Paddling Around San Juan Island - Part 3 (the end)

OMG, I can go on and on. OK, part 3 and I will try to sum up the last 2 days succinctly without forgetting some of the finer details that I think is worth sharing and remembering.

Day 4 - Sandy got us up early with french toast and more of her kick-ass coffee! We packed up our stuff and headed out of Posey Island, past Roche Harbor and down the west side of San Juan Island along Haro Strait. Again, in hopes of catching more sightings of the orcas and Haro Strait is one of their more popular routes. Our destination was Smallpox Bay county park but we first had to deal with some strong winds and swells that were between 1.5 - 2.5 feet. As we were coming out of Mosquito Bay, we ran into a group of about 7 river otters. One swam really close to Sandy and ended up hitting her boat ;-) Later on, when she told this story to someone else, it evolved to the river otter jumping into her boat. We were starting to get the idea that she embellishes her stories just a *little bit*. It all started with how she survived a snake bite ....how could she forget that she wasn't telling the story to a bunch of city folks like me, but biologists! The other thing that I found amusing about her was how she always found fault in the way we would pack our boats, start a fire, etc...it got to a point where we all wanted so much to help out but in more fear that we would do it all wrong (and, believe me, she lets us know just how wrong we are). So, we just got good at piling stuff on the beach and packing our own belongings and waited for her to show up and direct the show. I helped out a lot in the food prepping...this was my way of connecting with her and also a chance to ask her anything about guiding. It worked and she really did enjoy sharing all her guiding knowledge and food prepping secrets with me and I am very grateful for that.

OK, where were we....oh yeah, riding the swells and watching Dave (who was in the front of my boat) and Allen get wet from the waves crashing over the bow. It was a pretty dicey paddle that day and most of the paddlers that day had decided to stay on shore. We got down to Smallpox Bay in about 3 hours. It was a county park and our first step back to civilization. There were tons of people at the campsite and plenty of cars....sigh, I knew eventually we had to head back but it's always hard to get used to that again.

The one saving grace is Sandy's reputation...we got the best camp site in the area and here is a picture from inside my tent on our last morning. Not a bad view to wake up to. I kept hoping that I would hear whales in the night but that never happened. We hung out at the campsite the rest of that day waiting for the whales to come. For dinner, it was corn chowder, more garlic bread (with all the minced garlic you could possibly stand), and more of her excellent cole slaw (I am definitely making that on my trips).

Day 5 - Our last day :-( We woke up to an amazing day....not a cloud in the sky and the winds were minimal. I could wake up to that view everyday. The morning was crazy with activity....the young river otters showed up again at North Beach and we watched them feed along the coastline heading south. In the distance, we spotted a minke whale. But, later on, we found out that a humpback had come down right past our beach without us knowing it. Uh, I don't believe it because how can you miss a humpback. The hill we were on had a pretty expansive view so we would've had ample time to see it surface on either side so I'm thinking that someone mistook my minke sighting for a humpback.

After another hearty breakfast (blueberry pancakes), we broke camp and then headed down for a paddle down south to the Lime Kiln Lighthouse. Last we heard, the orcas were headed west out the Strait of Juan de Fuca so our chances of seeing them that day was close to nil. But, it was still a beautiful day for a paddle. There were a lot of day-trippers out there and the beaches were packed. I can't even imagine what the area is like during the peak summer months (July - August). I know what area I'll be avoiding and, for sure, I don't think I will consider working there. I thought about it briefly, but it's so crowded and crazy busy.

At 3:45, our trip ended and we headed back to the ferry. We had to wait for some day trippers who were running late. Sandy had us waiting for them at the beach and the minute they hit the shore, we literally dumped them out of their boats, grabbed their paddles and starting loading everything on to trailer and van. Once on the van, and heading to the ferry, one of the day-trippers seemed to snap out of her state of shock and asked me how long we were waiting for them. It turns out, we shorted them an hour of beach time....I felt bad but we had to make 5:00 ferry because the next one wasn't until 7. I figured that it was something that Sandy and Andrew (the day-tripper guide) were going to "discuss" later (gee, I wonder who was going to win that discussion) and I just did as I was told.

All-in-all, it was a fabulous trip. I had so much fun paddling with you guys (Paul, Dave, and Allen). You were all great and I learned so much from each of you....I just wish I could write faster! Dave and Allen, thank you for taking turns at the bow of my boat! Your paddling was perfect and you both made me appreciate tandem paddling again! I also had a lot of fun paddling with Sandy and I learned a lot from her. I want to head back to Smallpox Bay county park and watch her in action once she starts working as night security. Once the clock hits 'quiet time,' it won't take her long to get everyone to quiet down...LOL! Sea Quest Expeditions - check them out. Not a bad outfitter for trips around San Juan Island.