The morning air is chilly at 9:30, but locals tell me the September weather is ideal for cycling. Any concern dissipates as my friends and I begin ascending and descending and our bodies warm up 鈥 flat lands here will be hard to find. That鈥檚 fine with us. We鈥檙e a climbing group.
We鈥檙e on the San Juans, an archipelago in Washington state, There are 172 named islands and reefs, but we鈥檙e here to see the three most popular 鈥 San Juan, Orcas and Lopez 鈥 over three days. These land masses were created over hundreds of millions of years, first pushed up by colliding terranes (blocks of Earth鈥檚 crust) and then sculpted by glaciers into undulating lands.
There鈥檚 a perfect mix of geography, variety and density 鈥 or rather, lack of density. Two-lane roads flow like roller-coaster tracks over countless short hills. Motorized traffic is light, and there are forests, meadows and beachfront roads to explore.
The Hotel de Haro was vital to local limestone mining more than a century ago. Today, it鈥檚 an upscale resort on San Juan Island.
Dan ShryockSan Juan Island
The plan is to circumnavigate on the first day. From the hub of Friday Harbor, we pedal northwest to Roche Harbor, once a port for a limestone quarry. The Hotel de Haro was central to the lime works operation when it opened in 1886. It鈥檚 now at the heart of the Roche Harbor Resort. We detour through the resort and along quiet back-roads before circling back to the main West Valley Road.
Our route takes us past landmarks, including the San Juan Islands Sculpture Park, and into the forested English Camp of the , one half of the park鈥檚 monument to the Pig War. That鈥檚 an 1859 squabble between British and American forces over, yes, a pig.
We head onward to , where tents dot the waterfront campgrounds, and kayakers are returning from a multi-night stay on a small, nearby island. We ride through woodlands of Douglas firs and Western red cedars and reach , finding ice cream, soda and snacks at a concessionaire.
We eventually arrive at the national park鈥檚 American Camp and start climbing to the island鈥檚 extreme southeast peninsula. But with heavy fog blocking our views, we retreat, back to Friday Harbor for the night鈥檚 sleep.
Orcas Island
Even the best-laid plans can go awry. News from home threatens to shorten our trip, so we split up to cover the remaining terrain: my friends heading to Orcas while I ride solo on Lopez. The Tillikum ferry from Friday Harbor reaches Orcas in 45 minutes, and Lopez another 35 minutes later.
The cycling experience is unlike our day on San Juan. While life on the latter centres on Friday Harbor, and traffic diminishes away from town, vehicles regularly travel between the Orcas ferry terminal and the main community of Eastsound. This makes biking challenging for less-experienced riders. There鈥檚 consolidated traffic and fewer roads (with minimal shoulders).
But undaunted cyclists will be rewarded on this island: the eight-kilometre, 2,000-foot climb up Mount Constitution Road, for instance, leads to panoramic views from the highest point on the San Juans. It鈥檚 an ideal place to get a comprehensive sense of the archipelago. The Olympic and Cascade mountains are visible on a clear day.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 imagine a more peaceful destination for a casual bike ride,鈥 says the writer of Lopez Island.
Dan ShryockLopez Island
This is my favourite island. I can鈥檛 imagine a more peaceful destination for a casual bike ride. I pedal up a gentle grade along Mud Bay Road. Among the tall trees, I spin in a comfortable gear, blissfully alone with my thoughts. While this is a primary route on , traffic is nonexistent on this day.
Certainly, there can be cars 鈥 approximately 3,000 people live on this island, and most use Mud Bay and Center roads. Traffic picks up in the summer, especially where vehicles wait to drive onto the ferry. But turn down the back-roads and you鈥檙e alone once again.
My favourite stretch is a nearly five-kilometre downhill roll while returning to the ferry. I let gravity take me down the road, around a bend and into the beachfront neighbourhood of Port Stanley (population 8, according to a handmade driftwood sign).
Cycling throughout the San Juans is fun, but there鈥檚 something special about Lopez. There鈥檚 the quiet, and the constant transitions from forest to pasture, from shoreline to hill climb. Best of all, there are the moments on the road that cyclists can have all to themselves.
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