Sailing Wednesday: Stuart Island to Friday Harbor

Day 4 of Sailing the San Juans

Compared to the prior two nights, Tuesday night into Wednesday morning saw me get a reasonable amount of sleep. I was dead asleep when out of nowhere, a bird landed on the open hatch above our cabin and tried on its impressive vocal skills. Soon it was joined by compatriots and the racket increased dramatically. With no chance of going back to sleep and foggy enough not to recognize the birds by voice, I poked my phone out the hatch in the gray morning to snap a photo of the offenders.

My Alarm Clock: Tree Little Birds with Apology to Bob Marley
Highly Vocal Purple Martins

I knew the birds were swallows, but I did not recognize their song which differed slightly from the familiar call of Barn Swallows. I had seen several species flying along the water surface in our anchorages, especially Barn and Violet-green Swallows. I also thought on several occasions that I had seen brilliant violet Purple Martins, but I had dismissed them as eastern birds, not realizing that they also inhabit coastal regions along the Pacific. But sure enough, my phone recorded three Purple Martins serenading the boat. It has been many decades since I saw a Purple Martin.

Before we lifted anchor, Jon and Jette treated us to delicious eggs with Gruyère and bacon baked in a scallop shell. It is amazing how good something so simple can taste.

Baked Egg, Gruyère, and Bacon: Delicious

Leaving Stuart Island for our destination at Friday Harbor on the big island, San Juan Island, we slogged easterly into the current with a 20+ knot headwind offering no chance to get under sail. Finally as we shifted our course to the south with the wind roughly abeam, we put up the just the jib without the mainsail and were ripping along heeled to starboard until we got fussed at from the galley. It was leaning a bit much for lunch prep. We continued under sail into Friday Harbor where we had an overnight reservation, arriving at 1230.

Once we were at the dock and connected to shore power, I think we all took advantage of the power to recharge our electronics while we ate lunch, a beautiful composed salad. A classic West Coast Louie salad, it had mounds of crab, shrimp, avocado, cucumber, tomato, egg, and celery, a perfect light and elegant lunch. As we dined, we heard the horns of the various ferries headed to and from Anacortes, with and without stops at other islands on the way.

On our tour of the San Juans, Wednesday afternoon and evening was scheduled free time and a chance for Jon and Jette to take a brief break from guests, though there was no shortage of chores to keep them busy. Earlier in the week, Ann and I booked at table at the restaurant Oystertale, for which we had a couple of recommendations. The other couples would visit other restaurants in the tiny town of 2750 people.

After lunch, Ann and I left the boat for the walk through the marina and then through the streets of the town that is the county seat of San Juan County. We saw all the highlights: ferry terminal, courthouse, board of education, high school, police station, city hall, etc. All sarcasm aside, parts of the town are quite cute and sitting on the hill looking out into the marina did not suck.

One of Many Ferries Leaving the Terminal

View of the Marina from Benches on Shore

Sidewalk Queen Anne's Lace, Daucus carota

Lilies Along the Street

Gorgeous White Hollyhocks

Woodwind at the Dock

In the late afternoon, we wanted a cold bottle of white wine or rosé for our Happy Hour, so we went into a wine store that had a terrible selection. The only decent bottle was slightly overpriced Champagne, so we took that back to the boat to sip before dressing for dinner. I shot a couple of photos while we were sipping our wine.

Happy Hour Under the Bimini

Dressed for dinner, we made the five-minute walk to Oystertale where we had already met and talked with the owner during our walkabout of the town. It was just a little too nippy to sit outside so we shared a high-top at the back of the restaurant with a couple from West Seattle and their young niece who was bravely trying new foods.

Naturally, we started with six each of two different oysters, the briniest of the four types they had on offer that day. Then we progressed to a series of small plates including fish sliders, salmon croquettes, and mushrooms on a leek fonduta. We were pleasantly surprised at the quality. Both the wine list and the food were way above average. Toward the end of dinner, Chris and Leslie walked by after their dinner and they came in and joined us at our table. We walked back to the boat together.

Oystertale, Friday Harbor, Decent Food and Wine

Delightful Sicilian Rosé Sparkler

Mushrooms on Leek Fonduta

Back aboard Woodwind, it seemed as if we might have something of a sunset, so I grabbed the camera and Ann and I made our way forward to watch the fireworks.

Waiting for Sunset

After the sun set, we descended to our cabin to rest for our trip tomorrow to Cypress Island, a trip that, if the forecasters were correct, could see rain. With that in mind, we closed the hatches in our cabin before turning in.