Last August, we identified an opportunity to take nearly a week’s time out of the office and do something that has been on our short list but required more than a long weekend to accomplish. Our destination? The San Juan Islands for an island hopping cycling excursion. We quickly planned our trip, loaded camping gear into the Subaru, tuned our bikes, set the voicemail greeting to “out of the office,” and headed west to explore Washington’s island cycling nirvana.
Rather than pack our camping gear on our bikes and camp on the various islands as we toured them, we would make a base near Anacortes at the very popular Deception Pass State Park. From there we would set out on our island tour de jour via the ferry from Anacortes each morning.
Deception Pass State Park is located approximately 10 miles south of Anacortes and is just beyond the famed Deception Pass Bridge that links Fidalgo and Whidbey islands. My family camped here often when I was a child, and I was anxious to bring my daughter to the state park where I’d combed the nearly 8,000 feet of saltwater shoreline, hiked the wooded trails and swam in the park’s lakes in my youth.
I put in a short day at the office before we set out, which meant we arrived at the campground at nearly 10 p.m. We thought we might be sleeping in the car that night due to the park’s gate being closed when we arrived. We finally figured out how to skirt around the campground’s gate, enabling us to make our way to our reserved site. Mindful of our fellow campers, we quietly donned our headlamps and began setting up camp. Once the tent was up and the sleeping pads were inflated, we lit the camp stove and started to prepare a bite to eat. We whispered as we cooked and enjoyed the tranquility of the evening and the blanket of stars in the night’s sky.
Then, it hit us. From out of nowhere came a deafening noise overhead that shook the ground. The racket was nearly unbearable and we laughed once we realized what it was. That night, we woke several times every hour to the periodic roar of military jets from the Naval Air Station on Whidbey Island and questioned our decision not to heed online warnings.
We woke to a beautiful blue sky morning. I made a coffee over the camp stove and wandered the park’s trails along the beach. As I returned to our site, the tantalizing scent of bacon wafted through the air from the camp trailers and RVs, evidence that the campground’s morning routine was underway.
We decided to cycle Orcas Island on our first day and set off for the ferry terminal on our island getaway of Anacortes. Although we paid a fee to leave our car at the terminal, it was worth driving rather than cycling to the ferry hub and we did enjoy a lower fare for traveling as two-wheeled passengers. The 10-mile distance from the campground to the ferry sounds innocuous, but the road was narrow, windy and hilly and we were glad to save our cycling legs and precious daylight hours for our island excursions.
Once boarded, we secured our bikes and headed to the upper decks to take in the views of the San Juan archipelago and Mount Baker looming in the distance. Being a bike on passenger on the ferry also affords you the luxury of exiting the ferry first after docking. However, having cycled the islands before, I knew our lungs would thank us for letting the procession of cars on the ferry drive off before setting out on our bikes. Preferring to breathe clean air rather than exhaust, we allocated a few minutes to check our maps and discuss the day’s route, setting out for our adventure after the traffic subsided.
We took a jaunt off the main road and headed west to Deer Harbor where we had a snack at the park overlooking the Deer Harbor Marina. We backtracked up and over the many hills on this side trip then headed north toward the town of East Sound. The temperature rose quickly making the hill climbing a good challenge as the day heated up on our tour of this horseshoe-shaped island. We climbed the route’s hills and delighted in the cool descents and island’s beauty as we passed apple orchards, farms and artist studios. We reached the top of the island’s “horseshoe” at the vibrant and artsy town of East Sound. The quaint town begged us to take a break, grab an ice cream cone, stroll through the art galleries and shops, and we willingly obliged.
The east side of the island leads to Moran State Park. Had we omitted the jaunt to Deer Harbor, we may have had the fresh legs and ample time to cycle to the park. My family camped at Moran State Park in my youth, and we cycled to the summit of Mount Constitution, a 5-mile hill that steepens to a 15 percent grade. With this box ticked, I didn’t feel compelled to go after those bragging rights on this trip and rather enjoyed a more leisurely day cycling the island. We arrived back at the ferry terminal with perfect timing to coast into the bicycle boarding line for our cruise back to Anacortes.
In Anacortes, we wandered into a favorite haunt, the Brown Lantern Ale House, for a cold brew that we decidedly earned cycling hilly Orcas Island in the day’s heat.
Our timing back to camp was excellent as we arrived at the Deception Pass Bridge, one of Washington State’s most photographed places, at sunset.
Using one of the bridge’s vehicle pullouts, we opted to join the crowds and capture the sunset from this steel structure spanning the gap between Whidbey and Fidalgo islands.
As darkness quietly settled over our camp and we contemplated taking our weary bodies to bed, we marveled at our luck that the jets didn’t seem to be flying that evening. Just then, as if signaling their cue, the procession of thundering aircraft began to roar overhead, continuing into the wee hours of the morning.
The next day, we set our sights on San Juan Island where we disembarked from the ferry in the picturesque town of Friday Harbor. Adorned with turn-of-the-century wood framed buildings, this charming town is free of stoplights, billboards or chain stores. We enjoyed a few minutes taking in the town’s architectural appeal and letting the anxious motorists buzz by before putting our feet to the pedals.
Our next stop was Lime Kiln Park, aka Whale Watch Park, on the island’s west shore. After locking our bikes near the car park, we walked down the trail to the rocky shore. We relaxed in the glorious sunshine as we scanned the horizon for whales. Despite the fact that the beach is touted as being the best place on earth to view an astonishing number of whales from land, we saw none. We did, however, spot a few otters frolicking in the rolling waves, disappearing below the surface and popping up in unsuspected places.
It was a grueling climb out of Lime Kiln Park to head north toward Roche Harbor. We cycled up and down many hills, wound our way through dense forest, whizzed by pastoral farmlands and gave nods to fellow cyclists en route to Roche Harbor. Upon arrival, we walked our bikes down the steep grade to Roche Harbor’s waterfront and took in the sights of the town. Interested by the historic lime kilns and intrigued by the authentic Italian bocce ball courts with crushed oyster shell base, we relished this waterfront town like curious tourists. Alas, our thirst took hold of us and we made our way past the open-air artists’ booths to the deck of a bar overlooking the harbor.
Thirsts quenched and sweat dried, we cycled back to Friday Harbor. Arriving in Friday Harbor, we deemed ourselves to be early enough to order a half dozen oysters from a restaurant overlooking the ferry dock. The ferry arrived and we boarded, but due to the unfortunate medical emergency of a passenger, we didn’t arrive back at camp until 11 p.m.
Story continues after a quick message from our sponsor below.
My favorite San Juan island to cycle is the sleepy and less hilly Lopez Island. We saved what we deemed to be the best for last having primed our pedaling legs on the larger Orcas and San Juan Islands to later savor the ride on Lopez.
During our exploits of Lopez Island, we discovered Shark Reef Park and Spencer Spit State Park with views of Blakely and Decatur Islands to the east. Lopez is revered as the friendliest of the San Juan Islands, and we exchanged waves with passing motorists as is customary per local tradition. The sun shone down on us as we explored the island gem that merges wooded forest with rolling farmlands and open vistas of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains.
As we waited by the dock for the last ferry ride of our adventure, we discussed which route we would take on our drive back to Coeur d’Alene the next day. We unanimously approved taking the North Cascades Highway, which pleased me enormously.
We quietly packed up for an early morning departure from Deception Pass Campground and started out for home via the beautiful North Cascades Highway passing by thick forests, the base of Mount Baker and the aqua blue waters of glacially fed Lake Diablo before reaching the summit of Washington Pass. We couldn’t resist pulling over at the scenic overlook at the top of the pass where we were rewarded with a mesmerizing view of Liberty Bell’s spires.
Of course, we stopped in the western-themed town of Winthrop for a beer and a burger at the Old School Brewhouse. From the patio perched above the Methow River, we raised our glasses in a toast to another memorable adventure. As dusk set in, we drove east where the Columbia River guided us toward home.
For a five- to seven-day excursion, a cycle-touring trip to the San Juan Islands is somewhere between a stay-cation and a vacation. How nice to be within a comfortable day’s drive of Puget Sound’s bountiful offerings.
Enjoy the ride! N
By Denise Lundy
Photography By David Ronalds
As Featured In: Summer/Fall 2017