Jones Island to Westcott Bay

Remember that peaceful, postcard-perfect Jones Island from yesterday?

Well… today had other plans.

By mid-morning, as the overnight cruisers quietly slipped away from the dock, a Bayliner 4788 came rumbling in and tied up opposite OceanFlyer. Four guys climbed ashore carrying oversized drink cups — never a subtle sign aboard a cruising dock.

Within minutes they informed the very polite Ranger Tug captain nearby that more boats were coming… along with “lots of dudes.”

At that point, discretion seemed the better part of seamanship, so I retreated to the salon to work on the blog.

Not long afterward, the anchorage was treated to what can only be described as a full-contact assault on Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville. It was spectacularly terrible. Jimmy Buffett could not have rolled any faster in his grave.

Sensing that Jones Island’s peaceful chapter had officially closed, we slipped the lines and pointed OceanFlyer toward Westcott Bay.

Westcott has long been one of our favorite stops in the San Juan Islands. Overshadowed by neighboring Garrison Bay and the ever-popular English Camp, Westcott somehow remains calmer, quieter, and wonderfully understated.

That’s exactly why we like it.

From our anchorage, it’s only a short dinghy ride to English Camp and even closer to Westcott Bay Shellfish Co., home to the freshest oysters we’ve ever eaten.

Now, Karen and I are not exactly oyster people.

Or at least we weren’t.

But these oysters are so impossibly fresh — and prepared so well — that somehow we keep returning year after year. Pacific Northwest cruising has a way of changing your standards.

This year, Westcott also served as our rendezvous point with our friends aboard Navigator, a beautiful Kadey-Krogen 48.

Over the next couple of days we traded dinners aboard each other’s boats, wandered the grounds of English Camp, and took on one of the most difficult puzzles I have ever encountered. Cruisers will understand: somehow a thousand-piece puzzle becomes a subtle competitive event untill your brain melts and eyes water.

Good friends, calm water, and shared meals aboard — hard to improve on that.

DID I MENTION THAT THE WEATHER WAS PERFECT IN WESTCOTT BAY

Next stop: the Puget Sound Grand Banks Owners Association 25th Anniversary Rendezvous in Roche Harbor.