The San Juan Islands contain many unique wildlife but among those, the bat population may be one of the most interesting. Due to a surplus in moths and other insects bats enjoy, the San Juan Islands make a wonderful home to a large and thriving bat…

Among the activities available to visitors of Moran State Park, fishing is high on the list for many avid outdoorsmen. Though there are several species of fish within the lake, Kokanee salmon are coveted as one of the best catches. Despite this,…

When you think of a wildfire, the images that come to mind are probably not painting the fire in a positive light. Despite this, naturally occurring wildfires have always been essential to ecosystem function and some species even depend on fire…

Like many other areas of North American, indigenous peoples of the San Juans once maintained the balance of ecosystems by setting small, controlled burns in order to keep the natural world healthy and thriving. On Jones Island, these controlled…

In 1998, it was discovered that the once thought to be extinct Island Marble Butterfly was back within the San Juan Islands. The Island Marble (Euchloe ausonides insulanus) was only widespread throughout Vancouver Island and British Columbia but due…

Despite years of successful farming of apples, plums, and other fruit species regularly found in Washington, the Great Depression brought a challenge and then an innovative solution to Orcas Island. The twenties and thirties on Orcas Island…

On a small horseshoe-shaped island above Orcas Island, centuries of geological history and phenomena are being discovered. Sucia Island, which was once part of Baja California’s sea floor, is home to many archaeological, geological, and ecological…

James Theodore Geoghegan (1869-1953) spent time throughout the West coast during his life as he spent portions of his life in California, Washington, and Alaska. After leaving England with his family as a child, Geoghegan spent much of his childhood…