Island-Hopping in Washington State’s San Juans

While gulls circle overhead, the good life is about to begin for dozens of vacationers sailing to Washington’s peaceful San Juan Islands.

Urban pressures melt away as the ferry’s engine sets a rhythm that spells relaxation.

Small islands appear on either side as the vessel plows ahead on this spring afternoon, clouds scudding on the horizon.

It is during spring and fall that the San Juans are particularly inviting--moments when narrow roads and small villages are uncrowded and innkeepers offer a special welcome.

Of the 60 inhabited islands, only four have regular auto-ferry service from Anacortes, with other trips provided from Sydney on Vancouver Island near Victoria.

Apart from innkeepers, restaurateurs, charter-boat skippers and self-sufficient retirees, the densely wooded archipelago provides glimpses of orca whales, seals, porpoises, otters, deer and bald eagles.

Washington state ferries transport motorists, cyclists and pedestrians several times daily from Anacortes, about 80 miles northwest of Seattle off Interstate 5, to landing slips at Lopez, Shaw and Orcas islands and Friday Harbor, the principal town on the island of San Juan.

Round-trip fares for car and passengers are about $20, and the one-way trip takes between one and two hours, depending on destination.

In good weather, this voyage is an excellent introduction to the San Juans. Small boats scud everywhere, for this is “rag hanger” and “stink pot” nirvana, with hundreds of yachts based in dozens of marinas and coves. Pines and firs blanket the passing shoreline, punctuated by rustic homes and piers.

When the big white ferry eases into a slip on Shaw Island, passengers may be surprised to see stevedores in nuns’ habits pulling at the mooring lines. A convent on Shaw supplies sisters for this task and also to operate the Little Portion general store.

Minutes later the ferry docks at Orcas, the highest and most picturesque of the San Juans, with some 50 miles of good roads, numerous harbors and a variety of restaurants, shops and resorts.

Largest and most renowned of the resorts is Rosario, once was the summer estate of a Seattle shipbuilder. The old palazzo with its spa and dining room is resort headquarters. Guests are housed in 179 units nearby.

Christopher Peacock, a local historian, performs organ recitals in the afternoon and slide shows illustrate the resort’s growth.

Nearby, the 4,800-acre Moran State Park features 21 miles of hiking trails, although motorists choose a winding road to the summit of Mt. Constitution (2,407 feet).

From a stone lookout tower built by the WPA in the 1930s, there’s a 360-degree view of Puget Sound and the mainland east as far as majestic Mt. Baker, a vanilla cone in the misty blue near Canada.

Pleasant Stopover

Eastsound is the principal village on Orcas, midway between the port and Rosario. A pleasant stopover is the Outlook Inn, a sparkling Victorian with a noted restaurant; next door is the modern Landmark Inn.

An unexpected treasure is Darvill’s Rare Print & Book Shop, stocked with many goodies, including a matchless selection of books and tapes dealing with these islands and the entire Pacific Northwest.

East of Rosario and Moran Park is the hamlet of Olga. There, Cafe Olga shares quarters with the intriguing Orcas Island Artworks shop, and dispenses imaginative lunches and light suppers.

At the west end of Orcas is Deer Harbor, with comfortable inns and cafes overlooking the marina. Between Olga and Deer Harbor are velvety pastures, trimly fenced and populated by cattle.

A 40-minute ferry cruise from Orcas provides a different look: Friday Harbor on San Juan is a modern town, with motels and condominium rentals, several B&Bs;, arts and crafts boutiques, a helpful information office and several restaurants.

Three large eateries that overlook the crowded harbor are Turnagain, Downrigger and Winston’s. There’s even a winery outlet, with tastings, although the grapes must come from the mainland.

At the Main Dock, charter boats and at least one excursion cruise operate, though mainly by demand and reservation in the off-season (other than summer). The 46-foot Western Prince advertises a four-hour wildlife cruise at $35 for adults, $15 for kids. In spring and fall, it requires persistence and the prospect of a small group’s business to ferret out a waterborne excursion.

Away from Friday Harbor, at the island’s northwest tip, Roche Harbor Resort offers accommodations both quaint and comfortable. Atmosphere reigns at the Hotel de Haro, built in 1887 as the bunkhouse of a cement company and remodeled in 1906 to play host to former President Theodore Roosevelt, whose full-size portrait adorns the lobby.

You can rent Teddy’s suite or choose more comfort in waterside condominiums, or compromise in one of nine former company cottages. The restaurant, formerly the cement baron’s residence, is above reproach, and you mingle with the sailors who favor Roche Harbor’s docks and anchorages.

The Pig War

Besides the obvious recreations in the San Juans--fishing, scuba, hiking, biking and whale watching--there are golf, tennis, kayaking and canoeing, with rentals on both Orcas and San Juan.

Sightseeing on San Juan Island includes a history lesson at the National Historic Park (free), which commemorates an obscure confrontation between the United States and British Canada, popularly known as the Pig War.

In the 1850s, both Britain and the United States laid claim to the San Juan Islands, and rival settlements sprang up. In 1859, an American farmer shot a marauding hog belonging to the British Hudson’s Bay Co.

In escalating disputes that followed, British and American military forces occupied San Juan Island, the Britons in a fort south of Roche Harbor and the Yanks at American Camp in the far southeast. Threats were exchanged.

Alarmed at the very real prospect of armed conflict, former President James Buchanan negotiated a truce, but troops remained until 1872, when arbitration by the German Kaiser ended the dispute in favor of the Americans.

Today you can see relics of the occupation at both locations.

Summer rates begin Monday and continue through September. Figure prices to be about 10% to 20% less in the off-season. All listings include double occupancy.

Rosario Resort: Sunday through Thursday, $57 to $117, weekends, $75-$175. Write to P.O. Box 758, Eastsound, Wash. 98245, or call (206) 376-2222.

Outlook Inn: $60-$73. P.O. Box 210, Eastsound, Wash. 98245, (206) 376-2200.

Landmark Inn: $89.50, Route 1, Box A-101, Eastsound, Wash. 98245, (206) 376-2423.

Roche Harbor Resort includes the Hotel de Haro plus various cottages and condominiums: $52-$105. Roche Harbor, Wash. 98250, (206) 378-2155.

General and specific information on the San Juan Islands is available free from the San Juan Islands Tourism Cooperative, P.O. Box 65, Lopez, Wash. 98261, (206) 468-3663. The cooperative also has Washington ferry schedules.

You may get an even more detailed 120-page booklet, with descriptions and advertising, by sending $2 for postage and handling to San Juans Beckon, P.O. Box 758, Eastsound, Wash. 98245, or to The Book, P.O. Box 519, Friday Harbor, Wash. 98250. Numerous holiday or special-interest packages are offered.

Air travel: Lake Union Air, (800) 692-9224, has daily scheduled seaplane flights from Lake Union near downtown Seattle, plus courtesy vans from Sea-Tac International Airport. San Juan Airlines, (800) 438-3880, flies from Sea-Tac Airport.

For more information on travel to the state of Washington, contact Washington State Tourism, 101 General Administration Building, Olympia, Wash. 98504, (206) 586-2088.