Two-Island Trek: Great Coastal Hikes in the San Juan Islands

Program Registration & Orientation: After you have your room assignment, head to the conference room at 5:00 p.m. to register with the Road Scholar program staff, which is also where our Orientation session will take place. You’ll receive a welcome packet with up-to-date schedule that reflects any changes, and other important information. If you will arrive later than 8:00 p.m., please ask for your packet when you check in. The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. Our Group Leaders will also serve as our hiking instructors throughout the program. Periods in the daily schedule designated as “Free time” and “At leisure” offer opportunities to do what you like and make your experience even more meaningful and memorable according to your personal preferences. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local circumstances/conditions. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding.

In the Conference Room, we’ll enjoy a catered Northwest-style dinner plus coffee, tea, water.

Continue getting to know your fellow Road Scholars, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the day ahead. Be sure to prepare for check-out and transfer in the morning.

You'll receive a breakfast voucher. Breakfast is served in the lobby restaurant.

We'll travel by motorcoach to Fidalgo Island for a mid-morning hike along the northern shoreline of the Deception Pass Gorge led by our Group Leader and trail experts. The Deception Pass area is a dramatic seascape where the tidal flow and whirlpools beneath the twin bridges connecting Fidalgo Island to Whidbey Island move quickly. We'll hike beaches, forested bluffs, and rocky headlands that offer picturesque vistas of the area and opportunities to spot wildlife.

We’ll have our sack lunches featuring a sandwich, chef's choice side (whole fresh fruit, chips, or deli salad), beverage, and a chef’s choice fresh bakery treat for everyone.

Next, we'll board our motorcoach and travel northward to Anacortes where we'll transfer to the WA State ferry bound for San Juan Island. You may wish to enjoy the view from the inside passenger cabins or from the outside decks as we take our 1.5 hour journey through the archipelago to Friday Harbor. Upon arrival at the dock we’ll walk about 5 blocks to the hotel to check in.

At the hotel cafe, we’ll enjoy a tasty buffet meal featuring salad, a main entrée, sides, vegetables, and dessert, plus coffee, tea, and water. Other beverages will be available for purchase.

We’ll then be joined in the hotel conference room by a local resident expert who will offer an insider’s look at contemporary life in the Islands and explores issues affecting island life.

A breakfast featuring hot and cold choices and beverages will be served in the hotel cafe.

After breakfast, we’ll gather in the hotel conference room for a presentation from a local expert on our local resident orca pods. We’ll also hear recordings of a uniquely social population using their “language” to communicate with one another. A quick review of the day’s hikes will follow. Later in the morning we’ll head out to the trail! Traveling via vans, our route will be divided into four segments, so opportunities to shorten your hiking for the day are available. You may choose to hike any or all of the four segments as you wish.

Out on the trail, we’ll have our sack lunches featuring a sandwich, chips, beverage, and a chef’s choice fresh bakery treat for everyone.

Hiking will continue throughout the afternoon along the coastal prairie and bluffs in the San Juan Island National Historic Park at American Camp featuring views of the Haro Strait, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Olympic Mountains, and Vancouver Island. We’ll return to the hotel in the late afternoon.

Served in the hotel cafe. Coffee, tea, and water are provided and other beverages may be purchased.

Gathering in the hotel conference room, we’ll attend a presentation given by a local guest artist showcasing the creative and artistic spirits that are abundant in these islands.

Early breakfast served in hotel cafe.

At the dock, we'll board the ferry for a ride to the neighboring Orcas Island where we’ll go on a hike in the old growth forest as we circumnavigate Moran State Park's Mountain Lake, a local favorite for serenity and immersion with nature. At the end of the hike, we’ll take a van to the summit of Mt. Constitution to savor incredible marine views of the San Juan and Canadian Gulf Islands.

At the summit of Mt. Constitution, we’ll enjoy our sack lunches.

Our hikes will continue on Orcas Island with the Little Summit Trail, which affords beautiful views of eastern Orcas Island and Rosario Strait from periodic vantage points. We’ll finish up our hike in the late afternoon and take the return ferry to the hotel on San Juan Island.

This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like in Friday Harbor. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions.

At leisure.

Served in the hotel cafe

After breakfast, we’ll gather in the hotel conference room for a presentation by a local expert from San Juan Island Preservation Trust Stewardship, which will highlight a rare island ecology and the wildlife supported by these habitats. A quick review of the day’s hikes will follow. Later in the morning we’ll transfer in vans to head out to the trail! Opportunities to shorten the overall hiking distance available to those who wish. For the first leg of our trek within San Juan Island National Park, we’ll climb up Mount Young and make our way over and down into English Camp on the shores of Garrison Bay. Lovely views of the surrounding islands from atop the mountain makes for a fulfilling morning hike.

At English Camp National Park, we’ll enjoy our sack lunches.

Easier going, the Bell Point Loop on the shores of serene Garrison Bay offers a more relaxed and serene shoreline trail with no elevation gain. Upon completion of Bell Point Loop, we’ll transfer via vans to historic Roche Harbor Village on the Island’s northwest corner. While in Roche Harbor, we’ll have a choice two walking activities that you may choose to do on own. Choice 1: Set out on a short stroll through an outdoor sculpture park where we’ll view various works of art and sculptures. Choice 2: Self-exploration of Roche Harbor Resort and it’s gardens and marina. John McMillan was the founder of the Roche Harbor Lime Company and built the Hotel del Haro, which we know today as Roche Harbor Resort. In the late afternoon, we’ll return by vans to the hotel.

Served in the hotel cafe. Coffee, tea, and water are provided and other beverages may be purchased.

We’ll be joined by a beloved local musician in the hotel conference room and treated to an exclusive musical performance.

Served in the hotel cafe.

A wildlife rehabilitation expert will join us in the hotel conference room to begin our morning with an informative presentation about the wildlife that call the San Juan Islands home. We’ll learn about the rehabilitation efforts and techniques of the organization while also learning about the specific characteristics of local species. Following our presentation, we’ll set out via vans for a hike along the grassy shorelines and beaches of San Juan Island starting from Jakle’s Lagoon parking area. We’ll experience the peacefulness of the national park's American Camp and Griffin Bay area beneath the cedar and fir canopy with its pristine lagoons and estuaries until we conclude near Cattle Point Lighthouse at the island’s southern tip.

At Cattle Point’s picnic tables with wonderful marine views, we’ll enjoy our sack lunches.

We’ll then take some time to independently explore Cattle Point Interpretive Area, which includes views of the neighboring Lopez Island, shorebirds and cetaceans, the restored lighthouse, and remnants of the Navy radio station that was in operation from the 1920s through the 1930s. Returning to hotel in the mid-afternoon, take some time to enjoy Friday Harbor independently, or just relax.

At the hotel cafe, we’ll have a tasty farewell dinner. Coffee, tea, and water are provided and other beverages may be purchased.

In the hotel conference room, we'll have a short review of the program and tomorrow’s departure details. Share some of your favorite experiences from the program with new Road Scholar friends. Be sure to prepare for check-out and departures in the morning.

Early breakfast will be served in the hotel cafe.

Once checked-out of the hotel, we’ll depart Friday Harbor, San Juan Island, via the Washington State Ferry. Upon docking, we’ll transfer to a chartered motorcoach and ride to Seattle with drop-offs at SeaTac International Airport and the starting hotel. This concludes our program. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Don’t forget to join our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Best wishes for all your journeys!