San Juan Island Outfitters

Fabulous kayak trip today. Water was calm, it was sunny. Just a great day on the water. Our guide, Claire, was great and she really knew her stuff. She let us go at our own pace. It was the first time that my wife and I had kayaked. Claire made it a great day!

I did both the kayak trip and the whale watching trip. My husband did not want to join me for either but it did not matter. The guides were friendly and informative. They created such a nice atmosphere I felt completely comfortable. We saw so many whales that it was surprising when the guide identified each one by name! I highly recommend this company. Both trips were amazing and memorable.

I took the 3 hour sunset kayak tour Sunday, ⁸⁄₂₃. There were only 5 of us on the tour plus Jess, our guide. I can’t say enough good things about her. She was super friendly and was very thorough in taking us through how to properly put on and adjust our spray skirts and life jackets to showing us the correct way to get into the kayak and the proper paddling motion. She was super patient in helping me get my rudder pedals adjusted properly. Once we were off and heading out the marina, it was 3 hours of fun and beauty. We paddled through a sea kelp forest, got to see sea lions up close, a huge bald eagle’s nest, rocky coasts, and an amazing, blazing sunset. Jess was part guide, part historian (an interesting bit of history about Brits, Americans, and a pig), part biologist/​ecologist, and full time awesome! To think she does this all day long and after just having come back from a 5 hour kayak tour, she was still super enthusiastic and friendly and such a calming presence out there on the water for us novices. This was my first time to San Juan island and hopefully not my last. I would do another trip with them in a heartbeat, especially if all of their guides are as friendly and knowledgeable as Jess. Huge shout out to Jess for helping make last Sunday the best Sunday of my 2015 summer!

The whale watching was perfect — the naturalist was so nice and kind, and we had a great trip.
My son is 4 years old and asks a lot of questions, but the naturalist just kept encouraging him — he loves what he does and he really encouraged others to get into it, too.
I also loved how they really wanted to know what we wanted to see, and they encouraged us to understand more.
This is just a great company to work with and I’m so happy we did it as a family.

Yep, they delivered beyond expectations. I went for the Orca tour with my wife and asked the guide at the beginning of the tour to give honest expectations for seeing orcas on the tour, he said, «5−10%». I had low expectations so I was happy that he was honest, because we got out there and there were the orcas diving off our bow and giving us a phenomenal show. My wife got seasick but he even had medicine on hand to make her feel better. I would have been happy to just paddle around for a few hours, but these guys made it so much more. We encountered another group being guided around by the «hero guide» and I felt so sorry for those people. Kudos to the owner of this outfitter, he knows how to hire great people.

Had a great kayak tour today. Great guide– Owen. Very fun. Learned a lot. Our guide took great care of us.

We had a wonderful sit-​on-​top kayaking experience with San Juan Outfitters! They are based in Roche Harbor and are located on the dock there. There’s a bathroom up some stairs if you need to change and they offer a big bin to stash bags or purses while you go out. We had a great time with our kids in tandem kayaks, kayaking up and around the harbor and seeing boats etc. They are very accommodating and friendly and not as expensive as some other places on the island. Highly recommend!

This was truly a great experience… I called and talked to Brian (i think) when we set it up because we have four kids one of which is 2 ½ years old and the miniumum age is supposed to be 4. Brian said he would set up a 3 hour trip for just us and a guide and we could be out as long as the 2 year old would last.
When we arrived Jen our guide figured out the best way to accomodate our son. (started off in my lap, and switched halfway through to my wifes lap). My 8 year old has some special needs and he sat in the kayak with Jen who happened to have experience with accesible programing for kids.
We didn’t get as far as we’d like but did get to an island where my kids got to explore tidal pools, play with kelp, (including making a horn out of one end) and finding crabs.
It was a great experience and we would definately recommend it and Jen to anyone going to the San Juans.

Our guide /​naturalist, Amy was so informative about the pods and who all the whales were. We learned so much about Killer Whales and their habits, etc… In a 3 hour tour. :)
They captain was super nice and an excellent boat man
We were offered blankets for warmth (bring your own jackets too) and binoculars for helpful whale watching

Had an amazing kayak trip with the owner, Brian! Would definitely recommend to anyone visiting the island. Was happy to find a company open this late in the season as well!

Our group went sea kayaking to Turn Island State Park with Jacob. He’s a good guide with lots of educational info as well as a genuinely friendly personality. Even before we set off from the dock, the quality experience began with good instructions on how to manage the equipment. They have these nice slips for the kayaks so that you have wooden dock on either side of you: very helpful for beginners.
San Juan Outfitters was flexible enough to incorporate some geocaching into our kayak outing, per our group’s special request.
We also went whale watching in the afternoon and spotted a minke whale — it was so close! About 40 feet away or even closer.

my group and i were very happy with our experience with this team. we embarked on a two-​day overnight sea kayak excursion to stuart island, travelling north by northwest along mostly calm waters during a stretch of beautiful summer weather.
our guide and navigator was nick, also known as «biscuit.» i can’t say enough positive things about him. a really nice, capable guy, he was responsive, meticulous, and knowledgeable. thoughtful to our many questions, perceptive to our shifting energy levels, patiently managing our different personalities, and he was a pretty decent chef as well.
every element of our experience with san juan outfitters exceeded our expectations. the kayaks were in very good condition, the meals that nick made for us were both healthy and appetizing, while the outings themselves were thoughtfully planned, with a pace that suited our group of 8. nick told us that we were averaging 3 knots per hour, which corresponded well to the comfort level of everyone in our group. we crossed a few wide channels, navigating currents, speedboats and ferries without stress.
when we arrived at reid harbor on stuart island, at the end of a five-​hour sea voyage, nick suggested a sunset hike to lover’s leap and turn point lighthouse, which was absolutely one of the trip’s highlights. a two-​hour trek on fire roads through forests, past an old schoolhouse, along an eastern-​facing farm with views of mount baker, followed by a turn to the west up to lover leap’s, we were treated to an unobstructed view of moresby island, canada and the vast expanse of water before us. in fact, we were looking at canada on three sides. there on the northwestern edge of the united states, as dolphins and whales worked the salish sea in front of us, we watched the sun set behind the swanson channel: a site that i shall not soon forget.
we encountered wildlife up close, including seals, porpoises, bald eagles, osprey, and numerous other kinds of sea birds.
nick shared his knowledge of the wildlife and terrain and had a good recollection of local anecdotes.
our return brought us to roche harbor just as the 4^th of july festivities were getting under way, which provided us with the amusing experience of reaching the docks just as a blindfolded rowboat race started in front of roaring crowds.
a good crew all around, the san juan outfitters. they were solid.

Just returned from the two day overnight kayak trip through the San Juan Islands. Our guide Nick (aka «Biscuit») is an awesome individual. He gave us a lot of information about the wildlife in the area and kept it interesting and casual. You could tell he was passionate about the outdoors and he maintained that level of enthusiasm throughout the entire trip. He’s just a genuine guy.
San Juan Outfitters provided a great experience. Even though I didn’t get an Orca jumping over my boat I saw and learned about all the spectacular wildlife that is in the area. I’d give this place 10 stars! Highly recommend. If you go to the San Juans and want to go kayaking use this outfitter!

What I Did
— three-​hour kayaking tour
Would I Go Again?
I would highly recommend the three-​hour kayaking tour to families or any group that wants to enjoy the beauty of the San Juans. The tour is leisurely and not difficult physically.
Our guides were very good. They helped us feel safe and secure, but we never felt restricted. They provided great knowledge about the San Juans and its marine life, but it never became too much. They interacted with each of us, but we never felt our privacy was being breached. In sum, they did a great job.
Be prepared to get a little wet, especially on your arms, and be prepared to sit on a somewhat stiff seat for three hours. In you are comfortable with that, then you will have an enjoyable experience on the waters around the San Juans.

There’s no other feeling than to have your bum rest below sea level and to be at one with the ocean waters surrounding you.
This is my second time out kayaking with San Juan Outfitters. They are experienced, fun, and knowledgable. Our guide, Michael, was excellent and truly knew his surroundings (degree in Ecology). He gave just the right amount of information about the islands and wildlife without it becoming overbearing and daunting to absorb. Sometimes it’s nice to have silence and enjoy your surroundings. He respected that.
We saw a couple bald eagles (one of whom caught a fish and fed it to its babies in the nest), bull kelp, jelly fish, and starfish. No whales, thank goodness. I think I would’ve had a coronary if I did.
Kayaks are three-​person and they give plenty of direction on how to steer, paddle, stay dry, etc. so do not fret if you’re a first timer. You’ll have a blast.

Excellent guide, great service, and stunning feeling being in the water.
I had family up to the island and we decided to take them out for a tour of the area on a fully immersive marine experience. We booked day before and got a great tour time at 2pm for a three-​hour tour.
The weather wasn’t great, but the staff did all they could to make us feel comfortable with cushions, a dry boat, and lots of advice and prep ahead of time to keep us warm and dry.
The weather turned out to be a non-​factor, and ten minutes in to the experience it didn’t matter what it was like up above, because we were so immersed in what was going on around and under us we forgot about the rain clouds.
Our guide, Michael, was stellar — good narrative, funny jokes, and a genuine interest in our experience. He was a good balance of tour guide and excursion buddy. His knowledge of the area was superb, as we’d expect from a trained naturalist, and his people skills were exceptional.
I’ve lived in the islands for 12 years, and the kayaking experience is the only way to get a real sense of what makes this place so magical.
If you have three hours, do this adventure, and use this outfitter.

We booked a 3-​hour private, guided tour with San Juan Outfitters for 8 people while we were visiting Roche Harbor. Many thanks and a shout-​out goes to our guide who showed us a spectacular time, and with whom we shared many laughs. I forget his name, but I have this feeling it was Alex. If I am off, then we will just pretend that his name was Alex. Anyway, this was his summer job after he had just finished his undergrad and was looking to going to UW to further his education.
It was actually a last-​minute decision to go on a kayak tour, but they were able to fit all of us in with no problem. They had kayaks available for singles, doubles, and triples. For 8 people, we went with two triples and one double. There was a slight chance of rain the day we decided to go, so they suit us up in what resembled a mating between overalls and a hoop mini-​skirt that was lined with waterproof material. The purpose of wearing it was to loop the overall-​skirt over the space in which you would sit in the kayak. Then we had to wear a life-​jacket over that. It was probably the most magnetic and sexy I have ever looked.
If you’ve never been on a two-​person or three-​person kayak before, then you should be aware that it actually requires teamwork and cooperation between parties. This is more than I can say for my trio. All of the steering and maneuvering goes on in the back, and the person in the front guides the pace of rowing. I thought, obviously, with my capacity for leadership, I would take the front seat. Apparently, steering in the back is harder than it looks. But when I tell you to steer to the left, and we are still drifting toward the right and about to run into our guide’s kayak, there are just no excuses. Front-​seat driving was inevitable, and I was consequently labeled as one.
«Left, left, left, go left. Or we are going to hit their kayak.»
«Okay.»
“Dude, to the left!”
«I’m steering it all the way to the left!»
«STEER IT HARDER.»
«THIS IS NOT EASY.»
Don’t come here if your relationship is on the rocks because it may just be the breaking point wherein you guys split up. Or it may just bring you closer as it tests your collaboration efforts through hardships, who knows. In any case, I think we gave our guide a run for his money because little did he know that he signed himself up to guide a group of delinquents.
The duo in our group was with 2 sisters who had a tough time with coordination, as well. It was probably the funniest thing I’ve ever seen, with one in the back rowing one direction and the other in the front rowing the opposite direction. It canceled out any effort to move forward, and both refused to adjust to the other’s movements. They trailed behind all of us waddling in a zig-​zag pattern in their kayak.
Alex was very patient with us while my family and I were working through our kayaking trials and tribulation. Not only did he reinforce the «fun» part, but also the safety portion. He made sure our group never scattered too far from each other. He was very chatty and pleasant, introducing us to various territories, animal species, seaweed patch, and let us chase sea otters in our waterproof overalls. We were able to see the highest point in Washington and that would lead us into Victoria, BC.
It was a great experience, and I would do it over and over again if I could. My group and I eventually sorted out our differences and went out to eat at the finest seafood restaurant on Roche Harbor.

My family privately chartered the boat for an afternoon the day before our wedding. Brian & Amy were excellent & even though there were no whales to be seen, we had a great time! Definitely would recommend them to anyone!

We were unsure what company to use for sea kayaking on a recent trip to the SJ Islands, so we took a gamble on SJO. They really passed our expectations!
The logistics were very easy — no shuttling, just park at the harbor and get right in the boats. Our guides, Jesse and Andrew, were extremely nice and helpful, and the guide: tourist ratio was terrific (1:2).
What really turned the tour from good to great was the amount of local and natural knowledge that the guides had. They were able to fill us in on geographical history of the islands, names and behavior characteristics of all the wildlife we saw, and amusing local anecdotes as well. They really made an effort to find and show off interesting sea life (purple sea stars, two varieties of jellyfish, kelp crabs) and this really made the tour memorable.
Definitely recommended!

San Juan Outfitters makes kayak tours on San Juan Island really easy. Unlike other outfits on the island you show up and the boats are already in the water (no wasting time in a van or launching the boats). Our trip was a 5 hour whale watching tour, we saw a ton of wildlife however missed seeing any whales.
The group was small and our guide was really knowledgeable without making it feel like you were stuck in a science class.
I will definitely use SJO again next summer.