Best Places for a Picnic on San Juan Island

Did you know? Everything tastes better outside and cookies consumed after biking the island don’t have any calories?

San Juan Island offers breathtakingly beautiful spots for dining al fresco.

Grab your favorite take-out or get some crusty bread, good cheeses and a bottle of local wine at the Food Coop and head out. Here are our favorite places:

Whale Watching Park

The gorgeous 41-acre Lime Kiln State Park offers picnic benches by the lighthouse, by the whale watching platforms and all along its winding trails. It’s a beautiful spot to watch the sunset and one of the best places to sea whales from land on earth!

On Top of the Wolrd - Mt Young

Located in English Camp, the top of Mt. Young lends amazing views of all the other islands. The steep three-mile round trip hike rewards you with views of Bald Eagles nesting in wolf trees, so close, you can look them in the eye. People propose up here. And you will see why. There are no benches, just soft moss and wildflowers covering rugged granite cliffs.

Jackson Beach

Take our complimentary beach cruisers for a spin and head to Jackson Beach, just one mile from our Bird Rock Hotel. Cute Jackson’s offers BBQs, a picnic shelter, volleyball and dips in the crystal clear Salish on very hot days.

Sculpture Park

The 20-acre sculpture park on the north end of the isle displays really cool art and poems along five trails, winding through fields and forest, around a lake and along Westcott Bay. Commit some art yourself at the free Saturday art days and find a bench which speaks to you for lunch.

San Juan County Park

This gem on the westside of the island has two crescent-shaped beaches where boaters and kayakers launch, which are divided by a grassy hill just waiting for lawn games. Soak in the views of mighty Haro Strait and the snow covered Olympics while enjoying your (calorie-free?) cookies.