July 11, 2010 - Lopez and San Juan Islands

A weekend on the boat, with no kids?  Wow, this almost never happens!  The kids are over at their grandparent's in Sandpoint Idaho for a few weeks, and we are out on our boat :-)

We leave on Friday afternoon and head over to MacKaye Harbor on the south end of Lopez. We stopped here on our way home last weekend hoping to get out on the trails around Iceburg Point State Park.  But we couldn't find the entrance.  We are here again to find the park, and to ride our new folding bikes around Lopez.  They are an amazing bit of engineering.  These aren't the best bikes to ride, but they are OK and certainly get you from point A to point B.  They have Shimano components, all aluminum and stainless steel construction (good for rust resistance on a boat), and they even have 6 gears.  The geometry on these things is pretty different.  I can ride a wheelie with the front wheel about 6 inches off the ground; definitely different.  The early evening is very calm, almost perfect. But the wind kicks up after midnight, and we rock and roll all night, not sleeping well in the waves.  Saturday morning we load our folding bikes into the dinghy and head off for a bike ride.

Two bikes easily fit in the bow of our small rowboat

Kathy on her folding bike.

We ride from the south end of Lopez north about 4-5 miles to Fisherman Bay.  The bikes are decent, but not quite like a real bike.  Given the fact that we can actually store them on the boat though, they ARE great.  We are checking out these roads to see if they would be good with the kids and we decide they would not be good.  The roads are very winding with limited sight distance.  Maybe in a few years it might work, but not yet. 

After biking through beautiful farm lands and fields we arrive in Fisherman Bay.  We visit the local bakery for some yummy treats.  This place is always busy, and it's always good.  A must stop if you are ever here.

Holly B's Bakery.  Always busy; always good.

 

Not as many boats as last weekend (4th of July).

A hawk flies over while we are biking on Lopez.

I fear that someday people might start calling me "Mr. Safety", with all of my flares, signaling devices, first aid kits, flashlights, and life jackets.  But, hey, if my time with Skagit Bay Search and Rescue has taught me one thing it is that you can't be too prepared when on the water.  Bad situations can quickly turn ugly if you aren't ready to deal with them....  So now I wear my bike helmet while rowing.... NOT!

"Mr. Safety" practicing safe boating  :-)

After the bike ride we go back to the boat for lunch.  Then  it's off to Iceburg Point.  We've now figured out that the entrance to the park is through a closed gate that is labeled "Private Driveway, Do Not Block".  Now if this seems like a pretty lame park entrance, IT IS!  We went right past this last time we were here and even noticed a very faded "No Trespassing" sign at this gate.  I think they need to mark it better!  There is a lot of nice hiking here and we think the kids will enjoy this park.

Checking out the trails at Iceburg Point

The US/CANADA boundary reference mark.

Here is the reference marker explanation.

After Iceburg Point it's back to the boat. We've decided to move over to San Juan Island in search of calmer waters so we can get a good night's sleep. We pull anchor and head for Griffin Bay. We anchor along with 4 or 5 other boats and it is very calm here. We are anchored in front of American Camp, sight of an international military dispute in the 1870's.

Kathy and Zappa (our cat) go rowing in Griffin Bay.

Cheers!

A nice start to the evening.

Sunday morning we get up after a very calm evening.  We dinghy over to shore to explore American Camp.  Ultimately, the border between the US and Canada was decided as a result of a joint military occupation with the US at American Camp and the British and English Camp a few miles away at Garrison Bay.  Here is a description of what was here back in 1859:

Read this before looking at the next 2 pictures.

I think this makes sense now.

And so does this one!

We end up joining a tour being given by a park ranger.  It was very good, and we learned quite a bit about the vegetation, wildlife, and history.  The ranger was a great guy who clearly loved his job, and he made it very interesting.

Taking a tour of American Camp with a park ranger.

After the tour we hike around on our own and have a picnic lunch at American Camp.  Then back to the boat so we can head home.  We are thinking about spending one more night out, close to home.  We would get up early and get back to the dock by about 6:00AM so Kathy can get to work. 

Kathy and Zappa watch me pull the anchor Sunday afternoon.

We cross back over to Deception Pass in relative calm and then decide to head over to Kiket Island to anchor for the night. 

Kathy guides the boat through Deception Pass.

We drop the hook in Similk Bay and fix dinner.  The wind starts rising to 25-30 knots with no sign of relief.  The forecast is calling for this kind of wind for the next 24 hours.  So, we pull anchor and head home.  There's no point to spending the night blowing in the wind and waves when we are just a few miles from home.  We are back at the dock around 7:00PM.  It was a great trip.  Without our kids along we had the chance to explore Lopez by bike, and I have to say, we certainly saw a lot more of the island that way.  We miss the kids, but the freedom we get when they aren't around is nice from time to time.