Over 15 years ago, long before he met me, my now-husband hiked to the top of Mount Constitution, and looked down at the views of the San Juan Islands below. One particular interesting-shaped island caught his eye. He began to dream about visiting this island, exploring it, and sharing it with someone. The years passed by. Finally on October 16, 2013, his dream came true. Together he and I spent six hours, visiting, exploring, and sharing Sucia Island.
Sucia Island State Park, located about two and a half miles north of Orcas Island, is a 564-acre marine park with 77,700 feet of shoreline. With seven trails and walkable service roads, totaling about ten miles, we walked about six miles during our day. Sometimes the walking was through forest with trees, plants, and wildflowers, but mostly it was along the scenic shoreline. It was quiet, and the views were beautiful.
Historically there is evidence that coastal Salish tribes of North America occupied Sucia Island more than 2,500 years ago. Later the Spaniards named the island Sucia, which in a nautical sense means foul or dirty, because of the many rocks and reefs which “fouled” or “dirtied” the waters around the island, making it a hazardous landing for sailing vessels. In 1972 Sucia Island became a state marine park.
To get to Sucia Island, we chartered a boat from Outer Island Expeditions. The island is equipped with docks and mooring floats for private boats, and kayaking is another option for getting to the island. Once on the island some of the activities you can enjoy, in addition to walking, are viewing the wildlife, birding, picnicking, diving, fishing, and camping.
As my husband and I explored and shared this island together, I began to take pictures of the many park benches of Sucia Island State Park that one can sit at to enjoy those beautiful views.
Sweet Travels!
For more activities to do in the San Juan Islands below are links to my blogs for hiking on Orcas Island, and visiting five lighthouses of the San Juan Islands:
Patos Island and Turn Point Lighthouses
Burrows Island, Cattle Point, and Lime Kiln Lighthouses
Some information in this blog obtained from the following websites, which also have more information if you are interested in visiting Sucia Island State Park:
Washington State Parks – Sucia Island
To charter a boat, visit Outer Island Expeditions.