Flotilla Fun!

Published 5:00pm on 26 Sep 2023

OWSA sailors spent a week in the San Juan Islands in September, 2023.  Here is what they were up to...

THE STATISTICS:

• 7 days of sailing, fun, and friendship September 1 through 8
• 7 sailboats from 37 to 42 feet; 6 chartered, 1 skipper-owned
• 7 OWSA skippers: Julie Cumiford, Julie Schumann, Julie Demaree, Kathy Souhrada, Teresa Long, Alice Stuckey, and Liv Ormond

• 35 women from OWSA aboard
• 93 nautical miles
• 5 San Juan Islands visited: Sucia, Orcas, Stuart, San Juan, Lummi or Eagle
• 4 types mooring: anchor, stern tying, mooring ball, and docks
• 3 nature hikes: Sucias rock formations; Stuart Islands lighthouse, Orcas Island lakes
• 1 history lesson at Rosario on Orcas Island
• 1 scrumptious potluck
• 0 serious mishaps or problems
• innumerable smiles and constant laughter

A week of variable weather conditions kept crews busy shedding jackets in warm sunshine or scrambling to find rain gear. Excellent sailing in all points of sail was experienced as we rounded islands and traversed channels keeping an ever-constant lookout for submerged reefs and crab pots. Crews learned about predicting current and tides, mooring procedures, monitoring systems aboard (electrical, water, and engine).