So much to see on San Juan Island

THE OLYMPIAN | • Published November 29, 2009

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Because San Juan Island is such a well-known tourist draw for Western Washington, you might think you've done and seen it all. But did you find the camel? Photograph a fox? Marvel at the 100-year-old canned fruit collection?

Winter is an excellent time to visit: Rain is the perfect excuse to sleep in, the ferries aren’t crowded, holiday lights are on, and accommodations are offered at off-season rates.

It’s also the best time to explore galleries and museums in Friday Harbor.

GALLERIES

Arctic Raven Gallery focuses on Northern native artwork and features two artists who may broaden your view of those styles.

“Randy Cook is an innovative young man who is deeply committed to his culture. His cedar carvings are very cutting edge. Susan Point has taken native art to a new level. Most of her pieces have a message,” said manager Barbara Marrett.

Waterworks Gallery, in business for 25 years, focuses on original work involving light and texture, generally from mid-career artists from Washington, Oregon and British Columbia, said director Ruth Offen.

Almost 200 artists contribute a variety of work to Island Studios. Don’t miss Donna Reed’s gourds, Ted Husted’s hand-carved hobbit houses, and Lavelle Foos’ contemporary 8-foot-tall totem.

The San Juan Islands Museum of Art’s current juried sculpture show, “Outside the Box, Inside the Museum,” ends Dec. 30. It has enough whimsical work that children would enjoy a visit to see the bronze banana slug, the mixed media Cook Islands and Rabbit Warren-Stacked, and the glass-on-copper and found objects of Warrior Beetles.

MUSEUMS

Stay out of the rain in the ever-popular (20,000-plus visitors a year) Whale Museum. Check out the fin bones of an orca skeleton and see how similar they are to human hands. Look up at a 30-foot-long gray whale skeleton.

Children can play with puppets, dress as an orca, and join parents in listening to a mother whale carry on a conversation with her calf. Exhibits stress the endangered status, research and recovery efforts. November’s buzz has been about the new orca calf in J-pod.

Next door is the little-known American Legion Museum, which requires visitors to make an appointment. Artifacts include a 1988 Ranger Handbook, Kuwait Liberation medals, a Viet Cong flag, and a hand-stitched Civil War flag of the Union Army that has cannon and bullet holes as well as powder burns.

The San Juan Historical Museum has eight buildings on 11/2 acres, including the original San Juan County Jail that was once called “the worst jail in the state of Washington” by the Bellingham Herald.

The star of its 1894 barn is the treasure trove of wool-making equipment. The least-expected item is the evidence trunk from the 1980 murder of Rolf Neslund by his wife Ruth Neslund. (His pieces were later burned in a barrel.)

Marvel at the human capability to hang on to memorabilia when, in the farmhouse, you’re looking at several 1-foot-tall jars of a 100-year-old fruit collection that was sent to the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in Seattle.

OUTSIDE FRIDAY HARBOR

Explore the rest of the island if the weather is even mildly willing. Look for Mona, the camel, in the field across from the San Juan Vineyards. Mona’s mug is on the label of the vineyard’s 2007 Merlot.

Stop at the visitor’s center at American Camp at the San Juan Island National Historic Park. With map in hand, explore beaches, trails and history in the prairie.

And that fox? Its hunting ground was near the camp’s redoubt. Although we were less than 50 feet away during our visit, the fox basically ignored us while it hunted voles and mice.

Up the coast, English Camp offers more buildings than American Camp. Start by taking the path from the parking lot, then veering left on a trail to an overlook. This is an excellent place to photograph the fenced garden, blockhouse and field.

Lime Kiln State Park is the best spot in the Northwest for seeing orcas while standing on shore, except in winter, when the orcas make only an occasional appearance.

But from 1 to 4 p.m. Dec. 6, follow a guide to the top of the historic 1914 lighthouse during the sixth annual Tours to the Top, which includes snacks and a slide show.

ACCOMMODATIONS

We stayed at the downtown Friday Harbor House. Our very comfortable room featured views of the harbor and ferries from its bluff-top location.

The recently remodeled Bluff Restaurant also offered a harbor view. Try the delicious scallop pot pie, followed by the sinful chocolate mousse cake.

About mid-island is Lakedale Resort at Three Lakes. Campsites, upscale canvas cabins, and a 1978 31-foot silver Airstream, complete with lava lamp and safari print fabric, are closed for the winter, but the log cabins, lodge and Lake House are open.

We stayed in a well-furnished log cabin with a full kitchen (sans dishwasher), comfy chairs, fireplace, loft and a peaceful ambience.

In the lodge, every room but one overlooks the lake. The Lake House has the only wood-burning stove on the property.

Roche Harbor Resort combines lime-making history and lodging – and a chance to spend a weekend without needing transportation. About 100 years ago, lime-related warehouses ruled a quarter-mile stretch of harbor.

John Wayne and President Theodore Roosevelt were once guests in the historic Hotel de Haro (1886), which re-opens in February.

Recently-added Quarryman Hall, where we stayed, is the 21st-century version of Haro.

“We imagined how it would be built 100 years ago,” said lodging director Sam Jacobsen, which accounts for the patina on copper roof, clock tower, wrought iron and stone, and the extension that mimics the exterior lines of the Haro.

If you want space, the waterside section has 650-square-foot rooms with a fireplace and heated bathroom tiles.

Take the time to wander through Sculpture Park at Westcott Bay, which displays about 100 sculptures spread out over 19 acres at the resort entrance.