Elsa here, reporting that the Women's Motorcycle Club had a fabulous
weekend riding to and around the San Juan Islands. Nine riders, including two new participants, headed out on Friday to Orcas Island. The weather was
great, and except for the construction on I-5 in Everett, the roads were fine
(one exception - hang on).

Friday, the main group made the ferry with ten minutes to spare! The
second wave of folks arrived just around dinner time. We ate at the cafe
(excellent, if a little pricey) then relaxed in the tubs and at our spacious
Retreat House.

The next morning, after pancakes and bacon, the group headed for San
Juan Island. What a bunch of tasty winding road there is on the west side,
out by Lime Kiln Point! Definitely take this stretch twice - once in each
direction - to experience all the ups and downs as well as the
commanding and breathtaking water and mountain views. Be sure to save some time for snacks and shopping in Friday Harbor. There is a really good ice cream shop down by the dock. Dinner was homemade black bean soup with mango salsa, chips, and sour cream. And let's not forget the cornbread with butter and New Zealand honey (Airborne, clover variety, YUM). The evening again brought relaxation in the tubs and at the house.

Sunday morning, part of the group decided to take on Mt. Constitution.
I was a little wary, not having been on the road in years, that the road
surface would be mossy or have lots of pine needles on it, but it was in
excellent, smooth shape. There are quite a few challenging corners on
this road, which we all loved, going up as well as coming down.

So what's this about a stretch of road not being quite what we expected?
Well, summer is road construction time on the islands, and we had a
3-mile stretch of newly laid cold mix road to navigate right as we approached
Doe Bay. Being the worrier I am, I took the group through it very slowly.
By the time we'd crossed it 6 times, though, I think everyone was feeling
much more confident about it. I was at least.

We almost missed the boat we wanted to take back to Anacortes, and in
fact three of our riders were told that there wouldn't be room for all the
bikes, so they'd have to wait 3 hours for the next boat. The ferry worker did
have a heart when he heard we were all one group, and let the last 3 folks on
at the end of loading. We were glad no one had to wait. It was a tiring
and fun weekend and we were ready to go home.

After the boat ride, there was a small group that rode up through La
Conner. Wide open road out there. Thanks, gals, for that.

The weekend was so fun that we've decided to make the San Juans ride a
yearly event, most likely the second weekend of July. We'll make plans
at our meeting in the winter time.

Coo Coo! And VAVOOM! (If you were there, you are now laughing
hysterically, or at least have a smile on your face.)