THURSDAY - We left the campsite just after 11:00AM to drive the 10-miles to the town of Anacortes, where we have reservations on the 12:20PM ferry to Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington state.
If you're wondering, how much does it cost to transport the under 50' combination of ROVER and THE POD, plus 2 passengers from Anacortes to Orcas Island (and back), well it's exactly $389.08, if you pay the 3% fee for using a credit card.
They ask you to be in line at the ferry docks 30-45 minutes before your departure time and we arrived with plenty of time to spare, even after making two wrongs turns to get there.
This time Tricia videoed the entire boarding process to share with you.
After our 15-mile 1.25-hour ferry ride, where we spent the entire time getting to know a father/daughter motorcycle duo from Alaska, it was time to disembark the ferry.
At the beginning of this video you can see the father/daughter leaving first on their motorcycle.
After exiting the ferry we will still have 13-miles to drive before we reach our campsite.
The very decorative entrance arch for Moran State Park.
We have a pull-through site that's just below street level.
No solar or satellite service is going to be received here under all these trees.
We don't plan to use the fire pit or picnic table, but it's nice that they are there if we do.
FRIDAY - The weather today is forecast to be "a little less than perfect" for outdoor exploring, so we are going to postpone our sightseeing here on Orcas Island until tomorrow.
That leaves us with the problem of what to do with our time today?
The Washington State Ferries have routes to four of the San Juan Islands: Lopez Island, Shaw Island, Orcas Island and San Juan Island.
Orcas Island, where we are camping, is the largest of the 176 named islands here in the San Juan Islands. The second largest, and most populated of the islands, is San Juan Island.
On San Juan Island the ferry boat docks at the town of Friday Harbor, and since it is Friday, we figured why not go for a visit. Well, there was a little more consideration to our decision than that, they also have the San Juan National Historical Park on the island.
The inter-island travel on the ferry system is all First-Come-First-Serve, so we headed down to the ferry dock over an hour early for the 10:10AM ferry to Friday Harbor. Even being an hour early we were still third in line for the 50-minute ride.
The cost of the round trip ferry ticket for ROVER and the TWO PEAS was a very resonable $42.48, again including a 3% charge for the credit card payment.
SAN JUAN ISLAND NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK
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This ferry boat was slightly smaller than the one we took with ROVER and THE POD yesterday.
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Soon we were docking at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.
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At the southeast corner of San Juan Island is the American Camp location.
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Very few of the 1860s American Camp buildings remain standing.
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This small building was used as the laundromat for the camp.
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A short hike brings you down to the shore line and Grandma's Cove.
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There is supposed to be some decent tidepooling in the cove at low tide, but not now.
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Further along the coast is the High Bluff Trail.
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I'm not sure why these California Poppies are found here along the roadway in Washington.
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From far away it was easy to spot the Cattle Point Light.
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The lighthouse has been overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca since 1935.
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13-miles northwest of American Camp is where you'll find the English Camp.
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There was a little bit more to see here, including a proper English Garden.
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The English Garden seemed to be very well maintained...
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..., most likely by some volunteer organization, rather than the National Park Service.
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In the center was a maple tree with red leaves, the modern-day national symbol of Canada.
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This is called a blockhouse, used to defend the camp.
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Rifles would be positioned in each opening and had views from every angle.
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Some of the other buildings were used as barracks.
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This large building with the chimneys was used as a kitchen and dining hall.
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It's now time to get lunch in town and head for the ferry dock to get in line.
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If you intend to live here in the San Juan Islands you're going to require a boat.
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If you don't have a boat I guess you could learn to fly a float plane.
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If you don't have either you could always do what we did and rely of the ferry.
SATURDAY - With a little better weather we're going to explore what Moran State Park has to offer today.
There are two iconic images featured on the park's website, souvenirs and printed material. The first you've already seen, it's the stone archway at the entrance to the park.
The second image is a stone observation tower patterned after a medieval watch tower. It stands 53' tall and is located on the highest point in the entire San Juan Islands at 2400' on the summit of Mount Constitution.
Lucky for us, you can drive right up to the Summit Visitor Center and only have to climb the stairs inside of the tower.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM MORAN STATE PARK
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Mount Constitution Road has several scenic viewpoints on the way to the summit.
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This young deer had no fear of us driving within a few feet of him having lunch.
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Not surprisingly, the Civilian Conservation Corp built this tower in 1936.
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From the top of the tower on a clear day, not today obviously, you can see Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, Saturna Island, and Vancouver in British Columbia.
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From the parking lot down there to the top of the tower was all we had to climb today.
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The top of the tower is completely enclosed to protect from the harsh winter weather.
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Nothing but clouds could be seen outside of our immediate area today.
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The view from up here is nice, but we have other places to be today.
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Just outside of the upper enclosure is this outdoor balcony with a view.
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Time to exit the tower and return to the parking lot.
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Back in Olympic National Park they had the Hall of Mosses Trail, the volunteer called this the Wall of Mosses Trail.
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The park has some unique ideas when it comes to guard rails along the road.
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We've been seeing these purple flowers all over the island.
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Our app identifies it as Purple Foxglove.
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Time to do a short, but steep, hike to see some waterfalls.
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This first one is called Rustic Falls.
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This second one is properly identified as Casade Falls.
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Cascade Falls in it's entirety, from top to bottom.
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That's it for today, time for lunch in the town of Olga, then back to THE POD.
Looking for our Visited States Map and Data? How about our State by State Bucket Lists or Visited Campgrounds List? If so, click on the sign below to be taken to our other website.
This ferry boat was slightly smaller than the one we took with ROVER and THE POD yesterday.
Soon we were docking at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island.
At the southeast corner of San Juan Island is the American Camp location.
Very few of the 1860s American Camp buildings remain standing.
This small building was used as the laundromat for the camp.
A short hike brings you down to the shore line and Grandma's Cove.
There is supposed to be some decent tidepooling in the cove at low tide, but not now.
Further along the coast is the High Bluff Trail.
I'm not sure why these California Poppies are found here along the roadway in Washington.
From far away it was easy to spot the Cattle Point Light.
The lighthouse has been overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca since 1935.
13-miles northwest of American Camp is where you'll find the English Camp.
There was a little bit more to see here, including a proper English Garden.
The English Garden seemed to be very well maintained...
..., most likely by some volunteer organization, rather than the National Park Service.
In the center was a maple tree with red leaves, the modern-day national symbol of Canada.
This is called a blockhouse, used to defend the camp.
Rifles would be positioned in each opening and had views from every angle.
Some of the other buildings were used as barracks.
This large building with the chimneys was used as a kitchen and dining hall.
It's now time to get lunch in town and head for the ferry dock to get in line.
If you intend to live here in the San Juan Islands you're going to require a boat.
If you don't have a boat I guess you could learn to fly a float plane.
If you don't have either you could always do what we did and rely of the ferry.
Mount Constitution Road has several scenic viewpoints on the way to the summit.
Not surprisingly, the Civilian Conservation Corp built this tower in 1936.
From the top of the tower on a clear day, not today obviously, you can see
From the parking lot down there to the top of the tower was all we had to climb today.
The top of the tower is completely enclosed to protect from the harsh winter weather.
The view from up here is nice, but we have other places to be today.
Just outside of the upper enclosure is this outdoor balcony with a view.
Time to exit the tower and return to the parking lot.
Back in Olympic National Park they had the Hall of Mosses Trail,
The park has some unique ideas when it comes to guard rails along the road.
We've been seeing these purple flowers all over the island.
Our app identifies it as Purple Foxglove.
Time to do a short, but steep, hike to see some waterfalls.
This second one is properly identified as Casade Falls.
That's it for today, time for lunch in the town of Olga, then back to THE POD.
