphere, we noticed seals popping up to see the sight we had come for as well-an amazing sunset. We were camped on the western side of Jones Island and therefore had the perfect view!
Megan and I woke the next morning from our gravel bar (the stars were too beautiful for us to miss!) to find many folks up and enjoying a leisurely morning with coffee and conversation. It started to drizzle after breakfast, but we put on our rain gear and hiked part of the island regardless! Rain never got in the way of anything we wanted to do! Even kayak! We paddled to Orcas Island later that morning and Outdoor Adventures warmed our bodies on our arrival with more chowder and hot drinks, as well as sandwiches. We bid farewell to our kayaks and headed to West Beach pottery to see (and buy!) the work of local artists before checking into our inn downtown. While others enjoyed their first shower in two days, Barbara, Megan, and I headed to Moran State Park to hike to the top of Mt. Constitution-the highest point in the San Juan Islands. It was like hiking through a rain forest! Our views were limited at the top, but we experienced the dampness and solitude of a pacific-northwest forest. We all turned in after a dinner at a downtown cafe and awaited our next adventurebiking!
Thursday morning, we boarded the ferry from Orcas for Lopez Island-a place popular for cyclists as well as rabbits! (Lopez has managed to secure a large wild rabbit population!) The 25 minute ferry ride took us by deserted islands similar to those we saw kayaking and as soon as we arrived in Lopez, we begin to bike its perimeter. No one wanted to have lunch first-we have an energetic and strong group! It started to rain, but it didn't dampen anyone's spirits-it only gave us more motivation to get to our shelter for a coastal lunch! We biked by beautiful farmlands, stopped to peak inside a country church, and watched in awe as an old timer plowed his land with two Clydesdale horses! We biked into town for a browse in local shops and ended on a beautiful beach for a late lunch. As we hiked down to the coastline, Jane Head was surprised with balloons and an ice cream cake from OA for her birthday! A bonafide birthday party!
After lunch, we said goodbye to Outdoor Adventures and boarded the ferry for Orcas. Melissa, Shannon, Bet, Lou, and Carol were feeling a surge of energy and anxious to climb Mt. Constitution, so we headed up the mountain while others enjoyed the quaint shops of Orcas before dinner! Jane Stockton and Susan stayed on Orcas during our bike ride to 'feel the burn' of Mt. Constitution and afterward, Susan enjoyed a massage at a local day spa! What a great idea! Our drizzly day turned into blue skies and Mt. Constitution offered wonderful views for us this time! We made it down (with the help of our van parked at the top!) just in time for dinner at Sean Pauls-a lovely restaurant on a western beach of Orcas-and to see the tail end of the sunset. We toasted Jane for her birthday, enjoyed wine under the heat lamps of Sean Paul's deck, walked on the dock to say goodbye to the islands, and feasted on halibut, sea bass, clams, mussels, and crab. It was the perfect ending for a wonderful trip!
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