The Island Inn Friday Harbor, WA
We never turned on the television onâbut then why would we? The floor-to-ceiling windows in the Island Innâs suite number two (or Sweet 2, as they call it) offer a wide-angle view of island life that beats anything weâll find on the tube. Perched on the hillside, just a stoneâs throw from the water, the Inn faces northeast, looking out over the Port of Friday Harbor, the ferry terminal and the little roundabout that serves as the 74
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main artery for the largest town (pop. 2162) in the San Juan Islands. We sit and watch as the hustle and bustle of the little village swells and recedes, much like the tide, with the arrival and departure of each green-andwhite Washington State ferry boat, as passengers disembark on foot, bicycle and by car. A whale-watching vessel motors away from the dock in search of the 89 resident orcas that frequent the
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By Joshua Colvin
island, then a local schooner, the 80foot Spike Africa, sets sail across our window and eventually out of view beyond Brown Island. As if on cue, a yellow-and-white Kenmore Air floatplane appears through the mist and begins its slow, steep approach into Friday Harbor. After landing, it taxis into port and the captain hitches the plane to the dock before his passengers step out to begin the next phase of their adventure.