A sail to Skipjack, Patos and Sucia

July 30, 2020 – Tacked our way North up San Juan Channel sailing by Shirt Tail Reef and Yellow Island. Rounding Jones and coming in to check out Flattop Island National Wildlife Refuge. Harbor seals and pigeon guillemots call this island home. North passed White Rock to round Waldron Island and come in to Skipjack Island National Wildlife Refuge. We drifted passed the hauled out harbor seals and then made tracks for Patos Island and Alden Point Lighthouse. Scanning Boundary Pass as we travelled we saw many harbor porpoise but no whales today.

Sailing the Southwest coastline of Patos we spotted an eagle chick we’ve been monitoring who has now moved out of his nest. The Patos shoreline led us on to the Sucia shoreline and another eagles nest. Black oystercatchers were on the point to Shallow Bay and we spotted a great blue heron who comonly resides on the coast that leads to the pass of Little Sucia.

On to Point Doughty and the forested coastline of Presidents Channel to the Northwest of Orcas Island. Many eagles were gathered on the beach with a deer carcass. We drifted into Lovers Cove and sailed wing on wing down the shoreline with a fast close hauled sail across San Juan Channel back to Friday Harbor.