I T I N E R A R Y | S H O R T H O P S
Did You Know ? Fun facts about the San Juan Islands .
• There are no traffic lights anywhere in the islands .
• There are four iconic lighthouses on public lands ; three open to the public in summer .
• San Juan County has more marine shoreline than any other county in the country ( 408 miles ).
• San Juan County is the first county in the country to ban jet skis .
• Roche Harbor Resort ’ s business license pre-dates Washington statehood . The company , in continuous business since 1886 , is now a destination resort offering a spa and five lodging choices — from historic to luxury .
• San Juan Island National Historical Park commemorates peace over war during the “ Pig War ” crisis — the last time the U . S . and Great Britain were engaged in a territorial dispute .
• An ordinance banning Styrofoam take-out containers was passed in 2010 , followed by a ban on single-use plastic bags in 2016 .
• The San Juans are actually the remaining mountaintops of a receding con-
Established in 1893 , the Patos Lighthouse is one of four lighthouses in the San Juan Islands . It is located on Alden Point , the western tip of Patos Island at the north entrance to the Haro Strait .
tinent much older than the American mainland . Worn down by glaciers , the sedimentary rock exposed on the San Juan Islands is from the Paleozoic era , about 540 to 250 million years old , the era of the evolution of fish , reptiles , insects , vascular plants , and at least two ice ages .
• Peter Poalima from the Sandwich Islands ( now Hawaii ) was a sheepherder for the Hudson Bay Company around 1830 . Poalima translates into “ Friday ”. The beautiful bay he lived in was referred to as “ Friday ’ s Harbor ”. The “ s ” was dropped in time .
• The San Juan Island archipelago has 743 islands , reefs , and rocks during low tide , but that number shrinks to 428 when high tide covers lower formations . Only about 20 islands are inhabited .
• Hotel de Haro in Roche Harbor was frequented once by Teddy Roosevelt and John Wayne , who often visited the Hotel de Haro on San Juan Island , where a cast iron bathtub large enough for his 6 ' 4 " frame awaited him . The bathtub is still at the hotel . ivashkova photo
A BITE OF MEXICO ON LOPEZ
ISLAND Slow roasted boneless pork shoulder . Homemade chorizo . A riot of island vegetables . Scratch-made salsas .
This little bit of Mexico — infused with Lopez — isn ’ t what one would expect to find in the San Juans . But that ’ s exactly what you ’ ll discover in Lopez Village at El Taco ‘ Bout It — the food truck located next to Isabel ’ s Espresso .
Owned and operated by husband-wife duo Victor Guerra and Jennifer Contreras , this island gem serves a selection of tacos , burritos , quesadillas , and tortas . The 84-square-foot mobile kitchen ’ s not a fancy set-up . The couple packs it up and tows it away each evening .
But nearby picnic tables and peeka-boo water views do up the ante for this finger-food fare . So too do the host of island-grown ingredients infused in their menu . The kitchen receives a weekly farmers ’ box , loaded with seasonal goodies — some traditional to Mexican cuisine and others which offer a bit more Pacific Northwest flare .
That ’ s the fun of it though . Victor has an uncanny ability to take local ingredients and incorporate them into the flavors with which he and Jennier grew up . Looking to really see Lopez play the star ? Visit on Fridays when their all-local taco features a filling of the week sourced exclusively on island .
Fri . - Sun . 10:30am - 2:30pm 308 Lopez Rd . eltacoboutit . com kenmoreair . com
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