Roche Harbor, San Juan Island, No Whales

Laura Domela — Wed, 12 Apr 2017 00:33:21 +0000

We arrived at Roche Harbor yesterday afternoon after a nice cruise over from Sucia Island. We coordinated with Bruce and Dorsey (American Tug “Esmeralde”) and decided to meet up at McMillin’s later on for dinner (photo above taken from our table in the restaurant…not a bad view!) We had a lovely time with many hilarious stories and laughs (and delicious food!) Back on the dock behind Airship, the moon was rising behind the “Our Lady of Good Voyage” chapel:

This morning we went up to the Lime Kiln Cafe for breakfast and then left around the same time as Esmeralde. It was sunny and even a little warm out!

We both decided to take the long way around the west side of San Juan Island in hopes of seeing some whales, but no such luck. We listened to the “whale watch channel” (78) but it sounded like the commercial outfits weren’t have much luck either. One captain said they saw a Minke whale for a little bit, but that’s it. (Truthfully, as far as whale sightings go, Minkes are kind of boring. I know, I sound snooty and all “Oh, so zillions of humpbacks surrounding your boat in SE Alaska has jaded you or something” and you’re right. It has.)

Here’s a photo of Esmeralde with the Cattle Pass Lighthouse and Mount Baker (but no whales):

Anyway, it was a great day on the water. We went all the way back to Anacortes to pick up a thing we ordered (a storage seat for the dinghy…we’ll report in after we have it fully installed) and we might head out again for the night…maybe just somewhere close like Cypress Island. We’ll see. It’s getting late and our projects here are not yet finished. Gotta go with the flow!

McMillin’s – Riveted

Roche Harbor, San Juan Island, No Whales