The peninsula of Point Roberts juts south into the Strait of Georgia from the mainland of British Columbia: a five-square-mile rectangle of United States land occupied and enjoyed mostly by Canadians. For U.S. boaters, Point Roberts is completely out of the way to or from anywhere. Arriving by land is even more inconvenient, as you [...]

Spencer Spit juts from the northeast shore of Lopez Island and is one of the most popular state parks in all the San Juans. The quarter-mile spit encloses a tidal lagoon. Driftwood is piled on the silvery beach grass, and in summer the sandy shoals are warm enough for wading. The wooded uplands of the [...]

Langley, northwest across Saratoga Passage from Everett, is a cozy Whidbey Island town that enthusiastically welcomes tourists. The main street is crowded with shops and restaurants, with park benches along the narrow sidewalks and flower boxes blooming at every door. The small marina is a short walk from these attractions, and is operated exclusively for [...]

Oak Harbor lies off the northeast shore of Whidbey Island, behind the peninsula of Forbes Point. The town of Oak Harbor is home to the Whidbey Island Naval Air Station. All of the peninsula and most of the land east of the marina is Naval Reservation. To the north are the long runways used for [...]

Mention a cruise to Shelton and other boaters will probably blink in disbelief. Shelton’s location in Oakland Bay, at the hairpin turn of Hammersley Inlet, isolates it from the rest of Puget Sound. You have to really want to get there, and be ready to navigate the long run in and out of Hammersley. It’s [...]

Saddlebag Island State Park This tiny undeveloped island located about a mile off the southeast tip of Guemes Island was established as a state park in 1974. The island is popular with small craft, kayaks and canoes. Its campsites are for those arriving in non-motorized beachable craft only. Saddlebag is shaped like its name, with [...]

Twanoh State Park This exquisite park – with its swimming beach, its trails and its rustic Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) structures – is the prize at the end of Hood Canal. An interpretive display describes the Twana Indians as a group that “produced wealth beyond their needs,” and some of that abundance seems to have [...]