San Juan Islands

Yesterday hubby and I rented an airplane, and flew to the beautiful San Juan Islands.  The weather was perfect, nice and warm & sunny (thankfully the rain held off til today!).  We are lucky to live not far from the islands, which were just a short 30 minute plane ride away.  The views from above were breathtaking! (warning, lots of photos in this post!)

 I was surprised to learn that there are 172 islands that comprise the San Juan Island chain, ranging in size from tiny uninhabited rocky "islets" (didn't know that was a word, but it's in our tour book!), to the 4 larger main islands.  The views were even more stunning in person than in these photos!

 Ok, Blogger was acting up on me as I was uploading these pictures, so some of them are not in order!  Anyway, I snapped this shot of Deception Pass bridge on the way home.  We've driven across it, and walked across it as well!  If you click on the photo again, you just may see the pedestrians walking along the side!  So neat to see it from this perspective!  The bridge joins Fidalgo Island to Whidbey Island.

 Aaaaah!  Spectacular views!  The snow covered mountain you see in the distance is Mt. Baker, one of the highest mountains in the state.

 Another shot of the bridge.

 Of course I had to hit up a couple of wine tasting rooms while on the island! (hubby passed, as he's the designated pilot!).  Hold the piano bar, just give me the wine!

 This sign made me laugh!  They take coffee drinking very seriously here in the Pacific Northwest!  It made me think of my caffeine addicted coffee affectionado blogging friend of mine (come on, you know who you are!).

 Lots of quaint architecture and pretty flowers!

 More amazing views!

 And a nice view of the wing, haha!

 Here's a close up of Mt. Baker.  Isn't it stunning?

 Ok, I was getting carried away with the snow covered mountain shots!  I just couldn't help myself:)

 A little slice of heaven on earth, I think!

Ok, here we are getting closer to our destination of Friday Harbor, on the island of San Juan.  I think that's probably one of the most popular destinations, from the looks of it.

 Most people arrive by ferry, and in the summer months there are really long waits to get on the ferries (been there, done that!!), so it was a real treat being able to fly in for the day!  The main town is just a short walk from the airport.  Good thing, as we had a big lunch on the island to burn off!

 This cute little island had just a few houses on it.  Can you imagine living there?

 Coming in for a landing.  Nice view of the prop!

 I took this photo for all of you pink loving ladies out there!  Isn't this the cutest?!  I'd never seen a pink airplane before til yesterday!  I was dying to find out if the pilot was a man or a woman!!!

 Speaking of pink, look at these absolutely gorgeous stargazer lilies!  The smelled as wonderful as they looked!

 And gorgeous blue hydrangeas!  Sure wish I had luck growing them!

 Love the bright blue blossoms!

 These white and pale yellow lilies were pretty, too!

 I loved the window boxes & shutters of this pretty old building!

 Tons of boats in the harbor.

  We had a really yummy lunch at a waterfront restaurant.  I had the most delicious crab burger, yum! This float plane came in for a landing while we were eating, which was very exciting!

 And here is my cute pilot hubby and our ride home!

One last shot that I snapped on the flight home.  Thanks for coming along with me!  We can't wait to check out the other island next time!!

Have a great day!