Orcas Island
Orcas Island takes its name not from its
whale shape but from the 1792 Viceroy of Mexico. East
Sound, the channel that nearly cuts the island in two,
creates great views from anywhere along its
coastline.
The most prominent landmark on the island
is Mount Constitution, the highest point in the
archipelago. Much of the mountain, including the summit,
is part of Moran State Park, given to Washington
by Robert Moran, the World War I shipping and
shipbuilding magnate, who built the estate that became
the Rosario Resort. From the summit of Mount
Constitution one can see the entire archipelago; north to
Vancouver Island; and south to the Olympic Peninsula. On
a clear day, and there's a good chance you'll have one,
you'll be able to see Mount Rainier to the southeast, and
Mount Baker to the east.
Moran State Park offers several walking and
hiking trails, where the visitor can experience the
island wilderness. Although Orcas is mostly a busy place,
getting off the roadway into the forested areas of the
park provides a sense of what island life was like before
the arrival of resorts, restaurants, and sightseeing
excursions.
It's a five-mile trip to the summit of
Mount Constitution from the park entrance, and it
is possible to drive all the way on a paved road. Even
hardy cyclists have a challenge attempting the steep
roadway. Hiking trails start at mid-mountain, leading to
the summit, and a viewing tower built during the
Depression from a design commissioned by Robert Moran,
who had seen this type of stone lookout tower in the
Caucasus mountains.
Mount Constitution is only one of several
attractions in this large park. Cascade Falls is
an impressive waterfall. Mountain Lake, near the
summit, is a fishing lake, and a 3.6-mile walking trail
circles the lake. Twin Lakes are small and
secluded lakes, that are reached by walking beyond
Mountain Lake on the Mount Constitution trail.
At the bottom of the mountain is Cascade
Lake, which you pass just after entering the park.
Developed campsites are in this low-level area, which
attracts people for its boating, canoeing and fishing,
plus swimming and hiking opportunities.
Eastsound, the island's largest
community, is situated on the thin sandy piece of land
that joins the two halves of the island. The village has
retained its period charm over the years, and it has a
tranquil, laid-back ambiance. The ferry landing is in
Orcas, at the island's southeast corner.
The "tail" of the whale-shaped island is at
Obstruction Pass, where there is a small park with
a public beach. Nearby Doe Bay Village features a
"hot" spring resort, near the tiny town of Olga. Two of
the three mineral baths contain hot sulphur water. The
other pool is cold. This is a cold spring, with the water
heated without the help of nature. The resort has
accommodations, in cabins, along 2,000 feet of
waterfront. There are fine views from the tubs and the
resort's redwood decks, and the management also offers
guided kayak tours to a nearby wildlife sanctuary.
The most accessible public beach on the
seashore is at Obstruction Pass, on the southeast
side of the island -- a half-mile walk from the road.
This is a scenic, secluded beach with a small camping
area and a picnic site. There is also a short stretch (60
feet) of beach just north of Eastsound at the end of
North Beach Road. Several other beaches around the island
are accessible by boat.
Lopez & Shaw
Islands
Lopez:
This smaller island normally provides a day
adventure for most travelers. It's a handy stop as the
first ferry landing on the San Juan Islands ferry trip,
permitting tourists to drive off the ferry and spend a
few hours on the island, and then go on to stay on Orcas
or San Juan. There are two parks on the island -- quite
different from the natural areas on the larger
islands.
The gentle landscape of Odlin County
Park, on the west side of the island near the ferry
landing, features 82 acres of woods and beach with
picnicking and boating opportunities. A small campground
is located in the park (30 sites) and with only one
resort hotel and a couple of B and Bs on the island, this
is where many people stay.
Spencer Spit State Park offers a
different view of the ocean from the northeast side of
the island. With a mile-long sandy beach, Spencer Spit
provides walking trails, a covered picnic area and 42
campsites. The spit connects Lopez with Frost Island at
low tide and popular pastimes here include clamming,
fishing and crabbing. The public campsites are perfect as
bicycle camps. The campsites, however, are fairly
primitive and don't offer much in the way of
conveniences.
Lopez Village is in the
north-central section of the island, and there are cafes
and stores here for obtaining camp supplies and picnic
food. The slow and out-of-time ambiance of the island is
characterized by the down-home restaurants and the soda
fountain at the Lopez Island Pharmacy.
Shaw Island
This is the smallest of the islands served
by the ferry system, and the least-visited. It has no
overnight accommodations except for a few campsites, so
most visitors have to plan for a visit and then catch a
later ferry to another island, or back to the mainland.
There is no restaurant on the island.
Shaw lies in the center of the group of
islands and thus has sheltered water all around. The
island is eight square miles in size and 100 people live
there year-round. The only commercial enterprise open to
the public is the Little Portion Store, beside the
ferry landing. The store, post office and the ferry
landing are operated by Franciscan nuns. The Shaw
Island Historical Museum is a log cabin across from
the historic one-room schoolhouse, at the corner of Blind
Bay Rd. and Hoffman Cove Road, open on Saturdays and
Mondays.
Shaw County Park is located at the
south end of the island. It has one of the best beaches
in the San Juans, and this is one of the few places in
the island chain where the water gets warm enough for
swimming. There are 12 campsites, a boat ramp, toilets,
and drinking water. Nature trails lead along the
shoreline and through the woods.
Island Nature
With a few exceptions, there are few
locations on San Juan, Orcas, and Lopez islands which
have not seen changes by human hands. The backcountry of
Mount Constitution is the major exception, and
there you can escape, on a path into the wilderness,
where you can spot belted kingfishers, Vaux's swifts in
the virgin forest, eagles setting down on treetops, plus
ospreys, common loons and dippers.
Whale watching -- from land -- is probably
at its best in Lime Kiln State Park, on San Juan
Island. In addition to pods of orcas, you can expect to
see minke whales and porpoises just offshore.
Most of the islands of the archipelago are
accessible only by private boat, and many visitors rent
motorboats, canoes, and kayaks to see the "real" San Juan
Islands. The chain of little, uninhabited islands starts
just west of Anacortes. Cypress Island, north of
Anacortes, has a large natural resource conservation
area, with most of the island preserved by the state.
Like most of the undeveloped islands, Cypress has no
public facilities, or visitor program.
There are state parks where visitors are
permitted. Northern Puget Sound State Parks system
includes Socia, Matia, Patos, and
Clark Island state parks, located north of Orcas
Island. Turn and Poesy islands are state parks to the
southwest and southeast of Orcas. Blind Island State
Park is north of Shaw Island, at the entrance to
Blind Bay. James Island State Park is east of
Decatur Island. These state park islands have campsites
and pit or vault toilets.
San Juan Islands National Wildlife
Refuge takes in 83 small islands that are nesting and
resting sites for many birds. Matia and Turn islands are
also part of the national wildlife refuge, and these are
the only islands in the refuge on which people are
allowed to land. Colville Island is noted for its
sea birds, including double-crested cormorants, which one
may observe while paddling by.
The Nature Conservancy manages the San Juan
Preserve System. While all of its preserves can be
reached by boat (and only one from land), Yellow
Island Preserve is the one island on which people are
permitted to land. This island is near the northwestern
shore of Shaw, and near the southwestern shore of Orcas.
The ten-acre island features exquisite wildflower
displays in spring, including blue camas, Indian
paintbrush, lilies, and buttercups.
As if this weren't enough, the shore offers
superb wildlife viewing: of porpoises, minke whales,
orcas, bald eagles, and many species of ducks. This is
one island where disinterest by early settlers meant that
native vegetation was not threatened by imported species.
Largely a grassy island, benign neglect has made it
almost a modern miracle.
Island Hiking
The San Juan Islands are small, and not
conducive to backcountry hiking. Backcountry activity is
better done in a kayak or canoe, by paddling to an
outlying island and camping in a primitive marine
campsite. Short nature trails include a half-mile walk to
Bell Point, on San Juan Island, reached from British Camp
(see Mount Young Trail, below), and the Nature Trail at
Jakle's Lagoon, from American Camp, at the southern site
of the national park.
The following short hikes (the longest is
three miles) will take you to a variety of natural areas,
although you can't help meeting other people along the
way. Because of their size and the number of summer
visitors, these are sociable islands. Fall, winter, and
spring all offer calmer moments to fully experience the
beauty of the islands without a lot of distraction.
Mountain Lake to Cascade Lake
This is one of several hikes available in
Moran State Park, on Orcas Island. Because this hike is
either a steep descent, or a steep climb, down or up the
side of Mount Constitution, we suggest that it be done
from top to bottom. The hike is a three-mile trip, with
little exertion required (if you're coming down the
mountain). To get to the trailhead, drive into the park
and turn uphill 1.5 miles past the entrance, on the road
to Mount Constitution. Drive one mile, and turn right,
onto a side road leading to Mountain Lake. The trailhead
sign is off the right-hand side of the road.
The path wanders for a while, through
forest, moving below the dam in the first mile. The trail
begins to descend, leading beside and across the creek.
At 1.5 miles, the trail leaves a meadow, with stands of
alder, leading onto an old road. The trail leaves the
road at a sign pointing to Cavern, Rustic, and Cascade
falls. There are a number of switch backs before reaching
the first falls, and then passing through a rich forest
of Douglas-fir and cedar. The second falls are reached at
mile 1.75. The largest of the falls, Cascade, is reached
in a minute or two. There are views of the three-tiered
waterfall, the largest in the park.
To complete the hike, take the lower trail,
which has a wooden railing, descending through virgin
forest and connecting with the paved highway. Turn right
for 100 yards (an osprey nest sits on top of a tree
trunk). There is another road (off the parking area) that
leads to the campground and park ranger station.
Twin Lakes Trail
This 2.25-mile one-way walk also begins at
Mountain Lake, but heads in the opposite direction, with
an elevation change of 200 feet. The trailhead is to the
left of the boat ramp in Mountain Lake Campground. The
trail leads along the west shore of the lake, close to
the water, past several picnic spots. Passing a blow down
area, devastated by a violent wind storm, it leads to a
meadow, the site of an earlier home. After a little more
than a mile, the trail leaves the lake and comes to a
junction. The right trail continues a loop around
Mountain Lake. The left fork leads to Twin Lakes.
The path now climbs through forest,
reaching another junction. The vegetation here is a
wonderful mixture of tall, old Douglas-firs and younger
hemlock, with a bed of ferns and flowers. Deer are often
seen in this wooded area. Turn right to reach the two
lakes. You have a choice of walking on a bridge over the
stream that joins the two lakes, and making a loop around
either or both lakes. A walk around either lake offers a
stroll of about a half-mile. You can also take the left
trail, which leads to the stone observation tower and the
summit parking lot.
Mount Young Trail
This isn't much of a mountain, but its
summit is the highest point on San Juan Island, and from
it you have wonderful vistas of water and other islands.
The top of Mount Young was sculpted by glaciers into a
smooth, rounded shape. From the Friday Harbor ferry
terminal, take the road toward Roche Harbor. Turn left
(south) toward British Camp. The restored buildings of
the British garrison are open to the public, and are part
of the national park. The trailhead is at the end of the
parking lot.
The trail leads through trees, to the
highway, and to a cemetery. The men of the Royal Marine
Light Infantry buried here were not casualties of the Pig
War, but died from drowning and other causes. Beyond the
cemetery, the trail ascends through maples and madrones
(arbutus), to a sign board which interprets geological
points of interest. This overlook is just below the
summit. The total trip to the summit is one mile long,
and the walk down to British Camp seems even shorter.
South Beach Trail
This trail, leading from American Camp, on
the southern shore of San Juan Island, takes you to a
beach with tide pools and fine views of the Olympic
Mountains and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The one-way
trip is 1.5 miles, starting from Pickett's Lane, which
branches south, off American Camp Road. There is a
parking area with picnic sites beside the beach. The hike
is along the beach, and you have a choice of walking east
to Cattle Point and a lighthouse, or west to Grandma's
Cove. In addition to beach scenes, you'll see lots of
birds and the grassy vegetation which covers much of San
Juan Island. This is not necessarily natural growth. The
Native inhabitants of the islands often used fire to
regenerate the vegetation.
This is a place for observing shorebirds --
plovers, gulls, turnstones, yellowlegs -- and even the
turkey vulture. This, of course is not a shorebird, but
is one of several raptor species found here, including
hawks and eagles. A picnic area sits around the bend from
the lighthouse, and tide pools are revealed at low
tide.
Jakle's Lagoon is located directly
across the peninsula from South Beach, on the other side
of Mt. Finlayson, and is also accessed by trail from
American Camp.
