Our captain bringing us in

Early morning comes and we are awakened by the sound of the anchor chain being raised. Tami takes a peak out of the window in time to see us start steaming away from Rosario. Hey, wait a minute! We’re going the wrong way! The captain comes on to announce that we need to find better shelter because the winds are once again plotting against us and blasting us from the south.

The NEW plan is to sail to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island which is a much more protected harbor. We will hike on the island which gives us a chance to see those lands where the pig war raged. There is even a rumor that maybe, just maybe, our ship will arrive and take us away to Alaska.

Tami’s new hairstyle

The seas were certainly tempestuous as we sailed to Friday Harbor and it was quite the show watching the captain and his crew get our ship snugged up to the dock with the winds gustily trying to send it elsewhere. We were soon able to leave the ship and there were vans waiting to take us away to our hiking sites on the island. The crew have done an amazing job of arranging the logistics for every day’s activities despite the constant changes to The Plan. The vans had originally been waiting for us on Orcas but had to all catch a ferry to San Juan to pick us up there instead.

We hiked the American Camp (famous from the Pig War) area on the southern bluff of the island with a spectacular view of the Straits of Juan de Fuca and the Olympic Peninsula. The rains hit before we quite made it to the trees, but we were soon under cover and walking under the protective umbrella of the rain forest. Before we even made it down to the beach the sun was peaking out and glistening off the ferns and tree moss. The magic of the temperate rain forest.

Lunch on the beach

Devices come out and pictures are taken – our friend Susie from Scotland

Being spied upon

Molted shell

We were all provided with a sack lunch as we left the ship and found a spot on the beach with plenty of seating on the driftwood and calm, sunny views out over the water. What a change from our wild sail to the island! (People also used the chance to check email, etc. using the cell signal we were able to pick up there.)

Driftwood

And more driftwood

On the ride back to the ship we went by a field where some foxes were hunting rabbits so our driver pulled off and we had a chance to watch and take some pictures. We saw lots of bunnies, and the foxes trotting around looking predatory, but we did not witness the demise of any wabbits.

Catch them wabbits!

Our bus driver was working very hard to keep us entertained. At one point on the way back she stopped the bus and had everyone get out to see the spot where an eagle nest used to be. She also sang us several songs. Back in Friday Harbor she drove us through several back streets to see more of the town. She took us back to the ship for anyone that wanted to get off, and then was going to continue on to English Camp for those who wanted to continue the Pig War theme. Surprisingly, most everyone on the bus chose to get off at that point.

We had a chance to wander Friday Harbor a bit and made a visit to San Juan Brewing. If we had made our planned stop on Orcas, we were scheduled for a brewery tour of Island Hopper Brewing. The owners, Nate and Becca, have been on our cruise and gave a talk about the brewing process. We were very disappointed not to stop at their place, but they arranged for us to have a tasting at San Juan, so we sure didn’t want to turn that down! Very good beers, and a beautiful facility, too.

Back to the ship and the good news that our ship was finally coming in! Yay! We had one final dinner with the whole gang and, wow, what a feast it was! They had all the Dungeness crab you could ever want served with drawn butter and homemade rolls. Mmmmmmmmm. That crab was amazing. Mike and Tami each ate more than was humanly thought possible. And then they had dessert. Oof.

Our bags were already packed and we had to scoot off the ship right after dinner as the Wilderness Explorer was lurking outside the harbor, waiting to snatch us off the dock and carry us away to Alaska. We said our quick goodbyes to those we were leaving and with whom we had already shared so many fun times. Then they deposited us on the dock with all our luggage and left. There were a few jokes about being abandoned, but we could see the Explorer already steaming in to get us. They were soon tied up and lowering the gang plank to our new home for the next week and a half. Another welcome of bubbly, a quick orientation, and then we all headed off to bed after quite a busy day, and the ship immediately headed north, full speed ahead. We did vow to never eat that much crab again.

Waiting for our ship to come in.

And it appears.