You know that old game, “If you were stranded on a deserted island, who would you pick to be there with you?”    My answer these days would include Wheeling Nina, because I know if there is a lighthouse on the island, she would most certainly find a way to it!  😉

There are two lighthouses in the San Juan Islands which are not accessible by car or ferry;   Patos Light and Turning Point.   The only way to reach them is by private charter.  Nina and I have been exchanging emails on how to make this happen, and I tell her if she can find the charter, I will find a way to make it, no matter what day.   Then mid-week, the email comes…”If you decide to stay until Monday, I have managed to arrange a charter to see Patos Lighthouse.”   Oh, she’s goooood…

Since Nina is volunteering at the Mount Constitution Interpretive Center, she is considered one of the “Friends of Moran,” the volunteer force that helps support Moran State Park.   So in support of the volunteer efforts, Outer Island Expeditions offers a familiarization trip on  their island expeditions.   Since Paul will be doing the volunteer shift on Monday, I get to tag along as Nina’s guest!   Oh, I am about as high on the “happy scale” as I get!

Patos Island, Spanish for “Duck Island is a mere 200 acres in size.  It was named by a Spanish explorer back in 1792.   It is beautifully wooded in the center, with pebbly beaches and a gorgeous protected cove.  There is nothing on the island except the Patos Lighthouse and a State Park with some of the most idyllic campgrounds I have seen.

Idyllic cove with the perfect campsite or mooring.

There will be five of us on the trip, three volunteers, one other solo traveler Joanne, and me.   The owner of Outer Island Expeditions himself will be conducting our charter, Beau, a handsome man of the sea, not yet turned “salty old sea dog.”  😉    Anticipation is high as we all board the small skiff, Kodyak, bound for Patos Island.

“There’s a lighthouse out there. I have a job to do.”

Captain Beau

Perfectly calm seas

The sea is flat calm, but looks are deceiving, as this is “Boundary Pass,” some of the most active water flow between the US and Canada where currents flow down through the Strait of Georgia, parting around the little Patos Island.  There is a very distinct line of demarcation in the surface of the water, which Beau explains as “tidal currents.”    Beneath us is a vast drop-off.  On one side of the boat, the water is a mere 7 feet deep, but on the other side, it drops to over a hundred feet.  This is where large pelagics have been known to hang out, waiting for their dinner to swim up over the wall.   As if on cue, we see porpoise jumping across the surface.

Beau is going to motor us close along the shoreline first before we stop to disembark.  We see sea lions lazing on the rocks.  As we approach, they all begin to dive beneath the surface.

Sea lions asking, “Can we get a little privacy here?”

Note eagles nest above right

Soon, as we round the corner, a collective sigh can be heard from Nina and me as the beautiful little Patos Light comes into view.   From the sound of the camera clicks, you would think it was a paparazzi boat.  Way out at the end of the promontory she stands, gleaming white against the cobalt blue sky, with her little red Dutch roof gable turndowns accenting the picture perfect postcard.

Beau drops us off via ladder in the calm cove, and we all set off to explore, with Nina and I beating a path down the half mile trail to the lighthouse.   We have her all to ourselves for the good bit of time we are allotted on the island.   I think between us, we photographed every angle possible without the aid of a helicopter.

If I were a painter, I would paint this and call it “Nina’s Picnic.”

Beau gives us a little time to enjoy the beach and soak up the sun before it is time to motor back across the strait to Orcas Island.  

Note well camouflaged tent and beautiful wooden kayak on shore.

I say goodbye to my “lighthouse nut” friend Nina, with the promise to meet up again further south this winter.  I don’t think there will be any lighthouses there, but if there are, Nina will surely find them!