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In a small converted garage, roughly six miles southwest of Friday Harbor, you’ll often find Paula West covered in clay.
A Connecticut native, she came to San Juan Island in 1990 (by way of New Hampshire, California, Oregon, and Canada). It was here that she met her husband, Joe Cooper. And it was here she set up her studio in 1993.
Flying wasn’t the original plan for Christina Rzeplinski. But after taking a private jet to tour colleges on the East Coast, the trajectory of her life was forever changed. Christina wanted to be a pilot.
“I was really lucky. A girlfriend from high school took me with her to tour colleges. We flew on a private jet to New York, Boston and Connecticut,” Christina said. “Most people get on a private jet and think, ‘I wish I could always fly on a private jet.’ I got on and said, ‘I want to fly this thing.’”
Slow-paced island life, farm-to-table cuisine, and intimate accommodations make for the perfect winter escape.
Though the San Juan Islands aren’t as popular during the drizzly season, the relatively deserted towns make for a crowd-free adventure. The slow pace allows shop owners and artisans linger with customers. Cloudy days offer their own kind of beauty. Mist often clings to fields and shrouds shores, lifting like a translucent curtain.
The hikes remain beautiful and wildlife plentiful during the fall and winter months. But don’t feel pressed to go exploring. These cuddle-worthy destinations feature cozy fireplaces that may keep you indoors all day and all night. Whether it’s a solo getaway or a party of two, the San Juan Islands offer the perfect mix of solitude and hospitality.
Raised in the airline industry, Caitlin Hunter’s no stranger to helping make a passenger’s travel day fly by smoothly. She joined her mom at SkyWest Airlines in 2005, doing anything and everything that was needed.
“You name it, I’ve done it. Working the ticket counter. Loading bags. Pushing the airplane out. Being a gate agent. I’ve done everything but fly the airplane,” Caitlin explained in a break between customer service calls.
Five years ago, she joined the Kenmore Air family as a Seasonal Customer Service Agent. “Kenmore is a great place to work. I absolutely love it here,” she said. A people person through and through, Caitlin’s upbeat attitude made her a perfect fit for working with customers and she was quickly hired on year-round at the Lake Union seaplane terminal.
From sandwiches to a mix-and-match spread of fixings, discover some of the best places to get picnic food in Seattle.
Derived from the French term ‘pique-nique,’ a picnic initially described gourmands who brought their own wine when dining out. But by the Middle Ages, this beloved pastime began to acquire the respect it so rightly deserves. An elegant and leisurely affair — Seattle picnics are particularly renowned, if for no other reason than they mark the scant three months of Emerald City sunshine.
So, gather ye blankets while ye may. Load your coolers with a nosh-worthy spread from some of the area’s best shops slinging eat-with-your-hands goods. And, find yourself a sunny spot to lounge.
What makes a wetland biologist trade water and grass for butter and flour? For Stephanie Smith it was the desire to be more creative and find a career she could do anywhere in the world.
A Pacific Northwest native, she dove fingers first into a world of dough. And after completing the pastry program at Le Cordon Blue in Seattle, Stephanie ran the bakery for Microsoft’s catering service. But she longed to use her skills at a job where her hands got sticky, customers ordered in person, and her schedule allowed her to travel.
Quality craftsmanship — that’s what motivates Mike Smith. As the lead machinist and welder at Kenmore Air, doing things the right way every time is essential.
“I like having to do stuff right. I like that part of my job,” said Mike. In his role at Kenmore Air Mike specializes in creating prototypes, fabricating custom parts, making tools, and producing small production runs of parts.
Walking into Studio 45 Glass on Lopez Island is like falling down the rabbit hole with Alice. It’s a world of color, where possibilities are only the beginning and art feels like it is created from thin air.
After traveling the world working and studying glass art in Italy, New York and Germany, owner and master glassblower Rahman Anderson returned home to Lopez Island, where he grew up. He wanted to put down roots and settle on his family land where he has now built his own home and grows a garden.
Pacific Northwest locals are very nonchalant when discussing Dungeness crab. Dungies (as locals call them) are arguably the best crab on the planet. We crabbers are somewhat protective of our favorite spots and our most reliable bait.
Most of us have pulled fresh crab from the Puget Sound and Salish Sea. And with some experience tucked under our belt, we tend to think we know what we’re doing. But most of the time we just get lucky and land a few keepers. However, that’s not the case for Corey Joyce. Filling the pot is his daily hustle.
Soaking up the Simple Pleasures at Friday Harbor’s Lakedale Resort and the San Juans.
Now more than ever we crave a change of scenery. From long and sometimes isolating days of working from home, to wrangling children, whipping up countless meals and everything in between. Over these past few months our homes hastily transformed into schools and gyms to offices, restaurants and libraries. With all this time spent at home you wouldn’t think we would need a break, but we do!
There is something so invigorating about visiting the San Juan Islands. I cannot think of anything quite like the thrill of salt air rushing through your hair or seeing all manner of watercraft cruise by to make you enthusiastic about where you are fortunate enough to call home. And if you are insanely lucky you might even spot an orca, seal, sea lion or bald eagle on your journey. After a short, forty-minute flight, you might as well be a world away.
