Post by Kahloke on May 31, 2024 21:06:33 GMT -8
I thought I would do a little trip report of our (my wife and I) weekend getaway to Saturna Island on May 25th & 26th, Memorial Day Weekend for those of us south of the 49th. The reason for going to Saturna is because I had never been there before and it piqued my interest. I'm writing a little report on it because I think Saturna is a very worthwhile island to visit. Both of us thoroughly enjoyed the stay.
It started on Friday afternoon, May 24th, with a drive up to Tsawwassen from our home in Gig Harbor. Not wanting to deal with I-5 traffic through Seattle, Lynnwood, and Everett on a Memorial Day Friday, we chose to head north via the Port Townsend ferry and Whidbey Island. I had made a reservation on one of MV Kennewick's sailings, we got dinner in Coupeville, and arrived at our overnight lodging, Coast Tsawwassen Inn, around 9:30pm.
Saturday morning, we lined up at Tsawwassen and boarded the 9:15am Salish Eagle sailing to Village Bay. Salish Heron was next to us at Berth 1 loading cars for its 9:30 sailing to Galiano and Long Harbour when we pulled out at 9:15. Alas, not enough traffic to get to experience the drive down into the lower garage deck - everyone was accommodated on the main vehicle deck.
I love cruising through the Gulf Islands; always good for ferry spotting
Even Seaspan Transporter in Active Pass. I hadn't seen this one yet until this trip
I've done the Village Bay transfer in the past as a foot passenger, but this was the first time I've done it in a vehicle. I must say, the system works well, and it's not difficult to figure out where to go. The signage is good. We disembarked at Village Bay and got in line for the Queen of Cumberland sailing to Otter Bay and Lyall Harbour. And, Village Bay is another great location for ferry spotting as, I think, most of you already know.
Queen of Cumberland unloading its vehicles, most of which circled around and boarded Salish Eagle for the return trip to Tsawwassen
Now on board Queen of Cumberland with a still waiting Salish Eagle. As it turns out, Eagle was waiting for Salish Raven to dock and do its transfer.
Not a sight I've seen before: 3 Salish's in one shot. Salish Eagle at dock, Salish Raven waiting for us (Cumberland) to vacate the berth, and Salish Heron off in the distance heading to Long Harbour
Almost looks like one giant double-headed Salish monster! Salish Raven slipping past Eagle at Village Bay
Now, onto Saturna itself. We stayed at Saturna Lodge, not far from the ferry terminal at Lyall Harbour. It's basically a house turned into a b&b that at one time had been a restaurant so it has a commercial kitchen and a bar. Currently, it's owned by a mom and pop couple who are very nice and welcoming. We enjoyed chatting with them. There were two other couples staying there, and really, more than any other place I've stayed, it felt like staying in someone's house, not a hotel. They have a nice garden and we visited with them and the other guests. Breakfast on Sunday morning was family style, all of us sitting at the same table and conversing. It was nice. I would very much recommend Saturna Lodge for anyone contemplating an overnight on this little island.
Saturna itself is pretty rugged, as in mountainous. One of the first places we went to, as suggested by the Lodge's owners, was Sage Hayward Vineyards, but to get there you go up and over a bit of a mountain pass, or really big hill I guess, on a narrow gravel road that does turn into pavement for the steep descent down to the winery itself. we did a wine tasting and had lunch there. Again, I highly recommend seeing this place.
like the folks you see here, we also sat outside for lunch
Next stop was the drive up Mt. Warburton Pike for the view at the top. The road is rough but it can be done with most cars. You just have to take it slow. There are a lot of rocks in the road which would love to puncture a tire if you're not careful.
view looking south from top of Mt. Warburton. First island you can see is South Pender, followed by the Boundary Channel, Stuart Island, Speiden Island, and finally San Juan Island. I think there are some smaller islands in there, but those are the big ones.
The best part of Saturna is East Point at the far eastern tip of the island. There are trails and a little museum in the old fog alarm building. In this photo, we are looking south at the north side of Orcas Island, where we still go almost every month. Both Turtleback Mountain (on the right) and Mt. Constitution are highly visible here. The mountain on the far left is Lummi Island
Another beautiful place for walking is Winter Cove Park on the west side of the island. Here you can hike out to the point at Boat Pass and watch the fast current between Saturna and Samuel Islands. It kind of reminded me of Skookumchuck Narrows on the Sunshine Coast near Egmont.
Winter Cove also afforded me a nice view of Salish Raven heading down Navy Channel to Lyall Harbour
There aren't a lot of dining options on Saturna. The Pub at the ferry landing is where we grabbed dinner and it was popular the night we went because a local band was performing there that night. The food is basic pub grub but it was good. You get a nice view up Navy Channel from the Pub's windows so you can always keep an eye on the ferry.
The last place we went hiking was Narvaez Bay. There are some good trails there and if you're into camping, good campsite locations.
Like some of the other Gulf Islands, Saturna has quite a bit of land in the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. They do a better job of allocating public lands than what we see in the San Juans, Moran State Park notwithstanding. Other things worth mentioning: waving. When you're driving around the island, everyone waves at you, so naturally, we waved back. It seems to be a Saturna thing. I quite liked it. The roads are pretty rough, even the paved ones. While the road out to East Point is paved and mostly smooth, that one is an exception to the other roads we encountered.
Lastly, here we are lined up for the return sailing back to Tsawwassen on Sunday. We arrived early for the 3:20pm sailing, so were first in line. Seeing as there isn't a lot around the terminal area, we went to The Pub for a drink and to watch for Queen of Cumberland. It seems BC Ferries terminal staff are used to people doing this, so they came around The Pub for ferry tickets and reservation information. I kind of liked that. It's another "island" way of doing things.
And, here's our ferry
Bye-bye Saturna
You can see most of Saturna's sights in a day, but I would recommend staying the night if you can. It's definitely worth the stay and worth seeing. Saturna is a beautiful island. I really enjoyed the friendly, laid back vibe of the place and the natural beauty.
It started on Friday afternoon, May 24th, with a drive up to Tsawwassen from our home in Gig Harbor. Not wanting to deal with I-5 traffic through Seattle, Lynnwood, and Everett on a Memorial Day Friday, we chose to head north via the Port Townsend ferry and Whidbey Island. I had made a reservation on one of MV Kennewick's sailings, we got dinner in Coupeville, and arrived at our overnight lodging, Coast Tsawwassen Inn, around 9:30pm.
Saturday morning, we lined up at Tsawwassen and boarded the 9:15am Salish Eagle sailing to Village Bay. Salish Heron was next to us at Berth 1 loading cars for its 9:30 sailing to Galiano and Long Harbour when we pulled out at 9:15. Alas, not enough traffic to get to experience the drive down into the lower garage deck - everyone was accommodated on the main vehicle deck.
I love cruising through the Gulf Islands; always good for ferry spotting
Even Seaspan Transporter in Active Pass. I hadn't seen this one yet until this trip
I've done the Village Bay transfer in the past as a foot passenger, but this was the first time I've done it in a vehicle. I must say, the system works well, and it's not difficult to figure out where to go. The signage is good. We disembarked at Village Bay and got in line for the Queen of Cumberland sailing to Otter Bay and Lyall Harbour. And, Village Bay is another great location for ferry spotting as, I think, most of you already know.
Queen of Cumberland unloading its vehicles, most of which circled around and boarded Salish Eagle for the return trip to Tsawwassen
Now on board Queen of Cumberland with a still waiting Salish Eagle. As it turns out, Eagle was waiting for Salish Raven to dock and do its transfer.
Not a sight I've seen before: 3 Salish's in one shot. Salish Eagle at dock, Salish Raven waiting for us (Cumberland) to vacate the berth, and Salish Heron off in the distance heading to Long Harbour
Almost looks like one giant double-headed Salish monster! Salish Raven slipping past Eagle at Village Bay
Now, onto Saturna itself. We stayed at Saturna Lodge, not far from the ferry terminal at Lyall Harbour. It's basically a house turned into a b&b that at one time had been a restaurant so it has a commercial kitchen and a bar. Currently, it's owned by a mom and pop couple who are very nice and welcoming. We enjoyed chatting with them. There were two other couples staying there, and really, more than any other place I've stayed, it felt like staying in someone's house, not a hotel. They have a nice garden and we visited with them and the other guests. Breakfast on Sunday morning was family style, all of us sitting at the same table and conversing. It was nice. I would very much recommend Saturna Lodge for anyone contemplating an overnight on this little island.
Saturna itself is pretty rugged, as in mountainous. One of the first places we went to, as suggested by the Lodge's owners, was Sage Hayward Vineyards, but to get there you go up and over a bit of a mountain pass, or really big hill I guess, on a narrow gravel road that does turn into pavement for the steep descent down to the winery itself. we did a wine tasting and had lunch there. Again, I highly recommend seeing this place.
like the folks you see here, we also sat outside for lunch
Next stop was the drive up Mt. Warburton Pike for the view at the top. The road is rough but it can be done with most cars. You just have to take it slow. There are a lot of rocks in the road which would love to puncture a tire if you're not careful.
view looking south from top of Mt. Warburton. First island you can see is South Pender, followed by the Boundary Channel, Stuart Island, Speiden Island, and finally San Juan Island. I think there are some smaller islands in there, but those are the big ones.
The best part of Saturna is East Point at the far eastern tip of the island. There are trails and a little museum in the old fog alarm building. In this photo, we are looking south at the north side of Orcas Island, where we still go almost every month. Both Turtleback Mountain (on the right) and Mt. Constitution are highly visible here. The mountain on the far left is Lummi Island
Another beautiful place for walking is Winter Cove Park on the west side of the island. Here you can hike out to the point at Boat Pass and watch the fast current between Saturna and Samuel Islands. It kind of reminded me of Skookumchuck Narrows on the Sunshine Coast near Egmont.
Winter Cove also afforded me a nice view of Salish Raven heading down Navy Channel to Lyall Harbour
There aren't a lot of dining options on Saturna. The Pub at the ferry landing is where we grabbed dinner and it was popular the night we went because a local band was performing there that night. The food is basic pub grub but it was good. You get a nice view up Navy Channel from the Pub's windows so you can always keep an eye on the ferry.
The last place we went hiking was Narvaez Bay. There are some good trails there and if you're into camping, good campsite locations.
Like some of the other Gulf Islands, Saturna has quite a bit of land in the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. They do a better job of allocating public lands than what we see in the San Juans, Moran State Park notwithstanding. Other things worth mentioning: waving. When you're driving around the island, everyone waves at you, so naturally, we waved back. It seems to be a Saturna thing. I quite liked it. The roads are pretty rough, even the paved ones. While the road out to East Point is paved and mostly smooth, that one is an exception to the other roads we encountered.
Lastly, here we are lined up for the return sailing back to Tsawwassen on Sunday. We arrived early for the 3:20pm sailing, so were first in line. Seeing as there isn't a lot around the terminal area, we went to The Pub for a drink and to watch for Queen of Cumberland. It seems BC Ferries terminal staff are used to people doing this, so they came around The Pub for ferry tickets and reservation information. I kind of liked that. It's another "island" way of doing things.
And, here's our ferry
Bye-bye Saturna
You can see most of Saturna's sights in a day, but I would recommend staying the night if you can. It's definitely worth the stay and worth seeing. Saturna is a beautiful island. I really enjoyed the friendly, laid back vibe of the place and the natural beauty.
