San Juan Islands Sea Kayaking from Anacortes

Yesterday we loaded some kayaks onto the Island Express for an early season kayaking trip out to Orcas Island. A friend was participating in a writer's retreat out there and arranged for us to take some of them paddling. The day was beautiful! The dark days of winter are forgotten easily as these longer (and warmer) days of April are upon us.

We started the trip in Obstruction Pass near Lieberhaven Resort. I had seen a bunch of seals on the way in to the Pass and so we opted to kayak east into Rosario Strait. Sure enough, we were barely into the Strait when we came upon a few basking in the Sun on some offshore rocks. They didn't seem bothered by the sea kayaks at all, but we maintained a respectful distance anyways. The females are pregnant now and will be giving birth in a few months and we did not want them to expend energy unnecessarily. The scene was perfect. The snow covered crags near Mt. Baker served as a perfect backdrop to the islandscape in front of us. The forested slopes of Cypress Island rising above sundappled seas, seals lying on a jagged tooth of a rock, auklets diving for fish, and a pair of eagles soaring on a refreshing northerly wind completed the picture.

Kayaking farther on, down the shoreline of Blakely Island, we came upon another group of seals.
This time, however, they were in the water. Lots of them. It didn't take long to notice that we were surrounded by at least two dozen of these curious pinnipeds. Some even approached within just a few yards. We lingered there for a long time, it would be silly to leave this kind of interaction. After a while we made our way a little more down the beach before heading back up the south side of Obstruction Island.

It has been a long time since I had last been sea kayaking in that area. I'm pretty sure that we will be incorporating this trip into out Outer Islands Sea Kayaking program. The views are terrific, the wildlife is abundant, and we love going to spots that are hard for others to get to. This place meets the criteria for sure!