After rain overnight and all morning, it was great to see the sun come out in the afternoon. By late morning, many boats had left the Reid Harbor anchorage.

This map of the Canadian Gulf Islands and Washington San Juan Islands shows where we stopped on our one-week cruise in July 2012.

Heavy rain all night and into the morning made this a good day for lounging and reading. Cool and windy too, with temps only in the 50s.

We were anchored on the south side of the harbor, a bit away from the head of the bay…so we were able to enjoy watching boats come and go. There is also a lot of kayak activity here, as the beach at the head of the bay is sandy and offers an easy place for getting in and out of kayaks. Also, the Washington State Park here offers a great place for camping, and many of the guide companies bring groups here.

As we crossed San Juan Channel yesterday, I received a message on my iPhone from Verizon Wireless that my phone had been picked up by a Canadian cell tower. I had forgotten that as soon as we reach the northern part of the San Juans…even if we’re not in Canadian waters…we can get either a U. S or Canadian cell connection…so it is a good idea either to get a Canadian roaming plan or turn off data. Since we don’t plan to be cruising in Canada, we didn’t get a roaming plan, and I decided to turn off the data on my phone and go without the Internet and email. The roaming rates while in Canada are pretty steep. In addition, we get only a marginal 3G signal here in Reid Harbor.

It was fun to watch the schooner “Odyessy” come into the harbor.

A closer view of the aft deck and cockpit of the schooner “Odyssey.”

The sky cleared later in the day, and we enjoyed sun for the rest of the afternoon and had a clear evening. When the tide changed, our boat turned to face the setting sun, and we got blasted by the bright sun. We covered the windshield with our winter Sunbrella cover to avoid being blinded.

It was the perfect night for an easy dinner of vegie burgers and mandarin oranges.

By the time the sun set in Reid Harbor, the winds had died and it became a wonderfully calm and quiet evening.

What can be more beautiful than a full moon shining over the water in a calm anchorage…it was gorgeous!

Next —> July 4: At Reid Harbor