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Trip Report    

Sea Kayak - Saddlebag Island

Easy launch to paddle around multiple small islands in the San Juans. Popular with other boaters but solitude can be found if you look in the right places.

Marie Mills Marie Mills
September 11, 2024
  • Road suitable for all vehicles

  • Launched from the protected waters at Seafarer's Park with a plan to paddle around Saddlebag, Dot, and Huckleberry. Whether you cross Guemes Channel or Padilla Bay north of March Point, you are faced with a crossing shared by many fast motor boaters heading in and out of the marina.

    Rips exist on the March Point route. A non-issue with smaller currents.If you do that crossing, might as well throw in a circumnavigation of Hat Island as well. 

    Winds are likely to pick up in the afternoon, regardless of the forecast, and be with you all the way back to launch.

We enjoyed free parking at Seafarers Park. Bathrooms available in a building north of the beach. Smoke from Oregon fires made for hazy air that eventually cleared.

We crossed north of March Point, passing the stern of a parked tanker and met Hat Island at it's midpoint. We paddled counter-clockwise around it. This shoreline  is not friendly to landing, but is beautiful and worth seeing. 

We headed over to the WWTA site on Saddlebag for lunch and a hike. The beach on the other side of the island is very popular with motor boaters and today was not an exception. A large group had set up a tent and pots to cook their rice, noodles, crab, and other food. They  were playing music and having a good time. We hiked around one lobe of  the island, then passed the stocked composting toilet back to the beach. 

We headed around Dot, completed our circumnavigation of Saddlebag, then over to Huckleberry. From there, we crossed the bay, and retraced our route to the beach. 

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Notes on land use:

Hat Island (Managed by WADNR)
Landing is permitted but not really feasible. DNR asks that you please stay on the beach and don't hike inland. A good place to find solitude.

Saddlebag Island (Managed by State Parks, WWTA site on south side)
Good camping and hiking available.

Dot Island (Managed by State Parks, part of the San Juan National Wildlife Refuge)
No landing. Please stay 200 yards from shore.

Huckleberry Island (Owned by Samish Tribe)
Open to the public. Good landing available on the south side of the island. Also a good place to find solitude.