Annie Means

1 month ago | pacificyachting.com | Annie Means

When people think of San Juan Island boating, the phrases “exotic game hunt,” “Safari,” and “John Wayne” aren’t typical word associations. At first glance, such unlikely imagery would seem to be an odd fit in Washington State’s most beloved cruising grounds. Yet, one of the great beauties of voyaging in the Pacific Northwest is that nearly every island and every gunkhole is laden with some tidbit of strange and engaging history.

Mar 17, 2025 | soundingsonline.com | Annie Means

For most mariners, the opportunity to buy a dream boat is a rare privilege. Few are so fortunate, and even fewer manage to do so by cold-calling an expired ad they spotted four years earlier. Jon Kandell, however, had luck on his side. “I’d saved the ad from back then, and I just thought, maybe if I call, he’ll tell me who bought the boat, and then I could reach out,” Kandell says.

Feb 28, 2025 | session-magazine.com | Annie Means

In the lower latitudes of the South Pacific, the dawn air feels dense and slumbering. As the sun rises, light rain settles on the crested hills of this verdant island. Already men, and one particular woman, arrive sleepily at the marina. First, the percussion ensemble: A cacophony of closing car doors signals the arrival of the day’s crew. Cans of Japanese green tea and black coffee are passed hand over hand and thumped down, one by one, into salt-stained buckets.