San Juan Islands Without a Boat: Water Taxi Access to the Outer Islands and Parks.

Over the years, we’ve talked with visitors who arrived by ferry with their car and assumed that they were limited to the four main islands served by ferries. They thought the outer islands and parks of the San Juan Islands weren’t accessible to them, not realizing a simple water taxi ride makes it possible.

Shelter and ADA ramps at Pelican Beach

It’s true. You don’t need to own or rent a boat to explore and camp in the marine parks of the San Juan Islands.

Most visitors enter the islands through Anacortes and follow the ferry routes to the larger communities. That works well — but it leaves out the smaller islands, marine parks, and secluded coves that aren’t served by ferry or road.

No Boat? No Problem.

Water taxi services and licensed outfitters operate throughout the area. They provide custom drop-offs and pickups to marine parks and islands that most visitors never consider.

Call it:

• Uber for boaters
• A marine shuttle
• A scheduled island transfer
• Point-to-point boat transport
• Your personal chauffeured yacht

The idea is straightforward. You choose your destination and your dates. They handle the boats.

Single hikers, groups, families, camping gear, and even kayaks can all be part of the plan.

Water Taxi at Blakely's

Starting From Anacortes

Anacortes is the primary mainland gateway. From there, you can:

• Ferry to one of the larger islands
• Arrange a direct water taxi to a marine park
• Meet an outfitter for a guided or supported trip

When you are not limited to ferry docks, you open up a new map of possibilities.

Destinations People Recognize — But Don’t Realize They Can Reach

Many of the most talked-about places in the San Juans are marine parks without road access.

For example:

• Sucia Island Marine State Park – with Fossil Bay and Echo Bay
• Jones Island Marine State Park – famous for friendly pygmy deer
• Matia Island State Park – an unspoiled rain forest without the rain
• Cypress Island –  including Cypress Head campground and Eagle Bluff
• Pelican Beach – waterfront camping on the  northeast side of Cypress Island

These places have docks, mooring buoys, campsites, and established trails. They’re well known among boaters, but less understood by visitors arriving by ferry.

In our travels, we have crossed paths with water taxis at Blakely’s, at Fossil Bay, and at Pelican Beach. And watched outfitters unload camping gear and transport organized youth groups, including Boy Scout troops, to overnight sites at Matia, Jones, and Stuart Islands. We’ve seen them many times — dropping off campers and returning a few days later to pick them up.

The system is established. It’s routine. And it works.

Marine Parks and maps

Kayaks and Supported Trips

Many outfitters support kayak-based trips. They transport your kayaks or rent them to you at your starting point and arrange to pick you up days later.

The logistics are handled in advance, or simply call a water taxi when you need a ride, leaving you free to focus on hiking, shoreline exploration, and camping.

When transportation is shared among several people, a water taxi can be a practical, even economical alternative. You arrange a drop-off and a pickup — nothing more complicated than that.

For many visitors, that’s all that’s needed.

No boat ownership or hassle required.

A Practical Alternative

Boat ownership in the San Juans has its rewards, but it isn’t the only path to exploring the islands. Renting a power or sailboat is another option, though not always necessary.

The Bottom Line

The San Juan Islands are often described as a boater’s destination and paradise. That’s true — but it’s incomplete.

With water taxis and experienced outfitters operating throughout the region, marine parks and secluded coves are accessible to anyone without owning or renting a boat.

No boat.
No problem.
Just plan a destination, a date, and go.

Note: On this website. To keep posts evergreen and relevant, names, prices, and phone numbers are left out.

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Cruising Myths and Misconceptions when visiting the San Juan Islands

San Juan Islands Cruising Truths

Let’s start with a disclaimer—at the helm, you are the captain. No book, guide, app, or article can replace good seamanship and sound judgment. Whether you bring a family cruiser, a daysailer, a kayak, or even a bicycle, the adventure is yours to shape.

What size boar is best for the San Suans

Charts, Plotters & Navigation

Conventional wisdom: Buy the biggest, best, and most expensive chart plotter.
Reality: While a high-end multifunction plotter is nice, it’s far from necessary. At minimum, a first-time visitor should have a NOAA navigation chart #18421, a compass, and a basic GPS—or even just a smartphone. At some point, you’ll find yourself staring across miles of open water at an unfamiliar shoreline, only to realize you’ve drifted off course. A simple compass and chart will keep you pointed in the right direction, saving time and frustration.

Extra tip: A colorful road map is handy for identifying landmarks—something navigation charts won’t show.

Currents & Tides

Newcomer’s fear: Treacherous 15-knot currents, whirlpools, and impassable passages.
Reality: While strong currents do exist, they’re entirely manageable with a little planning—just like avoiding rush hour traffic. Most horror stories come from winter storms, poor seamanship, or bad decision-making.

During the summer cruising season, inner-island currents rarely exceed 1.5 knots, and in the straits, 2.5 knots. Understanding the tides makes all the difference.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Currents are always moving. There’s rarely a moment of slack water, except for brief pauses at tide changes every six hours.

• Fast boats can ignore currents, but slower boats must work with them.  A sailboat doing 4.5 knots against a 2.5-knot current is effectively crawling along at 2 knots. But ride with the same current, and you’re cruising at 7 knots. Plan wisely, and a 10-mile passage could take 90 minutes instead of five hours.

• Narrow Passes funnel water, increasing flow speed only within the pass.   Smart sailors time their arrival at passes so the water pushes them in the right direction, rather than fighting the tide.

Current forecasting books and programs are available, but a simple tide forecast and a chart will do the trick.

 As a rule of thumb:

• A flood tide (incoming) generally flows north.
• An ebb tide (outgoing) generally flows south.

With just a tide table, a clock, and a chart, you can plan your day—maybe delaying departure until 11 a.m. for a favorable current or setting out early at 7 a.m. to get ahead of the tide, is all you need to do.

Tip: You don't need an annual book. Simply go online and print a page or two of the tides forecast during your voyage.

Rocks, Reefs & Depth Sounders,