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One of the many friendly deer on Jones Island.

One of the many friendly deer on Jones Island.

With two boats still stuck in Anacortes, waiting on parts, we decided to saunter on over to Jones Island to see if there was any room in the very small North Cove. Much to our surprise, we arrived to find all of the park buoys taken, but enough room in the center to anchor Sea Eagle. We dropped the hook in fairly deep water, checked the set and watched our swing to make sure we’d stay off the rocks and away from the other boats in this cozy but busy cove.

We dropped Eaglet (the large dingy) in the water and putzed over to the dock to explore Jones Island, which is famous for its very tame deer. Sure enough, just steps after arriving and heading down the main trail, we spotted a doe and a pair of fawns munching away and watching the dopey tourists snapping pictures of them.

We hiked over the crest of the island to the South Cove, which is very windy and exposed. There were a couple of nice Selenes bouncing on the park buoys. The scenery was so beautiful that we decided to hike the entire perimeter and set of along the South trail. Jones Island is all a state park and we observed stunning views of the San Juan Islands as we made our way around the island. There were large groups of kayakers camping in various parts of the island and I could see why they made the trek!

Eventually, we made our way back to Sea Eagle and then the afternoon’s entertainment really began. We observed several boats come into the small and crowded cove, then attempt to anchor where they really shouldn’t. At least half a dozen came in, dropped the hook, realized it wasn’t going to work and then pulled anchor and left.

Our favorite was a Bayliner that came in, dropped the anchor very close to shore, then attempted some odd form of stern tie off at a very large angle to the transom. The boat kept getting closer and closer to the rock wall and I was just remarking to the crew that it looked like it was almost aground when we heard this gut wrenching ERRRRRRPPPPP as the dingy rubbed against the rock wall, much like a fender.

After more than an hour spent fiddling with lines, they eventually abandoned the cove and cruised off to another anchorage. With the entertainment over, the crew was hungry and it was time to throw some steaks on the new BBQ and enjoy another glorious evening in the San Juan’s. After dinner, a beautifully restored old seiner that was built in 1924 anchored in the cove (Commencement), so we went over to say hello.