Pacific Northwest
Puget Sound · San Juan Islands · Hood Canal
Destinations (11)
Marinas (39)
Anchorages (19)
Articles (31)Destination Guides
Detailed cruising guides for Pacific Northwest
Anacortes & Fidalgo Island Cruising Guide
The PNW's busiest charter port and the standard staging point for the San Juan Islands. Cap Sante Marina, full marine trades district, every chartering company in the region within walking distance, and the islands themselves 25 nm to the west.
Cruising Puget Sound: A Complete Guide
A 100-mile glacially-carved inland sea protected from the Pacific by the Olympic Peninsula — over 1,000 miles of shoreline, dozens of state-park anchorages, year-round sailing, and the working home water for half the licensed sailors in the United States. The most accessible bluewater cruising in North America for a beginner and the deepest cruising ground a Seattle sailor never has to leave.
San Juan Islands Cruising Guide
172 islands at the northeast corner of the Salish Sea, straddling the US–Canada border. 55 named anchorages, four ferry-served towns, and tidal currents in the passes that the unprepared learn the hard way. The flagship PNW cruising destination.
Seattle Sailing Guide
1,400 slips at Shilshole, the Ballard Locks connecting two lake systems to Puget Sound, and day-sail access to Blake Island, Bainbridge, and the Olympic Peninsula. The largest sailing hub on the Pacific Coast north of San Francisco.
Bellingham Bay & Chuckanut Coast Cruising Guide
The transition zone between Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands — a working waterfront city, a stretch of 1,000-foot sandstone cliffs along the Chuckanut Drive, and a state-park anchorage that is among the more scenic on the Salish Sea. The northbound staging port for Pacific Northwest cruisers heading to the islands or the Inside Passage.
Hood Canal Cruising Guide
A 65-mile glacial fjord between the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas. Warmer water than the rest of Puget Sound, dramatic mountain backdrop, world-class oysters and spot prawns, and a fraction of the boat traffic of the San Juans an afternoon's sail away.
Marinas
Moorage, fuel and services in Pacific Northwest
Cap Sante Boat Haven
Anacortes, WA
Cap Sante Boat Haven is the launch pad for the San Juan Islands. Operated by the Port of Anacortes, it sits on the east side of Fidalgo Island overlooking the Guemes Channel — a 20-nautical-mile run from Friday Harbor and a day's sail from nearly every island in the archipelago. The commercial fishing fleet shares the docks with cruising boats, giving Cap Sante a genuine working waterfront feel that the resort marinas in the islands can't match. The provisioning situation in Anacortes is excellent: West Marine, multiple grocery stores, hardware, and marine service yards are all within walking distance or a short ride. Anacortes itself is a real town with good restaurants and a thriving arts community. Come in from a long passage, provision up, and head back out.
Port of Friday Harbor
Friday Harbor, WA
The Port of Friday Harbor is the social hub of San Juan Islands cruising. Sitting at the foot of Friday Harbor — the largest town in the islands and the county seat of San Juan County — the marina puts you steps from restaurants, shops, galleries, the whale museum, the San Juan Historical Museum, and some of the best people-watching in the Pacific Northwest. The Washington State Ferry terminal is adjacent, so you can arrive by boat and have friends or crew arrive by ferry. Book transient moorage well in advance for summer weekends: July and August slots fill months ahead. The harbor is well protected and staffed by experienced dock hands who handle enormous summer traffic with practiced efficiency. Sunset from the dock, with the town lights reflecting on the water, is the quintessential San Juan Islands experience.
Roche Harbor Resort
Roche Harbor, WA
Roche Harbor is the most storied marina in the San Juan Islands. The Hotel de Haro, built in 1886 and a National Historic Landmark, presides over the harbor from a manicured lawn. The Lime Kiln quarry ruins — Roche Harbor was once the largest lime producer west of the Mississippi — frame the resort grounds. Today the marina has 377 slips, multiple restaurants, a full resort, spa, swimming pool, tennis courts, and an outdoor sculpture garden. Every evening at sunset, the harbormaster conducts the Colors ceremony: flags are lowered with military precision to the sound of recorded retreat while boats in the harbor blow their horns in salute. It's been happening for over a century. Roche Harbor is more expensive than other island marinas, but it's also an experience that's genuinely hard to replicate anywhere else in the Pacific Northwest.
Shilshole Bay Marina
Seattle, WA
Operated by the Port of Seattle, Shilshole Bay Marina is Seattle's largest marina and the undisputed gateway to Puget Sound. Its 1,400 slips sit on the Ballard waterfront, directly at the mouth of Salmon Bay and the Lake Washington Ship Canal — meaning you're out on open water in minutes, not hours. The marina borders Golden Gardens Park to the north, putting a sandy beach and picnic grounds a short walk from your slip. Anthony's HomePort restaurant overlooks the docks. The Corinthian Yacht Club and Seattle Sailing Club both operate here, and several sailing schools use Shilshole as their home base. The Olympic Mountains fill the western horizon at sunset. If you're cruising the San Juan Islands or the Inside Passage, most Seattle sailors stage from here.
Featured Anchorages
Sheltered places to drop the hook in Pacific Northwest
Blake Island State Marine Park
Puget Sound
Eagle Harbor — Cypress Island
San Juan Islands
Fossil Bay — Sucia Island
San Juan Islands
Pleasant Harbor — Hood Canal
Hood Canal
Latest Articles
Guides, tips and stories from Pacific Northwest
Do I Need ASA Certification to Charter a Sailboat?
The short answer: it depends on whether you're bareboat chartering or hiring a captain. Here's exactly what certification charter companies require — and what alternatives they accept.
Bareboat vs. Skippered vs. Crewed Charter: Which Is Right for You?
The single biggest decision in planning a sailing charter is the type of charter — bareboat, skippered, or fully crewed. The honest working version of the differences, the costs, and the math that decides which one fits.
Sailboat Charter Seattle: The Complete Planning Guide
Shilshole Bay Marina is the largest marina in Washington State at 1,400 slips, and the working ocean access for one of the more extraordinary sailing grounds in North America. The complete working guide to chartering a sailboat in Seattle and on Puget Sound — types, costs, the operators, certification, and where to go.