Taking the family to Roche Harbor, San Juans for a few nights in July (8-12). I've got a 19' sled with a 150 pump and I'm wondering what to do when I get there. I imagine crabbing and bottom fishing, but don't know when or where. Any suggestions? Can anyone recommend a guide for the first time out? Looks like it'll cost me $100 to ferry the sled and suburban, so I want to make the best of it.

The boat will add about $40 to your ferry fee from Anacortes to Friday Harbor. Well worth it, I'd say! Don't mind the snickering and snide comments you'll get when people see your sled ;-) They're more used to Sea Sports and Olympics. I'm not sure if Roche has a ramp, but I know Snug Harbor a few miles south of Roche does.

Crabbing should be back in season by then. E-mail and I'll send you GPS coordinates for three sites that have been very good to me in past years.

Salmon are OK. July 1-31: Two-salmon daily limit of which one may be a chinook (22 inch minimum). The SW coast of San Juan Island is popular, although July is a bit early.

Ling Cod will be off-limits.

Rockfish are OK, but if you're bottom-fishing, you'll likely hook more Ling Cod than rockfish, and you'll have to release them, which causes high mortality, and you'll be in fairly open water on a sled, so maybe it's not worth it.

Other than that, Stuart Island is a fun day-trip that you can only get to by boat. There are some nice hiking trails, especially if you go all the way out to the lighthouse on the western tip. If you like oysters, go down to Westcott Bay and pick up a dozen, and cook them on the barbie with some pepperjack and wine. Yum!

Regards.

Mike
Woodinville