San Juan area vacation help.

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flapbreaker

New member
I'm trying to find a place to have a mini family get together this summer. Some people might camp in a trailer, others might stay in an Inn ect. Would like to have the C-dory with us too. Does anyone have any idea's on places in the San Juan area that would be a nice place for various activities including boating/fishing?
 
I agree with Luna C. Lopez Island is the first stop for the Wash. State Ferry system in the San Juans. You can view the accomodations at the Lopez Islander Resort that Luna C referenced to. For those in your group that wish to camp, the Lopez Islander may possibly be able to accomodate you with that. Otherwise, there is a nice camping area near the ferry landing at Lopez. It is a San Juan County Park named Odlin County Park. This is a very popular camping area and it is advisable to get reservations for it. It used to be (and may still be), that they only accept reservations 6 months in advance. (Reservations are made at the county seat in Friday Harbor). Odlin is approx. 3 miles from the Lopez Islander. In the past when we've camped at Odlin, I've secured a slip at the Lopez Islander and cruised over in the boat and then my wife has brought the van over on the ferry to Odlin. Lopez Island is a very popular island for bicyclists, so if so inclined bring bicycles or rent them on the island. Lopez Island is also noted for its' friendliness, as it is the custom that as motorists pass you they ALL smile and wave at you, so wave back.
The Lopez Islander also has a swimming pool and jacuzzi.
Hope this is a help.
If Odlin County Park is of interest to you, you may PM me and when I get home from work tomorrow, I'll send you the "contact" phone number.
P. S. The town (village) on Lopez Island is approx. 1 mile from the Lopez Islander towards Odlin.
 
there are so many great places in the San Juans. If you like you can email us and we can share some of our favorite places. We've lived in Friday Harbor for a very long time. One of our favorites is San Juan County Park on the west side of san juan island.
bill & chris
cmcarli@hotmail.com
 
flapbreaker - the fishing in the SJIs can be pretty good around the end of July. If this year's regs are any indication of next year's, salmon and limited bottomfishing will be open. The trick will be finding the best spots to fish at that time. The Islands are pretty spread out and sometimes the best spots are some distance from where you might be staying. Nevertheless, there is no prettier place to wet a line. Here's a link to the regs: https://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/erules/efishrules/index.jsp

I second the plug for the Lopez Islander. It's a great place.
 
Another idea is time shares or rentals. There are a lot of houses in the islands and just over the border for rent that have docks. In fact there are condos for rent near the water front in friday harbor. If you pool your funds with the rest of the family it maybe worth it too you compared to hotels+ferry for the camper. Just a idea that you may want to look into.
 
The anwser to your weather question is Yes, No and Maybe. Ok so the Yes part. If you are going look for whales, and you should, then the straits of juan de fuca can get really bad really fast. I mean 6 to 8 ft with wind waves on top. but it MAYBE smooth as glass all day too. I have seen both. If it is bad on the out side You can just stay on the inside of the islands and have a lot of fun and see alot of different things going on in the towns. lots to do in the islands in the summer. And the No part, hey some times the wind never stirs a bit and its glass every where you go all weekend. our trip to Prince Luisa inlet was like that. Glass the whole way up and back. Just tell the weather tell you which way to go and you can always find a route out of the wind.
 
flapbreaker":1y7nspkf said:
Just wondering what the water conditions can be like in the san juans? Am I wrong to assume that it doesn't get as rough as the open ocean?
Click to expand...

Usually, not a problem and you are seldom far from a safe port that you can hunker into. In two words...."boater's paradise".
 
You have to cross something to get there - probably Rosario Straight. 20 minutes C-Dory time from Anacortes when calm, 45 or more when nasty. Don't go on an out going tide and a south wind. Small craft winds with the tide is still a manageable trip - it just takes a while. Tide vs wind is probably not worth it. Don't go if you are not sure about the situation, of course. Once you are in, like Sea Shift says, paradise!
 
flapbreaker - all the other posts are (of course) giving good advice. All I would add is that July-Oct _can be_ a great time for calm waters in the SJIs; a lot depends on the conditions at the time. Always maintain your options and know where you can "duck in" out of any messiness. LunaC has it right, avoid the S wind and outgoing tide, especially across Rosario Straight. The fetch extends to Tacoma... I've taken my 22 through 6-8' choppers west of Anacortes thrown up by this combo. A great ride but not something you want to do on a regular basis. Tip: print out and carry a ferry schedule (http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/) for the SJIs and in particular the Anacortes runs. If the weather is bad and Rosario Straight is churned up you can always try following one of these into or out of Anacortes. Just stay about 1/2 nm back (for ample "security clearance") and ride that smooth wake (!). Launching at Washington Park (http://www.iac.wa.gov/maps/presentation ... AreaID=100) helps facilitate this little trick. Another area that gets a bit whipped up at change of tide is Cattle Point at the SE tip of San Juan Island, just FYI (see http://www.mobilegeographics.com:81/loc ... 5&m=5&d=16). You're going to love it up there.[/i]
 
flap if you are bringing the kids and folk who dod not get to the salt much do not forget the crab pots and shrimp pots. always fun to have a cook out back at the dock. I have stayed in the hotel at fishermans resort in the summer and almost every room has a big pot of crab cooking out on the lawn.
 
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