The second half of my San Juan Sailing Trip

The evening of Wed. May 6th, we'd tied to a mooring buoy at Jones Island for the night.

Thur, May 7th, 2009
Jones Island State Park.

The morning dawned partly cloudy and fairly calm.
Before breakfast, we went for walk around the island. It was simply gorgeous!

There was deep green forest, with paths cut through for hiking. Every fallen log was covered with a thick, lush carpet of moss. Ferns covered the ground, and were growing in the trees. We saw several deer that were amazingly tame because there are no predators on the island.

Bo was soooo happy to really get to run and play and stretch his little legs for a while. I was afraid that he'd try to chase the deer. That herding instinct is so strong in Aussies right from birth. But he was so short that the brush hid them from his view. He never saw a single one.

After our walk, Sid put a couple of bagels in the oven for breakfast while I made coffee. I was looking forward to sitting in the cockpit and leisurely having coffee and bagles with him.

But then,…

Before we even got the bagles out of the oven, Sid suddenly jumped up and cast off the mooring lines. He called me up from below to take the wheel, and he went out on deck and began releasing the sails.

The sudden departure and decision to immediately get the sails up totally caught me off guard. When he told me to grab the mail halyard and start pulling, I was unprepared. I didn’t have gloves on, so I couldn’t pull very hard on the lines, (my hands were still sore). Plus I was trying to steer WHILE I was pulling. It frustrated Sid that I was not pulling the halyard fast enough. He began giving his orders from up at the mast, “PULL! Come on, PULL, Linda! PULL!”

Ok, .. again it flustered me and once again I floundered on my task. As the sail went up, the boat heeled over, and coffee cups, clothing bags and all the other loose 'things' down below deck went everywhere. After several times of raising and adjusting sails successfully as a team, I felt right back where I’d started on the first day. (snarl...)

When we finally got the sails up, Sid returned to the cockpit and silently took the wheel. My annoyance evident, I went down the companionway to the galley and picked up all the stuff that had slid across the boat when we heeled. Then I took the bagles out of the oven. They were burned. (sigh,…) Still wondering what lit the fire under Sid’s butt to leave anchor so quickly, I went up and stood in the companionway and just looked at him standing behind the wheel. He shifted his weight uncomfortably and returned my gaze.

I felt a strong need to establish some level of respect and cooperation between us. If we're going to sail together, we've got to be a team. So I said, “What we had here this morning was a failure to communicate.”

I told him I was unprepared and unaware of his intentions to set sail, so I did not have my gloves on, bagles were still in the oven, and things were not stowed properly below. I asked, “Isn’t it the skipper’s job to prepare and inform the crew of his intentions BEFORE they happen?”

"Uh,... yeah,.... it is. I'm sorry." He agreed that he had not given me warning, and admitted that he’d just made a quick decision because good winds had suddenly come up in the right direction. He felt bad for frustrating me again, but I felt that now some ground rules had been set. After a hug or two, all was forgiven quickly and we sailed on, drinking coffee and laughing about eating burned bagles. As we sailed back to Anacortes, the weather continued to improve.


Sid is not only a great sailor and teacher, but he's also one hell of a tour guide. He was wonderful at pointing out all the different islands, markers, buoys and passages. The sailing lessons never stoppped, but they were always peppered with interesting facts about the history and geology of the San Juan area. I was greatful for his willingness to share his knowledge. As he taught me to watch for red and green channel markers and what the numbers on them meant, he also told me about the settlements and uses of different islands that we passed. One of my favorites that he showed me was Yellow Island. In the 1940's, a husband and wife bought the island and built their home, barn and boat house completely out of drift wood. The wife planted wild flowers all over the entire island, which have multiplied and flourished over the years. The island now belongs to the Nature Conservancy and they maintain the driftwood buildings and give tours of the wild flower gardens. He really taught me so much. Did you know there are over 100 islands in the San Juan archipeligo? Wow!

As we approached the marina at Anacortes, the weather really cleared up and it actually became sunny, warm and beautiful. It was nice to take off our jackets. It also made unloading and securing the boat much more pleasant.

We finished the day back at Sid’s house, relaxing on his porch swing and drinking wine while we watched the world go by. Life is good.

The next morning, on the way to the airport, he showed me Anacortes from a tall peak above town. What a magnificent place. I can't wait to go back!