7 day 6-night San Juan/Gulf Island Itinerary From Bellingham or Anacortes Washington
Pre-Board the night before trip (optional)
Day 1 - Morning depart after skipper meeting and crew briefing. We will then journey into the San Juan Islands keeping a sharp eye out for Orcas and soaking in the scenery. Our goal is to arrive in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island by noon and enjoy this small island town’s artisan flavor. This is a great place to get provisions for the next couple of days.
Day 2 - Depart Friday Harbor after breakfast and continue our cruise through the rest of the San Juan Islands and cross over into Canada where we will be keeping a lookout and monitoring the radio for whale sightings. Then will go through customs and drop anchor in Bidwell Harbor on South Pender Island. We will have the rest of the day to discover Poets Cove and South Pender Island. Take the opportunity to sea kayak, hike, swim in the pool (or the bay depending on water temperature), play tennis, or enjoy the day spa. This is also a great place to go fishing, crabbing or catch fresh prawns. Later you can dine ashore or just relax aboard and prepare your own feast.
Day 3 – This morning we have time to sleep in and relax and will still have time for a quick swim or kayak before we weigh anchor and set out for the Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island. On the way we will drop our prawn trap outside of Deep Cove and then we have the option to run inside for a late lunch at Deep Cove Chalet a world-class restaurant. After lunch we will continue to the Gardens where we will drop anchor and tender into the back door of the gardens and enter through the Japanese garden. We will be here all afternoon and into the evening.
To see the Gardens at night is truly spectacular.
After your nocturnal stroll we will return to the boat on the tender through a wake of brilliant Phosphorescence if the conditions are right. Then we will turn in because we have a big day and an early start in the morning.
Day 4 – This morning we will weigh anchor before sunup.
We are heading for Victoria and there's a ways to go.
It is your choice to sleep in or enjoy the sunrise while underway.
We will stop on our way to retrieve our prawn trap.
And if we are blessed with a good catch we will feast on fresh prawns on our way. Sometime after lunch we will arrive downtown Victoria where we will be dockside in front of the Parliament building and the Empress Hotel.
This is your opportunity to explore the city.
You will be on your own and can come and go as you please.
Day 5 and 6 - Depart Victoria with another early start as we head back towards the states. We are coming back to San Juan Island, but this time we will be going through customs at Roche Harbor on the west end of the island.
This is a beautiful harbor and one of the most popular in the islands. After clearing customs, there will be time for lunch ashore and to get provision for the rest of the trip. Then it’s off to Sucia Island our favorite place in the islands.
This island is only accessible by boat and is a gem. We plan on being here for the next two nights you will want to go ashore and hike or sea kayak around the island.
We will end the day with a BBQ fish dinner of some local catch.
Then we will head to shore for a campfire to toast roasted marshmallows.
Day 7 – It’s early morning and it is time to head back. You are welcome to sleep in or get up and enjoy an early morning cruise past the north end of Orcas Island. We arrive back to port around noon.
This is a sample Itinerary and we can tailor this trip to meet your needs.
A passport is necessary to travel between the USA and Canada, if you do not have one, you can apply at the local post office. Also, you may require an additional visa if you are already traveling from outside the country. Or we can modify the trip to stay within the borders.
Itinerary is subject to change due to weather conditions and other variables at the Captain's discretion.
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