Coastal Washington Cruise Log from Un-Cruise Adventures Expedition
Cruise Log from Wilderness Adventurer
As much as I love traveling to far away destinations, it's certainly easier and often just as enjoyable to cruise in the good old USA. Un-Cruise Adventures sails the USA in Alaska, Hawaii, and on the Columbia and Snake Rivers of the Pacific Northwest.
In addition, the small ship cruise line sails 7-day voyages on the waters of coastal Washington round-trip from Seattle, visiting Olympic National Park, Fort Flagler, several of the San Juan Islands, and Deception Pass.
I thoroughly enjoyed this active cruise and these scenic destinations and was delighted to have my 88-year old mom along to share the cruise experience.
Join me on the Wilderness Adventurer as we sail from Seattle into the coastal waters of Washington state.
Passing through the Ballard Locks in Seattle
After guests board the Wilderness Adventurer at Fishermen's Terminal, the small ship first passes through the Hiram M. Chittendon Locks, which are usually called the Ballard Locks. The locks were formally opened on July 4, 1917, and were named after U.S. Army Major Hiram Martin Chittenden, the Seattle District Engineer for the Corps of Engineers from April 1906 to September 1908. The locks were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks are often nicknamed the Ballard Locks for the nearby Ballard neighborhood. These locks link the salt water of Puget Sound with the fresh water of the Ship Canal, and boats passing eastward through the locks eventually connect with Lake Union and Lake Washington.
Tourists and locals enjoy watching the water levels adjust in the locks as the sailboats, motorboats, tugs, barges and yachts pass through. It's also fun to be on a ship like the Wilderness Adventurer going through the locks and watching the people watching you!
Salmon have a fish ladder next to the locks that enable them to pass between the salt and fresh water. Visitors can walk down below the water line and observe the fish swimming up the ladder through glass windows.
Following the passage through the locks, the Wilderness Adventurer moved into Puget Sound.
Page 3 >> Viewing Downtown Seattle from Puget Sound
Downtown Seattle from the Wilderness Adventurer
Downtown Seattle looked terrific as we sailed along the harbor, and I got great photos of the Space Needle and downtown area. The sun was setting over the islands behind us, and we could see and hear thunderstorms in the distance, but the Wilderness Adventurer just barely got rained on.
Dinner was at 6:30, and we had a nice green salad with apples, goat cheese, and candied walnuts topped with a citrus avocado vinaigrette; followed by a main course of either a skirt steak with chimichuri sauce or a seared salmon with sundried tomato sauce or a Portobello mushroom stuffed with pesto sauce.
Broccoli and rice were the veggies, and we had a tasty chocolate brownie concoction for dessert. Like the other Un-Cruise ships I have sailed on, this first dinner was delightful, as were all the other meals we enjoyed on the Wilderness Adventurer.
After dinner we had a briefing about the next day and time to decide which activity to do. The boat anchored at Hoodsport, WA (pronounced Hood’s Port) on the Hood Canal of the Olympic peninsula, and we took a bus into a lightly visited area of the Olympic National Park for some hiking and exploring.
Page 4 >> Hiking in Olympic National Park
Hiking in Olympic National Park
There was a yoga class each morning on the sun deck at 7 am, followed by a ship-wide wake-up call at 7:30 am. In addition, a regular late afternoon stretching class before happy hour may have kept some from a nap. No sleeping in on this active boat!
Early riser breakfast (with pastries) was at 6:30 and then regular breakfast was from 7:30 to 8:30. Our first day we had a yummy frittata with broccoli and cheese, sausage links, fruit, and blueberry pound cake as the featured pastry.
Nice.
Wilderness Adventurer guests had 3 options for hiking in the Olympic National Park—(1) a meander of about a mile; (2) a 2-mile hike to a pedestrian bridge over the North Fork of the Skokomish River; or (3) hike #2 plus an additional 2 miles alongside the river. My Mom smartly chose option #1 with 4 other guests, and I did option #3 with 26 others, which they divided into 2 groups. The other 10 did option #2.
Before leaving for the ride to the park and the hike, we had about an hour briefing of the safety precautions for the boat’s activities. Part of the presentation was outside, where we learned the proper way to board the kayaks and how to use the paddle boards. The guides made both sound much simpler than they actually are. The rest of the briefing was indoors in the lounge, which is an area forward of the dining room on deck 2.
Group 3 was the first group to leave since we were going to be gone the longest. The boat provided terrific box lunches for us to carry along—chicken wrap with pesto mayo, lettuce & tomato; hummus with fresh veggies; potato chips; and a homemade chocolate chip cookie.
They provided aluminum water bottles for us to use for the week, so we filled those up and carried them along, too. Plus, we all took our rain gear since it might rain at any time in the Pacific NW.
We left at 10:15 for a 5 minute ride in one of the pontoon tender boats to the dock at Hoodsport. The Wilderness Adventurer is the only cruise ship that has ever visited this tiny village of 300+ residents. Some of the local residents warmly welcomed us and provided maps of the area.
We arrived at the Staircase Ranger Station for the hike about 11:30. About 1/3 of the road was unpaved and very bumpy on the 30-passenger bus. Since the busy season was over, the regular bathhouses were locked, so before heading out on the trail, we all used the pit toilet, which we all agreed didn't look like it had been cleaned in this century. Our group of 13 hiked with JP, one of the guides. I was delighted to learn he was also a graduate of the University of Georgia.
The hike was mostly flat with spurts of up and down, with no long climbs along the North Fork of the Skokomish River. However, the trail was uneven, with a lot of roots and rocks to step over. We also crawled over huge trees blocking the trail and some giant rocks. I was glad to have my Nordic walking sticks along and was glad mom chose hiking option #1. The trail was quite scenic, and I loved the giant evergreen trees, ferns, moss, and lichens. We even saw some large fish in the river and crossed it on one of the sturdiest pedestrian bridges I've even seen. (Must be those federal government tax dollars at work.)
The forest was very quiet, with hardly any birds. I definitely didn’t need the binocular and was glad the guides advised us to leave them onboard the ship. Everyone enjoyed the hike very much and got to learn more about some of our ship mates. We stopped and sat on a giant log and ate our lunches, but the hike lasted much longer than any of us thought. We didn’t get back to the bus until about 4:30 or so and were back on the ship an hour or so later. I loved the flexibility of the guides. They often extended the hikes if they sensed that all of us were enjoying the forest, and we certainly all loved this first day of our cruise.
Mom’s group left the boat about 9:45 am and were back before 3 pm. The 2 mile hikers rode the bus with group #1 and were back before 4 pm. When we got back, the 15 guests already onboard were enjoying happy hour with raw oysters being shucked by some local oyster farmers.
It was a beautiful day—partly sunny and cool enough for a jacket, but no wind. We all sat outside on the sun deck for happy hour. Wine is $5 to $7 per glass and mixed drinks about the same. The boat has several micro brews on board, which beer lovers appreciated. The Wilderness Adventurer has a covered part of the deck that protects the guests sitting on the sun deck from the rain and wind, which is appropriate for its two destinations—Alaska and the Pacific NW. So, it was nice to sit outside.
Dinner followed happy hour. We had a green salad with fennel and roasted hazelnuts, followed by a choice of roasted duck with orange sauce or poached halibut with a leek sauce. The veggie option was a ricotta cheese ravioli topped with pine nuts and a white wine carrot sauce. Mom got the duck and liked it and I got the halibut, which was amazing. We had crème brulee with a biscotti cookie for dessert.
Page 5 >> A Day at Fort Flagler
A Day at Fort Flagler
Day 3 on the Wilderness Adventurer started with a delicious breakfast of pancakes, bacon, and scrambled eggs. Cereals and oatmeal were also available, as were fruit and yogurt. The "homemade pastry of the day" was a white chocolate and lemon scone. Mom and I split one so we could chow down on the rest of the breakfast.
After breakfast, we had several options: kayaking for beginners, open kayaking for experienced paddlers, a skiff ride around the Port Townsend/Fort Flagler bay area, or one of two hikes around old Fort Flagler, which is now a state park--a 2-mile or 4-mile hike.
Mom and I both opted for the 2-mile hike at the state park since it was a smooth trail without the rocks and roots of the previous day in Olympic National Park. For a cold water wimp like me, it was way too cool and windy on the water for kayaking, but the small ship was full of hardy travelers. The kayakers went out about 8:45, and we left on the skiff to go ashore about 9:15. The dozen or so going on the 4-miler left about 8:30, since we all had to be back for lunch.
The Fort Flagler State Park Cascadia Marine Trail gradually goes from the beach up a bluff and then follows the ridge to the old fort site. We jumped from the skiff and followed a nice old jeep road, so it was much easier walking than the day before. The fort was built before World War I and has many bunkers for giant guns. It was part of a triangle of forts on this bay during World War II. We walked by an old searchlight site as well as the bunkers. Today the fort is popular with hang gliders, but we didn't see any. We did see a bald eager, river otter, and many black tailed deer.
Plus, we had great views of Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, and the Cascades since it was such a sunny, clear day.
Our 2-mile hike was supposed to be point to point and end on the other side of the island, but when we got there, it was too windy for the skiff to pick us up, so we had to go back the way we came. I felt very badly for mom since she had signed up for a 2-mile hike and ended up walking over 5 miles (according to my Fitbit). What a trooper! Plus, we didn't even get to sit down and rest for a bit before heading back to the revised pick-up spot. We did take a bathroom break. Our group of 6 plus 2 guides all laughed about the amazingly clean bathroom at the fort--a real toilet (not a pit) and spotless. We decided it made the hike worth the effort and was a 5-star compared to the horrible pit toilet at the national park the day before.
We got back to the Wilderness Adventurer about 12:30, which was just in time for lunch. The wind had really picked up while we were hiking, and it was a challenge to re-board the skiff. Mom and the others sitting on her side of the Zodiac got sprayed quite a bit. Lucky for me, I sat across from her!
Lunch was yummy. A cabbage salad with ginger dressing, rice, beef or chicken stir fry, steamed mixed Chinese veggies (bok choy, carrots, water chestnuts, etc), and pound cake for dessert.
While eating lunch, we motored towards the quaint town of Port Townsend, where we were docking for the afternoon. A local historian was going to come onboard to provide a history and overview of the town, and then we were supposed to have free time to wander around. Unfortunately, the wind and waves were way too high for us to dock. They looked to be about 5 to 6 feet.
So, after lunch, we motored back and forth in the sound near Port Townsend, hoping for the weather to change. It didn't. Finally about 3 pm, the Captain announced we were going to head on towards Deception Pass and find a quiet place to anchor for the evening.
About 5:15, the speaker came on in our cabin to announce that a Minke whale had been spotted. We threw on our jackets and shoes and went up to the top deck, but never saw it. The sea was still rolling with white caps, and Minkes don't ever show their flukes or breach like other whales. A few folks saw it, but all I saw were some Murre, a black/white bird with red beak that resembles a penguin (a little).
Happy hour was 5:15, and we had chicken wings with blue cheese sauce to go along with our libations. Very good.
Dinner was at 6:30 and we enjoyed another delicious green salad with cherry tomatoes, lettuce, and Manchego cheese topped by apple cider vinaigrette; followed by braised beef short ribs; herb marinated cod topped with zucchini relish; or a vegetarian option of kale and caramelized onion stuffed crepe with a blue cheese sauce. Snap peas and black eyed peas were the vegetables. Dessert was a chocolate cheese cake that was very rich but delicious.
After dinner, JP did a talk on "Life as a Sailor". It's always fun to hear about others' life experiences, isn't it?
The next day was filled with great hiking on Orcas Island, one of the islands in the San Juan archipelago.
Page 6 >> A Day on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands
A Day on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands
The next day the Wilderness Adventurer anchored off Orcas Island in the San Juan archipelago. Four hikes were featured. All of us landed at the Rosario Resort dock and had a short tour of the large home that is now the main building at the resort. Mom signed up for the first hike, which included a van ride to near the top of Mt. Constitution, where the group walked a couple of hundred yards to the viewing platform.
The second hike was about 4 miles and circled a lake. After the hike, that group also rode to the top of Mt. Constitution.
The third hike was a "bail out" version of the fourth hike. This group hiked to the top of Mt. Constitution and then rode down in a van. This was a great option for those of us who have knees that don't like lots of down hills (even with Nordic walking sticks). I signed up for this option.
The fourth hike started at the same lake as groups 2 and 3 and went to the top of Mt. Constitution and returned down a different way. This strenuous hike was 7 miles or so and only appropriate for those with good knees that could take the steep downhill.
Option 3 started at the same time as the round-trip mountain group and met them for lunch at the top of the mountain. The round-trippers took a different route to the top and came back down the way we went up. After lunch, anyone who wanted to could switch between groups 3 or 4. It was another interesting day. The number of guests signing up on the sheets tacked to the activity board for each group were fairly evenly divided.
All groups returned via bus to the Orcas Island town of Eastsound, where the Wilderness Adventurer was anchored offshore. Some of those who wanted more shopping time chose tour number 1 or 2.
We were in the San Juan Islands--Orcas Island to be exact--all day. Orcas has about 2,000 residents, but also many vacation homes. You have to ride a ferry to reach the island from the mainland, so it's pretty remote. One interesting tidbit--it was not named for killer whales, which are also called orcas. The passengers on the Wilderness Adventurer had a day exploring Moran State Park, a 5252-acre park with over 38 miles of trails, along with lakes, wildlife, camping, biking, etc.
Robert Moran, a shipbuilder and Seattle mayor around the turn of the century, had bought over 7,000 acres on the island in the late 1890's. He built a retirement home on the island called Rosario and then donated 2,700 acres in 1921 to the state to start the park that carries his name. They added another 1,000 in 1928. Today the park is over 5,200 acres, and many of the buildings, roads, and bridges were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930's.
The park is quite spectacular and is topped off with Mt. Constitution, the highest mountain in the San Juan archipelago. It's only 2,409 feet, but has gorgeous views of the surrounding islands, the state park, and Orcas Island from its summit. (if it's not foggy)
We started the day with a delicious breakfast--homemade cinnamon bread, a veggie scrambled egg dish, crispy thick sliced bacon, fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, cereals, etc.
We all carried the same delicious sack lunch ashore, and I think the huge sandwich weighed over a pound, plus we had yummy potato salad, a cookie, and fruit.
As noted in the overview of day 4 in the first section above, the Wilderness Adventurer had several active options for the day. Mom and her group took the skiff ashore to tour the Rosario Mansion (now a resort) and ride a bus around the park and up to the top of Mt. Constitution. They stopped at a couple of waterfalls and did a little hiking. About 10 people did this activity. They took sack lunches and met the Wilderness Adventurer in Eastsound, a small town on the northern part of the island where the ship had repositioned after we all went ashore near Rosario's. She left the boat at 9:15 and returned at about 3:15.
A second group left at the same time and also toured the old mansion before riding a bus to Mountain Lake in the park. From the campground near the lake, they did the "Mountain Lake Loop" hike, an easy hike of 3.9 miles around the lake. (It was easy because it was mostly flat.) They ate a sack lunch on their hike and rode the bus to the top of Mount Constitution before riding back down to Eastsound, where like mom's group they had time to explore before riding the skiff back to the Wilderness Adventurer.
I chose the third option-the uphill only portion of the Mt. Constitution loop trail. We left the boat at 8:30, toured Rosario's and then rode to Mountain Lake, which is about 900 feet above sea level. We then hiked up the mountain on the long route, which is a "gradual" (really steep) grade up to the top. It was advertised as 4.3 miles, but my Fitbit recorded about 5 miles, and went up 1500 feet to the summit-the most demanding hike I've done in years. I wasn't the oldest one, either! Nice to see so many seniors in the over 60 age group be so fit and active.
The lush vegetation, with lots of green moss, mushrooms, lichen, and ground covering, surrounded by huge evergreen trees, was beautiful. It looked much like the area around Bergen, Norway. With many old stumps and rocks covered by the thick moss, it almost felt like an elf, troll, or leprechaun was going to jump out at us at any minute. We got a close up look at a deer who was as fascinated by us as we were of him. Lovely hike, but my legs were very tired when we stopped for lunch at the top. We had cool weather (but no rain), which made it much more enjoyable.
The fourth group did the entire Mt. Constitution loop, which was advertised as 6.7 miles. While we went clockwise on the loop from Mountain Lake, they went counterclockwise, starting at the same time. Their uphill section to the top was shorter, and therefore steeper than ours. We met them at the summit tower for lunch and then they hiked down while we rode down on the bus. It was foggy at the summit most of the time we were there, but we did get several glimpses of the spectacular scenery surrounding us on the hike up and while at the summit.
All of us agreed that our knees and legs would have been very sore if we had done the roundtrip. I think about a dozen of us did only the uphill portion and maybe 8 did the entire loop. I was impressed with them, but most were under 50 I think. Some in group 4 switched to our group and rode the bus down the mountain.
The bus dropped some of our group in the town of Eastsound while the rest of us returned to the dock and then took the skiff back to the ship. I was back onboard about 2:15. Sure felt good to take my hiking boots off and get the pack off my back. I had a cup of tea and decided to go into town to see what was there. I met mom coming in while I was going out. I only stayed about 40 minutes-not much to see except little shops, some of which were closed since the high tourist season was over.
Back on the boat, I rested a little from my hike before happy hour. They always have good appetizers the hour before dinner, and the bartender makes some excellent cocktails. The ship also has local draft beer and a nice wine selection.
Dinner started with a Caesar salad, followed by either pork tenderloin, broiled scallops, or a pepper stuffed with rice and other vegetables. A rich risotto accompanied the meal, and we had a lemon tart for dessert.
The presentation after dinner was on the almost US/England war over a pig in the San Juan Islands called the Pig War. Amazing how many wars (or almost wars) are started over what should have been a minor event, but was definitely "the straw that broke the camel's back".
Page 7 >> A Morning on Stuart Island
A Morning on Stuart Island
The next morning we awoke to light rain in the San Juan Islands. Five on the Wilderness Adventurer were going snorkeling in the 45 degree water that surrounded Stuart Island, so I went outside before they left the boat at 7:30 to make photos of them donning their full wetsuits, etc.
Mom and I had a nice breakfast of cheddar cheese scones with bacon, thick crispy bacon, fruit and yogurt. They also had fried eggs, oatmeal, and hot potatoes.
Our choices for the morning were an hour-long skiff ride, hiking, or open kayaking and paddle boarding. The crew had a big hike planned for the afternoon on Sucia Island, so no one signed up for the morning Stuart Island hike, which would have been a 2-3 hour meander. Most of us did a skiff ride and about half the guests also went kayaking or paddle boarding. The light rain continued, so we bundled up, but there wasn't any wind, so we didn't get drenched.
On the skiff ride, we saw numerous bald eagles, a kelp crab, a limpet (like a snail with a conical shell), an egg yolk jelly (not a jelly fish, but the same idea), and a large harbor seal out on the rocks. Stuart Island is very near the border with Canada, and the islands just across the way were Canadian. We slowly motored down one side of Stuart Island, which featured steep cliffs. At Turn Point, there was an historic light station and a large house where the light keeper lived. One of the largest cliffs was called lover's leap, but JP (the guide) didn't know if anyone had ever jumped.
We also saw a gorgeous totem pole on a private section of land. Most totems has some type of religious/symbolic meaning, and this one may have taken years to complete. Stuart Island has about 200 residents and no ferry service, so you have to have a boat to get there.
Since mom and I were on the 8:30 skiff ride, we were back on the boat by 10:00 am and had a nice cup of coffee (her) and hot chocolate (me) to warm up some. While I was working on my notes/photos, mom played bridge with some of our shipmates.
It was "Mexican Day" on the Wilderness Adventurer, so we had a salad with cilantro vinaigrette dressing, Mexican rice, beans, corn and flour tortillas, beef, fish, guacamole, cheese, sour cream, and salsa-one of my favorite meals. The brownies for dessert were good, too.
During lunch, we motored from Stuart Island to Sucia Island, another of the San Juan Islands of Washington.
Page 8 >> Sucia Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State
Sucia Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State
During lunch, we motored from Stuart Island to Sucia Island, another of the San Juan Islands of Washington. It is shaped like a horseshoe and is practically uninhabited. We had a choice of open paddle boarding, kayaking, or one of three hikes. The first hike was a meander along the beach of the island for about a mile or two; the second was from one end of the island to the center of the horseshoe (about 3 miles); and the third was "point to point", which was one end of the horseshoe to the other (about 5 or 6 miles).
Of course, being a competitive person who didn't get enough hiking the day before on Orcas Island, I picked the point to point hike, and I'm glad I did. We had about a dozen hearty souls who chose this one, and much of it was along a cliff overlooking the sea. Like the second group (who started 30 minutes behind us), we followed the cliff side trail (think it was called the Ewing Cove trail) from Ewing Point to the middle and then continued on towards the second half. (We were happy to see a pit toilet at the half way mark.) The only problem was when we reached the other point (Johnson Point), it was way too windy for the skiff to pick us up. So, we had to walk back to the middle like group 2 had done. Got lots of steps in - over 8 miles. The long hike on Sucia Island was not as strenuous as climbing Mt. Constitution, and I loved the views of the sea we had along the way. The island was rolling, so we weren't walking up hill continually as much as the day before. We left the boat at 2:15 and returned at 6:15-four hours of mostly walking.
Our group got back in time for a belated happy hour (hot artichoke, spinach, and cream cheese dip with crackers), followed by dinner. We started with a salad followed by a lamb shank, marinated shrimp with garlic, or a homemade pasta with fresh vegetables. Mom got the shrimp and I had the half & half lamb and shrimp. Very good. The vegetables were green beans and spaetzel (German noodles). Dessert was a honey panna cotta or strawberry sorbet.
The next day we were in the largest town in the San Juan Islands, Friday Harbor.
Page 9 >> Friday Harbor Marina on San Juan Island
Friday Harbor Marina on San Juan Island
The next morning, the Wilderness Adventurer was at the dock in the largest town in the San Juan Islands--Friday Harbor. It's also on the island of San Juan, which is the most populated island in the archipelago, with about 10.000 residents and ferry service.
We had a nice breakfast of French toast, scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, and link sausage. Of course we had the usual cereals, fruit, oatmeal, etc., and the "homemade pastry of the day" was a delicious but sweet cinnamon roll, which would have been completely irresistible had I been able to zap it for 10 seconds in the microwave before eating.
Breakfast was over by 8:30, and some folks walked the short distance into the town of Friday Harbor. Mom and I waited until about 9:30 since we figured many shops wouldn't be open until about 10 am, especially since the busy season was over.
Page 10 >> Downtown Friday Harbor, Washington on San Juan Island
Deer on Spieden Island in the San Juan Islands
After spending so much time in undeveloped areas the past several days, being docked in Friday Harbor was a little weird. We browsed in the quaint tourist shops, and I found a coffee shop with WiFi to check my messages. We were back on the ship by noon in time for lunch.
The buffet lunch was kind of a Greek and Mediterranean day, with a Greek salad, chick pea stew, herb chicken and/or beef, and hot pita bread.
They served a yummy Tzatziki sauce with the meats. Very good lunch, and we had homemade white chocolate macadamia nut cookies or leftover cinnamon rolls for dessert.
After lunch, we sailed during the sunny afternoon, looking for wildlife on the way to Deception Pass.
Page 11 >> Deer on Spieden Island in the San Juan Islands
Humpback Whales in the San Juan Islands
Leaving Friday Harbor, the Wilderness Adventurer sailed towards Deception Pass. Along the way, we passed Spieden Island, which is filled with exotic animals such as Mouflon sheep from Corsica, fallow deer from Europe, and Sika deer from Asia. The 500+-acre island is privately owned by James Jannard, the founder of Oakley, Inc.
After hiking on so many islands that were thickly wooded, it was interesting to see how deer and sheep can deplete an island of vegetation.
We also did some whale watching.
Page 12 >> Humpback Whales in the San Juan Islands
Deception Pass in Washington State
While watching for wildlife, we gathered on the forward outdoor decks with our binoculars. We didn't see any orcas, but did see a group of three or more humpbacks that we watched for about 45 minutes.
Sometimes on cruises where you see tons of whales and other marine life, like I did with Un-Cruise Adventures in Alaska and Mexico's Sea of Cortez, I forget that those are truly lucky days and cruises like this one in the San Juan Islands, where we saw just a few whales, are far more common.
Page 13 >> Deception Pass in Washington State
Coastal Washington Cruise Wrap-Up and Conclusion
Boats like the Wilderness Adventurer can only go through Deception Pass at slack (low) tide due to the strong currents, so the timing of this passage determined the anchorage for the next-to-last night on the cruise.
The bridge is actually two spans and was built during the 1930's at a cost of $482,000. Thanks to inflation, in 1983 it cost more than that to just paint the bridge. The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Depending on the tide, the two-lane bridge is about 180 feet over the water.
The famous Deception Pass bridge links Whidbey Island with Fidalgo Island. We came under the bridge and through the very narrow passageway about 5 pm and couldn't help but notice the swirling eddies and many dolphins/porpoises nearby. Lots of food for them!
By about 5:45 we had stopped for the night on the east side of the Deception Pass bridge. The chef served baked brie with crackers for an appetizer, and dinner was at 6:30. It was buffet "crab night", and we had yet another delicious green salad, this time with a balsamic vinaigrette. Steamed King crabs or sliced beef tenderloin were the main courses, along with a baked potato and all the toppings. Dessert was a chocolate tart with a salted caramel drizzle on top.
They were showing the "Life with Walter Mitty" movie in the lounge, but mom and I decided to skip so I could catch up on my journal and she could read her book. Like other movies, we could have watched on the video screen in our cabin.
Our last full day on the ship was spent mostly in the Deception Pass State Park area. I signed up for the longest hike, an 8-mile hike from 8:30 am until about 3:30 pm. Some guests went kayaking or paddle boarding, and others went on shorter hikes. The Wilderness Adventurer crew also took guests up to the Deception Pass bridge for a closer look and to do a little wildlife watching.
Breakfast was another good one--a cheesy scrambled egg with breakfast potatoes and bacon, along with the usual cereals, fruit and pastry. Those of us on the 8-mile hike took along another one of the galley's huge sack lunches, while those onboard got to enjoy cheeseburgers, pasta salad, and cole slaw.
All of the hikes were on Hoypus Point, and the 8-mile one zig-zagged back and forth on some of the 38 miles of hiking trails in the park. It was a nice hike, led by Kent, who is very knowledgeable about the plants and trees growing in the area. We never found a big downed tree to sit on, so we waited until we got back to the pick up point to each lunch, since it had picnic tables. I was very sad about this last hike since I had enjoyed my time in the San Juan Islands and coastal Washington so much.
The wind and current had picked up while we were hiking, and the skiff had to pull some of the kayakers in. I'm sure they were glad a motor boat with line was available to pull them in. Nice safety feature, although no one was in danger of doing anything other than drifting away from the ship with the current.
We got in from the hike in time to do a skiff ride before returning to the Wilderness Adventurer in time to pack and get ready for happy hour and our Captain's night dinner.
Dinner was an apple salad, followed by either beef tenderloin with mushroom sauce, salmon with Hollandaise sauce, or a sweet potato gnocchi. The vegetables of day were roasted cauliflower and lentils.
After dinner, we had some entertainment by the crew. It's always fun to see people who are multi-talented! All too soon, it was time to finish our packing.
Page 14 >> Summary and Wrap-up of Cruise Tour
A small ship cruise of coastal Washington and the San Juan Islands on the Un-Cruise Adventures' Wilderness Adventurer is a terrific way to see this scenic part of the Pacific Northwest. The cruise is best-suited for those who love outdoor activities like hiking and kayaking, but others can enjoy riding in a skiff to see some of the wildlife and coastal scenery.
This is a very casual cruise, and the area is well-known for its rainy weather.
As long as guests take along appropriate clothes, the weather is not likely to dampen this marvelous Un-Cruise Adventures experience.
As is common in the travel industry, the writer was provided with complimentary cruise accommodation for the purpose of review. While it has not influenced this review, About.com believes in full disclosure of all potential conflicts of interest. For more information, see our Ethics Policy.
As much as I love traveling to far away destinations, it's certainly easier and often just as enjoyable to cruise in the good old USA. Un-Cruise Adventures sails the USA in Alaska, Hawaii, and on the Columbia and Snake Rivers of the Pacific Northwest.
In addition, the small ship cruise line sails 7-day voyages on the waters of coastal Washington round-trip from Seattle, visiting Olympic National Park, Fort Flagler, several of the San Juan Islands, and Deception Pass.
I thoroughly enjoyed this active cruise and these scenic destinations and was delighted to have my 88-year old mom along to share the cruise experience.
Join me on the Wilderness Adventurer as we sail from Seattle into the coastal waters of Washington state.
- Page 2 >> Passing Through the Ballard Locks in Seattle
- Page 3 >> Viewing Downtown Seattle from Puget Sound
- Page 4 >> Hiking in Olympic National Park
- Page 5 >> A Day at Fort Flagler
- Page 6 >> A Day on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands
- Page 7 >> A Morning on Stuart Island
- Page 8 >> Sucia Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State
- Page 9 >> Friday Harbor Marina on San Juan Island
- Page 10 >> Downtown Friday Harbor, Washington on San Juan Island
- Page 11 >> Deer on Spieden Island in the San Juan Islands
- Page 12 >> Humpback Whales in the San Juan Islands
- Page 13 >> Deception Pass in Washington State
- Page 14 >> Summary of Cruise Tour
Passing through the Ballard Locks in Seattle
After guests board the Wilderness Adventurer at Fishermen's Terminal, the small ship first passes through the Hiram M. Chittendon Locks, which are usually called the Ballard Locks. The locks were formally opened on July 4, 1917, and were named after U.S. Army Major Hiram Martin Chittenden, the Seattle District Engineer for the Corps of Engineers from April 1906 to September 1908. The locks were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks are often nicknamed the Ballard Locks for the nearby Ballard neighborhood. These locks link the salt water of Puget Sound with the fresh water of the Ship Canal, and boats passing eastward through the locks eventually connect with Lake Union and Lake Washington.
Tourists and locals enjoy watching the water levels adjust in the locks as the sailboats, motorboats, tugs, barges and yachts pass through. It's also fun to be on a ship like the Wilderness Adventurer going through the locks and watching the people watching you!
Salmon have a fish ladder next to the locks that enable them to pass between the salt and fresh water. Visitors can walk down below the water line and observe the fish swimming up the ladder through glass windows.
Following the passage through the locks, the Wilderness Adventurer moved into Puget Sound.
Page 3 >> Viewing Downtown Seattle from Puget Sound
Downtown Seattle from the Wilderness Adventurer
Downtown Seattle looked terrific as we sailed along the harbor, and I got great photos of the Space Needle and downtown area. The sun was setting over the islands behind us, and we could see and hear thunderstorms in the distance, but the Wilderness Adventurer just barely got rained on.
Dinner was at 6:30, and we had a nice green salad with apples, goat cheese, and candied walnuts topped with a citrus avocado vinaigrette; followed by a main course of either a skirt steak with chimichuri sauce or a seared salmon with sundried tomato sauce or a Portobello mushroom stuffed with pesto sauce.
Broccoli and rice were the veggies, and we had a tasty chocolate brownie concoction for dessert. Like the other Un-Cruise ships I have sailed on, this first dinner was delightful, as were all the other meals we enjoyed on the Wilderness Adventurer.
After dinner we had a briefing about the next day and time to decide which activity to do. The boat anchored at Hoodsport, WA (pronounced Hood’s Port) on the Hood Canal of the Olympic peninsula, and we took a bus into a lightly visited area of the Olympic National Park for some hiking and exploring.
Page 4 >> Hiking in Olympic National Park
Hiking in Olympic National Park
There was a yoga class each morning on the sun deck at 7 am, followed by a ship-wide wake-up call at 7:30 am. In addition, a regular late afternoon stretching class before happy hour may have kept some from a nap. No sleeping in on this active boat!
Early riser breakfast (with pastries) was at 6:30 and then regular breakfast was from 7:30 to 8:30. Our first day we had a yummy frittata with broccoli and cheese, sausage links, fruit, and blueberry pound cake as the featured pastry.
Nice.
Wilderness Adventurer guests had 3 options for hiking in the Olympic National Park—(1) a meander of about a mile; (2) a 2-mile hike to a pedestrian bridge over the North Fork of the Skokomish River; or (3) hike #2 plus an additional 2 miles alongside the river. My Mom smartly chose option #1 with 4 other guests, and I did option #3 with 26 others, which they divided into 2 groups. The other 10 did option #2.
Before leaving for the ride to the park and the hike, we had about an hour briefing of the safety precautions for the boat’s activities. Part of the presentation was outside, where we learned the proper way to board the kayaks and how to use the paddle boards. The guides made both sound much simpler than they actually are. The rest of the briefing was indoors in the lounge, which is an area forward of the dining room on deck 2.
Group 3 was the first group to leave since we were going to be gone the longest. The boat provided terrific box lunches for us to carry along—chicken wrap with pesto mayo, lettuce & tomato; hummus with fresh veggies; potato chips; and a homemade chocolate chip cookie.
They provided aluminum water bottles for us to use for the week, so we filled those up and carried them along, too. Plus, we all took our rain gear since it might rain at any time in the Pacific NW.
We left at 10:15 for a 5 minute ride in one of the pontoon tender boats to the dock at Hoodsport. The Wilderness Adventurer is the only cruise ship that has ever visited this tiny village of 300+ residents. Some of the local residents warmly welcomed us and provided maps of the area.
We arrived at the Staircase Ranger Station for the hike about 11:30. About 1/3 of the road was unpaved and very bumpy on the 30-passenger bus. Since the busy season was over, the regular bathhouses were locked, so before heading out on the trail, we all used the pit toilet, which we all agreed didn't look like it had been cleaned in this century. Our group of 13 hiked with JP, one of the guides. I was delighted to learn he was also a graduate of the University of Georgia.
The hike was mostly flat with spurts of up and down, with no long climbs along the North Fork of the Skokomish River. However, the trail was uneven, with a lot of roots and rocks to step over. We also crawled over huge trees blocking the trail and some giant rocks. I was glad to have my Nordic walking sticks along and was glad mom chose hiking option #1. The trail was quite scenic, and I loved the giant evergreen trees, ferns, moss, and lichens. We even saw some large fish in the river and crossed it on one of the sturdiest pedestrian bridges I've even seen. (Must be those federal government tax dollars at work.)
The forest was very quiet, with hardly any birds. I definitely didn’t need the binocular and was glad the guides advised us to leave them onboard the ship. Everyone enjoyed the hike very much and got to learn more about some of our ship mates. We stopped and sat on a giant log and ate our lunches, but the hike lasted much longer than any of us thought. We didn’t get back to the bus until about 4:30 or so and were back on the ship an hour or so later. I loved the flexibility of the guides. They often extended the hikes if they sensed that all of us were enjoying the forest, and we certainly all loved this first day of our cruise.
Mom’s group left the boat about 9:45 am and were back before 3 pm. The 2 mile hikers rode the bus with group #1 and were back before 4 pm. When we got back, the 15 guests already onboard were enjoying happy hour with raw oysters being shucked by some local oyster farmers.
It was a beautiful day—partly sunny and cool enough for a jacket, but no wind. We all sat outside on the sun deck for happy hour. Wine is $5 to $7 per glass and mixed drinks about the same. The boat has several micro brews on board, which beer lovers appreciated. The Wilderness Adventurer has a covered part of the deck that protects the guests sitting on the sun deck from the rain and wind, which is appropriate for its two destinations—Alaska and the Pacific NW. So, it was nice to sit outside.
Dinner followed happy hour. We had a green salad with fennel and roasted hazelnuts, followed by a choice of roasted duck with orange sauce or poached halibut with a leek sauce. The veggie option was a ricotta cheese ravioli topped with pine nuts and a white wine carrot sauce. Mom got the duck and liked it and I got the halibut, which was amazing. We had crème brulee with a biscotti cookie for dessert.
Page 5 >> A Day at Fort Flagler
A Day at Fort Flagler
Day 3 on the Wilderness Adventurer started with a delicious breakfast of pancakes, bacon, and scrambled eggs. Cereals and oatmeal were also available, as were fruit and yogurt. The "homemade pastry of the day" was a white chocolate and lemon scone. Mom and I split one so we could chow down on the rest of the breakfast.
After breakfast, we had several options: kayaking for beginners, open kayaking for experienced paddlers, a skiff ride around the Port Townsend/Fort Flagler bay area, or one of two hikes around old Fort Flagler, which is now a state park--a 2-mile or 4-mile hike.
Mom and I both opted for the 2-mile hike at the state park since it was a smooth trail without the rocks and roots of the previous day in Olympic National Park. For a cold water wimp like me, it was way too cool and windy on the water for kayaking, but the small ship was full of hardy travelers. The kayakers went out about 8:45, and we left on the skiff to go ashore about 9:15. The dozen or so going on the 4-miler left about 8:30, since we all had to be back for lunch.
The Fort Flagler State Park Cascadia Marine Trail gradually goes from the beach up a bluff and then follows the ridge to the old fort site. We jumped from the skiff and followed a nice old jeep road, so it was much easier walking than the day before. The fort was built before World War I and has many bunkers for giant guns. It was part of a triangle of forts on this bay during World War II. We walked by an old searchlight site as well as the bunkers. Today the fort is popular with hang gliders, but we didn't see any. We did see a bald eager, river otter, and many black tailed deer.
Plus, we had great views of Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, and the Cascades since it was such a sunny, clear day.
Our 2-mile hike was supposed to be point to point and end on the other side of the island, but when we got there, it was too windy for the skiff to pick us up, so we had to go back the way we came. I felt very badly for mom since she had signed up for a 2-mile hike and ended up walking over 5 miles (according to my Fitbit). What a trooper! Plus, we didn't even get to sit down and rest for a bit before heading back to the revised pick-up spot. We did take a bathroom break. Our group of 6 plus 2 guides all laughed about the amazingly clean bathroom at the fort--a real toilet (not a pit) and spotless. We decided it made the hike worth the effort and was a 5-star compared to the horrible pit toilet at the national park the day before.
We got back to the Wilderness Adventurer about 12:30, which was just in time for lunch. The wind had really picked up while we were hiking, and it was a challenge to re-board the skiff. Mom and the others sitting on her side of the Zodiac got sprayed quite a bit. Lucky for me, I sat across from her!
Lunch was yummy. A cabbage salad with ginger dressing, rice, beef or chicken stir fry, steamed mixed Chinese veggies (bok choy, carrots, water chestnuts, etc), and pound cake for dessert.
While eating lunch, we motored towards the quaint town of Port Townsend, where we were docking for the afternoon. A local historian was going to come onboard to provide a history and overview of the town, and then we were supposed to have free time to wander around. Unfortunately, the wind and waves were way too high for us to dock. They looked to be about 5 to 6 feet.
So, after lunch, we motored back and forth in the sound near Port Townsend, hoping for the weather to change. It didn't. Finally about 3 pm, the Captain announced we were going to head on towards Deception Pass and find a quiet place to anchor for the evening.
About 5:15, the speaker came on in our cabin to announce that a Minke whale had been spotted. We threw on our jackets and shoes and went up to the top deck, but never saw it. The sea was still rolling with white caps, and Minkes don't ever show their flukes or breach like other whales. A few folks saw it, but all I saw were some Murre, a black/white bird with red beak that resembles a penguin (a little).
Happy hour was 5:15, and we had chicken wings with blue cheese sauce to go along with our libations. Very good.
Dinner was at 6:30 and we enjoyed another delicious green salad with cherry tomatoes, lettuce, and Manchego cheese topped by apple cider vinaigrette; followed by braised beef short ribs; herb marinated cod topped with zucchini relish; or a vegetarian option of kale and caramelized onion stuffed crepe with a blue cheese sauce. Snap peas and black eyed peas were the vegetables. Dessert was a chocolate cheese cake that was very rich but delicious.
After dinner, JP did a talk on "Life as a Sailor". It's always fun to hear about others' life experiences, isn't it?
The next day was filled with great hiking on Orcas Island, one of the islands in the San Juan archipelago.
Page 6 >> A Day on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands
A Day on Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands
- Day 4 -- Orcas Island Overview
The next day the Wilderness Adventurer anchored off Orcas Island in the San Juan archipelago. Four hikes were featured. All of us landed at the Rosario Resort dock and had a short tour of the large home that is now the main building at the resort. Mom signed up for the first hike, which included a van ride to near the top of Mt. Constitution, where the group walked a couple of hundred yards to the viewing platform.
The second hike was about 4 miles and circled a lake. After the hike, that group also rode to the top of Mt. Constitution.
The third hike was a "bail out" version of the fourth hike. This group hiked to the top of Mt. Constitution and then rode down in a van. This was a great option for those of us who have knees that don't like lots of down hills (even with Nordic walking sticks). I signed up for this option.
The fourth hike started at the same lake as groups 2 and 3 and went to the top of Mt. Constitution and returned down a different way. This strenuous hike was 7 miles or so and only appropriate for those with good knees that could take the steep downhill.
Option 3 started at the same time as the round-trip mountain group and met them for lunch at the top of the mountain. The round-trippers took a different route to the top and came back down the way we went up. After lunch, anyone who wanted to could switch between groups 3 or 4. It was another interesting day. The number of guests signing up on the sheets tacked to the activity board for each group were fairly evenly divided.
All groups returned via bus to the Orcas Island town of Eastsound, where the Wilderness Adventurer was anchored offshore. Some of those who wanted more shopping time chose tour number 1 or 2.
- Day 4 Detailed Journal from Orcas Island
We were in the San Juan Islands--Orcas Island to be exact--all day. Orcas has about 2,000 residents, but also many vacation homes. You have to ride a ferry to reach the island from the mainland, so it's pretty remote. One interesting tidbit--it was not named for killer whales, which are also called orcas. The passengers on the Wilderness Adventurer had a day exploring Moran State Park, a 5252-acre park with over 38 miles of trails, along with lakes, wildlife, camping, biking, etc.
Robert Moran, a shipbuilder and Seattle mayor around the turn of the century, had bought over 7,000 acres on the island in the late 1890's. He built a retirement home on the island called Rosario and then donated 2,700 acres in 1921 to the state to start the park that carries his name. They added another 1,000 in 1928. Today the park is over 5,200 acres, and many of the buildings, roads, and bridges were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930's.
The park is quite spectacular and is topped off with Mt. Constitution, the highest mountain in the San Juan archipelago. It's only 2,409 feet, but has gorgeous views of the surrounding islands, the state park, and Orcas Island from its summit. (if it's not foggy)
We started the day with a delicious breakfast--homemade cinnamon bread, a veggie scrambled egg dish, crispy thick sliced bacon, fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, cereals, etc.
We all carried the same delicious sack lunch ashore, and I think the huge sandwich weighed over a pound, plus we had yummy potato salad, a cookie, and fruit.
As noted in the overview of day 4 in the first section above, the Wilderness Adventurer had several active options for the day. Mom and her group took the skiff ashore to tour the Rosario Mansion (now a resort) and ride a bus around the park and up to the top of Mt. Constitution. They stopped at a couple of waterfalls and did a little hiking. About 10 people did this activity. They took sack lunches and met the Wilderness Adventurer in Eastsound, a small town on the northern part of the island where the ship had repositioned after we all went ashore near Rosario's. She left the boat at 9:15 and returned at about 3:15.
A second group left at the same time and also toured the old mansion before riding a bus to Mountain Lake in the park. From the campground near the lake, they did the "Mountain Lake Loop" hike, an easy hike of 3.9 miles around the lake. (It was easy because it was mostly flat.) They ate a sack lunch on their hike and rode the bus to the top of Mount Constitution before riding back down to Eastsound, where like mom's group they had time to explore before riding the skiff back to the Wilderness Adventurer.
I chose the third option-the uphill only portion of the Mt. Constitution loop trail. We left the boat at 8:30, toured Rosario's and then rode to Mountain Lake, which is about 900 feet above sea level. We then hiked up the mountain on the long route, which is a "gradual" (really steep) grade up to the top. It was advertised as 4.3 miles, but my Fitbit recorded about 5 miles, and went up 1500 feet to the summit-the most demanding hike I've done in years. I wasn't the oldest one, either! Nice to see so many seniors in the over 60 age group be so fit and active.
The lush vegetation, with lots of green moss, mushrooms, lichen, and ground covering, surrounded by huge evergreen trees, was beautiful. It looked much like the area around Bergen, Norway. With many old stumps and rocks covered by the thick moss, it almost felt like an elf, troll, or leprechaun was going to jump out at us at any minute. We got a close up look at a deer who was as fascinated by us as we were of him. Lovely hike, but my legs were very tired when we stopped for lunch at the top. We had cool weather (but no rain), which made it much more enjoyable.
The fourth group did the entire Mt. Constitution loop, which was advertised as 6.7 miles. While we went clockwise on the loop from Mountain Lake, they went counterclockwise, starting at the same time. Their uphill section to the top was shorter, and therefore steeper than ours. We met them at the summit tower for lunch and then they hiked down while we rode down on the bus. It was foggy at the summit most of the time we were there, but we did get several glimpses of the spectacular scenery surrounding us on the hike up and while at the summit.
All of us agreed that our knees and legs would have been very sore if we had done the roundtrip. I think about a dozen of us did only the uphill portion and maybe 8 did the entire loop. I was impressed with them, but most were under 50 I think. Some in group 4 switched to our group and rode the bus down the mountain.
The bus dropped some of our group in the town of Eastsound while the rest of us returned to the dock and then took the skiff back to the ship. I was back onboard about 2:15. Sure felt good to take my hiking boots off and get the pack off my back. I had a cup of tea and decided to go into town to see what was there. I met mom coming in while I was going out. I only stayed about 40 minutes-not much to see except little shops, some of which were closed since the high tourist season was over.
Back on the boat, I rested a little from my hike before happy hour. They always have good appetizers the hour before dinner, and the bartender makes some excellent cocktails. The ship also has local draft beer and a nice wine selection.
Dinner started with a Caesar salad, followed by either pork tenderloin, broiled scallops, or a pepper stuffed with rice and other vegetables. A rich risotto accompanied the meal, and we had a lemon tart for dessert.
The presentation after dinner was on the almost US/England war over a pig in the San Juan Islands called the Pig War. Amazing how many wars (or almost wars) are started over what should have been a minor event, but was definitely "the straw that broke the camel's back".
Page 7 >> A Morning on Stuart Island
A Morning on Stuart Island
The next morning we awoke to light rain in the San Juan Islands. Five on the Wilderness Adventurer were going snorkeling in the 45 degree water that surrounded Stuart Island, so I went outside before they left the boat at 7:30 to make photos of them donning their full wetsuits, etc.
Mom and I had a nice breakfast of cheddar cheese scones with bacon, thick crispy bacon, fruit and yogurt. They also had fried eggs, oatmeal, and hot potatoes.
Our choices for the morning were an hour-long skiff ride, hiking, or open kayaking and paddle boarding. The crew had a big hike planned for the afternoon on Sucia Island, so no one signed up for the morning Stuart Island hike, which would have been a 2-3 hour meander. Most of us did a skiff ride and about half the guests also went kayaking or paddle boarding. The light rain continued, so we bundled up, but there wasn't any wind, so we didn't get drenched.
On the skiff ride, we saw numerous bald eagles, a kelp crab, a limpet (like a snail with a conical shell), an egg yolk jelly (not a jelly fish, but the same idea), and a large harbor seal out on the rocks. Stuart Island is very near the border with Canada, and the islands just across the way were Canadian. We slowly motored down one side of Stuart Island, which featured steep cliffs. At Turn Point, there was an historic light station and a large house where the light keeper lived. One of the largest cliffs was called lover's leap, but JP (the guide) didn't know if anyone had ever jumped.
We also saw a gorgeous totem pole on a private section of land. Most totems has some type of religious/symbolic meaning, and this one may have taken years to complete. Stuart Island has about 200 residents and no ferry service, so you have to have a boat to get there.
Since mom and I were on the 8:30 skiff ride, we were back on the boat by 10:00 am and had a nice cup of coffee (her) and hot chocolate (me) to warm up some. While I was working on my notes/photos, mom played bridge with some of our shipmates.
It was "Mexican Day" on the Wilderness Adventurer, so we had a salad with cilantro vinaigrette dressing, Mexican rice, beans, corn and flour tortillas, beef, fish, guacamole, cheese, sour cream, and salsa-one of my favorite meals. The brownies for dessert were good, too.
During lunch, we motored from Stuart Island to Sucia Island, another of the San Juan Islands of Washington.
Page 8 >> Sucia Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State
Sucia Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State
During lunch, we motored from Stuart Island to Sucia Island, another of the San Juan Islands of Washington. It is shaped like a horseshoe and is practically uninhabited. We had a choice of open paddle boarding, kayaking, or one of three hikes. The first hike was a meander along the beach of the island for about a mile or two; the second was from one end of the island to the center of the horseshoe (about 3 miles); and the third was "point to point", which was one end of the horseshoe to the other (about 5 or 6 miles).
Of course, being a competitive person who didn't get enough hiking the day before on Orcas Island, I picked the point to point hike, and I'm glad I did. We had about a dozen hearty souls who chose this one, and much of it was along a cliff overlooking the sea. Like the second group (who started 30 minutes behind us), we followed the cliff side trail (think it was called the Ewing Cove trail) from Ewing Point to the middle and then continued on towards the second half. (We were happy to see a pit toilet at the half way mark.) The only problem was when we reached the other point (Johnson Point), it was way too windy for the skiff to pick us up. So, we had to walk back to the middle like group 2 had done. Got lots of steps in - over 8 miles. The long hike on Sucia Island was not as strenuous as climbing Mt. Constitution, and I loved the views of the sea we had along the way. The island was rolling, so we weren't walking up hill continually as much as the day before. We left the boat at 2:15 and returned at 6:15-four hours of mostly walking.
Our group got back in time for a belated happy hour (hot artichoke, spinach, and cream cheese dip with crackers), followed by dinner. We started with a salad followed by a lamb shank, marinated shrimp with garlic, or a homemade pasta with fresh vegetables. Mom got the shrimp and I had the half & half lamb and shrimp. Very good. The vegetables were green beans and spaetzel (German noodles). Dessert was a honey panna cotta or strawberry sorbet.
The next day we were in the largest town in the San Juan Islands, Friday Harbor.
Page 9 >> Friday Harbor Marina on San Juan Island
Friday Harbor Marina on San Juan Island
The next morning, the Wilderness Adventurer was at the dock in the largest town in the San Juan Islands--Friday Harbor. It's also on the island of San Juan, which is the most populated island in the archipelago, with about 10.000 residents and ferry service.
We had a nice breakfast of French toast, scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, and link sausage. Of course we had the usual cereals, fruit, oatmeal, etc., and the "homemade pastry of the day" was a delicious but sweet cinnamon roll, which would have been completely irresistible had I been able to zap it for 10 seconds in the microwave before eating.
Breakfast was over by 8:30, and some folks walked the short distance into the town of Friday Harbor. Mom and I waited until about 9:30 since we figured many shops wouldn't be open until about 10 am, especially since the busy season was over.
Page 10 >> Downtown Friday Harbor, Washington on San Juan Island
Deer on Spieden Island in the San Juan Islands
After spending so much time in undeveloped areas the past several days, being docked in Friday Harbor was a little weird. We browsed in the quaint tourist shops, and I found a coffee shop with WiFi to check my messages. We were back on the ship by noon in time for lunch.
The buffet lunch was kind of a Greek and Mediterranean day, with a Greek salad, chick pea stew, herb chicken and/or beef, and hot pita bread.
They served a yummy Tzatziki sauce with the meats. Very good lunch, and we had homemade white chocolate macadamia nut cookies or leftover cinnamon rolls for dessert.
After lunch, we sailed during the sunny afternoon, looking for wildlife on the way to Deception Pass.
Page 11 >> Deer on Spieden Island in the San Juan Islands
Humpback Whales in the San Juan Islands
Leaving Friday Harbor, the Wilderness Adventurer sailed towards Deception Pass. Along the way, we passed Spieden Island, which is filled with exotic animals such as Mouflon sheep from Corsica, fallow deer from Europe, and Sika deer from Asia. The 500+-acre island is privately owned by James Jannard, the founder of Oakley, Inc.
After hiking on so many islands that were thickly wooded, it was interesting to see how deer and sheep can deplete an island of vegetation.
We also did some whale watching.
Page 12 >> Humpback Whales in the San Juan Islands
Deception Pass in Washington State
While watching for wildlife, we gathered on the forward outdoor decks with our binoculars. We didn't see any orcas, but did see a group of three or more humpbacks that we watched for about 45 minutes.
Sometimes on cruises where you see tons of whales and other marine life, like I did with Un-Cruise Adventures in Alaska and Mexico's Sea of Cortez, I forget that those are truly lucky days and cruises like this one in the San Juan Islands, where we saw just a few whales, are far more common.
Page 13 >> Deception Pass in Washington State
Coastal Washington Cruise Wrap-Up and Conclusion
Boats like the Wilderness Adventurer can only go through Deception Pass at slack (low) tide due to the strong currents, so the timing of this passage determined the anchorage for the next-to-last night on the cruise.
The bridge is actually two spans and was built during the 1930's at a cost of $482,000. Thanks to inflation, in 1983 it cost more than that to just paint the bridge. The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Depending on the tide, the two-lane bridge is about 180 feet over the water.
The famous Deception Pass bridge links Whidbey Island with Fidalgo Island. We came under the bridge and through the very narrow passageway about 5 pm and couldn't help but notice the swirling eddies and many dolphins/porpoises nearby. Lots of food for them!
By about 5:45 we had stopped for the night on the east side of the Deception Pass bridge. The chef served baked brie with crackers for an appetizer, and dinner was at 6:30. It was buffet "crab night", and we had yet another delicious green salad, this time with a balsamic vinaigrette. Steamed King crabs or sliced beef tenderloin were the main courses, along with a baked potato and all the toppings. Dessert was a chocolate tart with a salted caramel drizzle on top.
They were showing the "Life with Walter Mitty" movie in the lounge, but mom and I decided to skip so I could catch up on my journal and she could read her book. Like other movies, we could have watched on the video screen in our cabin.
Our last full day on the ship was spent mostly in the Deception Pass State Park area. I signed up for the longest hike, an 8-mile hike from 8:30 am until about 3:30 pm. Some guests went kayaking or paddle boarding, and others went on shorter hikes. The Wilderness Adventurer crew also took guests up to the Deception Pass bridge for a closer look and to do a little wildlife watching.
Breakfast was another good one--a cheesy scrambled egg with breakfast potatoes and bacon, along with the usual cereals, fruit and pastry. Those of us on the 8-mile hike took along another one of the galley's huge sack lunches, while those onboard got to enjoy cheeseburgers, pasta salad, and cole slaw.
All of the hikes were on Hoypus Point, and the 8-mile one zig-zagged back and forth on some of the 38 miles of hiking trails in the park. It was a nice hike, led by Kent, who is very knowledgeable about the plants and trees growing in the area. We never found a big downed tree to sit on, so we waited until we got back to the pick up point to each lunch, since it had picnic tables. I was very sad about this last hike since I had enjoyed my time in the San Juan Islands and coastal Washington so much.
The wind and current had picked up while we were hiking, and the skiff had to pull some of the kayakers in. I'm sure they were glad a motor boat with line was available to pull them in. Nice safety feature, although no one was in danger of doing anything other than drifting away from the ship with the current.
We got in from the hike in time to do a skiff ride before returning to the Wilderness Adventurer in time to pack and get ready for happy hour and our Captain's night dinner.
Dinner was an apple salad, followed by either beef tenderloin with mushroom sauce, salmon with Hollandaise sauce, or a sweet potato gnocchi. The vegetables of day were roasted cauliflower and lentils.
After dinner, we had some entertainment by the crew. It's always fun to see people who are multi-talented! All too soon, it was time to finish our packing.
Page 14 >> Summary and Wrap-up of Cruise Tour
A small ship cruise of coastal Washington and the San Juan Islands on the Un-Cruise Adventures' Wilderness Adventurer is a terrific way to see this scenic part of the Pacific Northwest. The cruise is best-suited for those who love outdoor activities like hiking and kayaking, but others can enjoy riding in a skiff to see some of the wildlife and coastal scenery.
This is a very casual cruise, and the area is well-known for its rainy weather.
As long as guests take along appropriate clothes, the weather is not likely to dampen this marvelous Un-Cruise Adventures experience.
As is common in the travel industry, the writer was provided with complimentary cruise accommodation for the purpose of review. While it has not influenced this review, About.com believes in full disclosure of all potential conflicts of interest. For more information, see our Ethics Policy.
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