Orca Island, WA

"Robert M. Gary" wrote in message
om...
My wife and I have talked about flying up to Washington state to visit
Orca island. My understanding is that they have Oracs that live their
year-round (they don't migrate).
Can anyone suggest..

1) Best place to land ( I understand you can land on one of the
islands and you don't need ground transportation??)

You don't need much ground transportation. Best thing to do is to try to
visit all the islands. They each have their own character. Orcas has the
most varied geography and the highest point, Mt. Constitution. The view from
there is worthwhile, as is the bike ride down. Orcas has the largest artist
community. Best place to stay on Orcas is camping at Moran State Park, but
you need reservations.

Lopez is worth a visit. It is a quiet island good for long beach hikes,
bicycling, and just relaxing.

San Juan Island has the most activities. Friday Harbor is where the whale
tours depart and there is a whaling museum there. It also has some good
restaurants. It is actually a shorter walk to town from the transient
parking area than it is to the terminal. In town you can rent scooters and
other vehicles. Walking the hill back up to the airport at the end of a day
of exploring can be bit challenging. Roche Harbor has an interesting marina
and is convenient to one of the major sites in the San Juans, English Camp.
English Camp is noted for its colonial era buildings, ancient trees, and the
infamous Pig War. American Camp is at the far end of the island and there
are no original buildings left, no trees, and not much of a view of
anything, but Pickett (of Pickett's charge at Gettysburg) once commanded
there.

2) Best place to stay
3) Best Orca activity. Do you need to get tickets for a charter boat

You get the tickets at the charter offices with the big "whale watching"
signs on them. It is not cheap. Orcas are generally in the area from May to
October. It is best to make reservations before you go. You will almost
certainly see whales.

to go out to see them. What are the odds of actually seeing an Orca?
4) What other activities can you do on the island?

WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT PLAN TO STAY ANYWHERE IN THE SAN JUAN ISLANDS UNLESS
YOU HAVE CONFIRMED RESERVATIONS!!!!!

Otherwise your chief activity will be flying somewhere else. The San Juans
are an extremely popular tourist destination. Most places are booked up well
in advance. Those that are not are not worth staying at. My personal opinion
is that the best place to stay anywhere in the San Juan Islands is Roche
Harbor, followed by Rosario.

Every year hundreds of tourists take the ferries to the San Juans and cannot
get back the same day and end up stranded with no place to stay. With an
airplane you won't be stranded, but without reservations you won't be
staying on the islands, either.