San Juan Islands Sea Kayaking from Anacortes

Last weekend was the annual gathering of the gang from Yakima. Each spring Ryan Hopkins (see our guides page) and his clan drive over from the dry side of the state for an extended weekend of sea kayaking, camping, and general revelry in the San Juan Islands. Luckily for our son Taiga there is a young lady, Ruby Duke Hopkins, who is about the same age and gets along great with him.
We loaded our gear onto the Island Express along with a couple of adults who accompanied the little ones. Because of a less than perfect wind forecast we opted not to paddle them out to the island. After the boat departed the rest of us headed across to Guemes Island and launched our sea kayaks under cloudy skies. The wind was predicted to get pretty nasty that afternoon so we bee-lined it to Pelican Beach on Cypress Island. When we arrived camp had already been set up, and better still, the winds were calm.
We decided to make the most of a beautiful afternoon by gearing up the kayaks for a fishing trip off of Towhead Island, just north of Cypress. Luck was on our side and in a short time we had dinner.
On Saturday the wind finally arrived. We took the opportunity to hike along some of Cypress Islands 40 miles of trails. What a gorgeous place! We were reaffirmed that our kayak camping trips this summer were going to be a great experience for our guests. Even without being in a sea kayak Cypress Island is still one of the best places to explore in the San Juan Islands.

On Sunday we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before loading up our kayaks and heading back home.
With our "batteries" recharged we are excited for the coming months when we can show so many other people our favorite places in the San Juan Islands.

We've had a series of great trips over the last few days. My favorite kayaking trips always seem to have at least one youngster in the mix. On Friday, and again yesterday, we exposed lots of kids to the beauty of sea kayaking in the San Juan Islands. Friday's trip actually set a new record for the youngest sea kayaker to go on a tour with us. Little Soren, at just over 2 years old, joined us with his older sister Anna, and his parents. He did wonderfully! Not only was he comfortable and happy, he even took a little nap in the front of the kayak. Anna, at 5 years, really seemed to enjoy the kayaking as well. Particularly the stop on the beach where she got to eat some snacks.

Yesterday we had a mix of kids aged 7-14 years of age. We didn't have the nice sunny weather of the day before, but we got to enjoy a bona fide Pacific Northwest afternoon. Translation: It rained, and rained. Everyone did a terrific job in less than perfect conditions. I always admire the tough folks that come out rain or shine. Like we've said a thousand times; we don't have bad weather out here, just unfortunate clothing choices.

Spring is here, the flowers are blooming. It's time for sea kayaking in the San Juan Islands!

It's spring break and the weather is great. What that means is lots of sea kayaking trips for our guides. The phones have been ringing off of the hooks.

We were out again yesterday enjoying a warm afternoon. The peregrine chicks must have hatched recently. We saw the mother perched on the edge of her eyrie, which means she is no longer incubating her eggs. Although the chicks were hidden from view, it won't be long before they are shuffling about. Flowers are beginning to show as well. We are still a few warm days away from peak bloom, but with all the rain this winter we should have a good display.

Seals and porpoise were out on the west side of the island. Although the porpoise stayed away from the kayaks, we still enjoyed drifting in the current and watching the action unfold around us.
Burrows Island is such a nice place for sea kayaking. We rarely have to share the space with others.

I'd better go now, we've another trip this afternoon. We'll see you out on the water!

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!