We arrive by ferry at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island in the United States and drive to Roche Harbor, a heritage destination resort about 14km away. San Juan Island is a popular holiday destination, offering visitors the most in terms of urban amenities, relaxing hideaways, and wilderness hikes.
A village unto itself, the Roche Harbor Resort offers accommodations, as well as a marina for seafaring guests, large enough for 377 vessels.
First, there is the century-old Hotel de Haro, where lace-trimmed beds, antiques, and roaring fireplaces transport you back to an earlier time.
Originally a log bunkhouse, which sports the occasional slanting floor and crooked window, the hotel evolved into the distinctive three-story structure you see today, sophisticated enough to entertain company brass and dignitaries, including President Theodore Roosevelt who signed the guestbook in 1907.
John Wayne loved his baths in this custom, over-sized bathtub, now in the shared bathroom on the second floor. "Pass the bubbles Pilgrim."
There was no town at Roche Harbor until John S. McMillin, a Tacoma lawyer, discovered the richest and largest deposit of lime in the Northwest at Roche Harbor, and began negotiations for his claim in 1884. By 1886, the Tacoma and Roche Harbor Lime Company had been incorporated and became a large-scale business.
In 1975, the road was paved with yellow bricks—the fire bricks which lined kilns one through eight, hence the name Yellow Brick Road.
As there was no local source of bricks when the kilns were built, bricks were purchased in Canada and shipped to Roche Harbor. The names on the bricks reflect the names of the companies they were purchased from.
Named for an early lime-kiln operation on site, Lime Kiln Point State Park is the only park in the world dedicated to whale-watching. Researchers use Lime Kiln Lighthouse, built in 1914 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, to watch for whales and to determine whether passing boats are affecting their behaviour.
San Juan Island's colourful past stems from a boundary dispute between the US and Great Britain when, from 1860 to 1872, both countries occupied the island. In one of the stranger pieces of history, the killing of a British homesteader's pig by an American settler nearly sent the two countries to the battlefield. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, so what is now referred to as the Pig War of 1859 resulted in only one casualty: the pig. The San Juan Islands were eventually declared American territory. The American Camp (above photo) serves as a historic reminder of those early days. The windswept grassy peninsula is a wonderful place to spend a sunny afternoon.
In sharp contrast to American Camp, English Camp is located in an area of protected waters, with maple trees spreading out overhead. A trail leads through second-growth forests up to Young Hill, a fairly easy 198m (650ft) ascent with panoramic views as the reward.
Jump forward. This may look like the same place but it's not. We get around, don't we? We're now on Orcas Island in Moran State Park at the top of Mount Constitution (elevation 731m, 2,399ft) where the panorama stretches from the North Shore Mountains over Vancouver, BC to Mount Rainier, south of Seattle.
Snow-capped Mount Baker can be seen in the distance. Named for the viceroy of Mexico in 1792—not, in fact, for the orca whales common to its waters—Orcas Island is the largest, hilliest, and most beautiful of the San Juan Islands. Half the fun of exploring this island is traveling its roads, which, in addition to going up and down, twist and turn among hedgerows, fields and orchards. Around any bend might lie a jewel of a bay or an unexpected hamlet filled with quaint cottages and wildflower gardens.
We're staying at the Rosario Resort & Spa, a turn-of-the-20th-century mansion, originally the private residence of shipping magnate Robert Moran and the crown jewel of Orcas Island. Walls are 30cm (12in) thick and paneled with mahogany. Windows are 2.5cm (1in) thick plate glass. And teak parquet floors, covering some 557sq. m. (5,995 sq. ft.) took craftsmen more than 2 years to lay.
The music room features a Tiffany chandelier and a working 1,972-pipe Aeolian organ, which, when installed in 1913, was the largest organ in a private home in the United States. We are treated to a free concert by the talented General Manager, Christopher Peacock, who not only plays the organ but also a 1900 Steinway grand piano. It's just too beautiful not to share so here's a sampling:
The house's lower level (now the gift shop and spa), has a floor made of Italian mosaic tile, and had a swimming pool, billiard table, and a bowling alley.
The pretty soap dish in our room reminded us so much of the swirling west coast waters we have been traveling on we just had to purchase one from the gift shop to take home.
We're on the ferry again bound for our last island, Lopez (passing Mount Baker). Laced with country lanes, picturesque farms and orchards, Lopez Island is just about as bucolic and pastoral as it gets. Cows and sheep are a common sight, as are bright fields of lilies and delphiniums. In summer, cyclists flock to the gently rolling hills, hikers explore the trails and bluffs of county parks, and birdwatchers take to the expanses of protected tidal flats to watch a myriad of shorebirds.
We had the best room service meal we've ever had at the Coast Victoria Harbourside Hotel in Victoria and now, here at Isabel's Espresso in Lopez Village, we're having the best cappucino and chocolate chip oatmeal cookie we've ever had.
Happy hour watching the sunset over Fisherman Bay at the Lopez Islander Resort.
Back on the mainland we're spending a few hours exploring Pike Place Public Market in Seattle.
It's the oldest covered market in the country, and certainly one of the busiest, used by Seattle residents and restaurateurs looking for the freshest fish and produce as well as throngs of tourists looking for photo opps.
At $40/pound for Alaskan King Crab you can understand why security guards are needed.
Seattle's Starbucks has become ubiquitous throughout the world, with coffee shops in such unexpected locations as the Forbidden City in Beijing. It's hard to turn a corner in Seattle without finding a Starbucks, but this location at Pike Place Market is where it all began in 1971, complete with the unique logo of the original store. Makes us jittery.
Oh, the flowers!
The English muffin and his crumpet can't resist The Crumpet Shop on First Street. The good folks here have been making crumpets for 36 years running and boy, are they are good. Re-e-e-e-eally good.
We wrap up our island hop at Christian Faith Center in Federal Way to see the inspirational Ravi Zacharias touch hearts and intellects with the love of God and truth of the Gospel. We're heading home tomorrow but not before a stop and shop at the outlet centers conveniently located en route to the Canadian border.
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