the san juan islands, part 1

When I started doing research for our trip, I kept reading and hearing "Half the fun is getting there." That was so true. Since we weren't planning on renting a car, we took the Bellair Airporter Shuttle from downtown Seattle to Anacortes, where we would catch the ferry. Blake did awesome on the bus ride, thanks to Katrina, the kind lady sitting next to us.

Once we got to Anacortes, we had to wait almost 2 hours for the ferry. We found a nice little rocky beach to play on while we waited. Then we loaded up on the ferry and sailed away.

The ferry was much different than I had anticipated. In a good way. There was an inside deck with tables and benches to relax on. And there were also outdoor decks to catch the fresh sea breeze on. When we go back (yes, we are already dreaming of when we can go back), we will totally work on the puzzles they have on the tables in the passenger deck. But with an active Blake, that wasn't an option this time around.

^^we wanted to travel as light as possible. this was all we took, but it was plenty to keep track of!^^

And then we arrived. To Friday Harbor. I'm probably going to say this a lot, but the photos we took DO NOT even come close to the beauty of this place. I hate that no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't capture it. So bear with me. 

There are 137 islands in the San Juan Islands, but only about 5 of them are accessible by the Washington State Ferries. We chose to stay on San Juan Island, because it was the most accessible without a car. Friday Harbor is the main ferry harbor on the island, and one of the cutest, most quaint towns we've seen. 

FRIDAY HARBOR

^^I may be biased, but this was the most fun grocery store to shop at! We picked up groceries for breakfast and  lunches to keep costs lower so we could eat out a few other meals.   ^^

And this was our hotel. 

No inns are cheap on the islands, but this was about the cheapest we could find and still be in a good location and decent quality. Plus, I was shocked to discover how many B&Bs don't allow children. So our options were very limited. But all in all, for the price, location, comfort, and friendliness of staff, we would definitely stay there again. We had a fridge to keep food in. It was nice to be able to pack picnics for our out and about days. The only downside was it was about a 10-minute walk from the ferry and shops area, which was only a problem when we were hauling our luggage to and from. A lot of other B&Bs that we looked at were so remote from the town that we would have had to have car the entire time. Walking through town was actually one of our favorite things.

We ate dinner at Vinny's, an Italian Restaurant and probably a little too nice for us to bring a child to, but we were so hungry and tired that we counted it as our splurge for the trip. 

The next morning, our adventures resumed. Because remember? Half the fun was getting there.