Ready for Adventure?
Specialty Art Camping Tour
Cost: $1,039 per person + reservation fees
2026 Trip Dates: September 4-6
Start: 9:00 AM
End: Return to kiosk between 2:00-3:00 pm
Distance: 18 miles (9, 0 and 9 miles on consecutive days)
Minimum Age: 16
Difficulty: Moderate. 4-6 hours paddling each day, ideally with the flow of the current.
Brand new tour offering for 2026! Join local artist Glenn Hendrick for a 3-day watercolor and gouache workshop on nearby Jones Island. Paddle out to set up camp and spend the rest of the weekend making art inspired by the beautiful surrounding nature and landscapes. Painting sessions are geared towards artists of all levels, even complete beginners. Students will become familiar with foundational art concepts and painting techniques, while cultivating a deeper and more intentional connection with the surrounding landscape. Students can expect to take home a variety of studies and finished works on paper- the perfect memento of an unforgettable experience!
Glenn Hendrick is a San Juan Island-based artist working primarily in printmaking, painting, drawing, and ceramics. Glenn was born in Los Angeles and raised in Columbus, OH. She attended The School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she received her BFA in printmaking, painting, and drawing in 2006. After 10 years of living in Chicago, she moved to San Juan Island in 2013, co-founding Alchemy Art Center in 2018 where she was Co-Executive Director with Maria Michaelson for 7 years. Check out her website here.
We begin at our kiosk at 25 Nichols Street on the morning of your tour. If you are on the ferry that morning, catch the earliest possible ferry from Anacortes. Please call if you have any questions.
Shuttle to Griffin Bay launch site for detailed instruction and packing before launch
Paddle north up San Juan Channel to Jones Island.
Set up camp, have a 1–2-hour instructional session with Glenn to start to get the creative juices flowing. Students will explore value and basic paint handling by working monochromatically for the first session. Emphasis will be on capturing lights and darks, texture, and developing drawing skills. Students will work quickly and create multiple works during this first session.
Enjoy a delicious, healthy meal together and reflect on the day
Day 2Coffee, breakfast and spend the late morning and afternoon in multiple 1–2-hour sessions painting and learning from an incredibly talented local artist. Break for lunch, a hike and/or a swim and spend the afternoon/evening enjoying each other’s company and learning or refining a creative skill!
On day 2, students will work with a limited palette using complementary colors (plus white). Students will discover the wide array of color and tone that can be achieved using just two or three colors and learn about creating the color/tone “envelope” that gives a painting its cohesive atmosphere. Students will continue to develop their drawing and composition skills.
Day 3Breakfast, coffee and one more 1–2-hour session to finish up the weekend. On day 3, students will work with a broader palette to bring in a wider variety of colors found in the landscape, without losing the cohesive quality they learned from monochromatic and limited palette painting. Students will be invited to paint more slowly, and at a larger scale on day 3.
Break camp, load the kayaks and paddle back to either Friday Harbor or Roche Harbor to takeout depending on time and conditions.
Transport back to Friday Harbor in time to catch an afternoon or early evening ferry back to Anacortes or to your accommodation in town.
Food is extremely important for energy, mood, and community! We do our best to source locally when possible and most of our meals use fresh ingredients. There are inherently more canned beans involved then local grass-fed beef when you are carrying all your food for three days with no refrigeration, but we strive to optimize nutrition and make meals fun
Breakfast typically includes local coffee and some combination of yogurt, eggs, oats, fresh fruit, and granola. We often don’t have a ton of time as we have a tide schedule to follow, so pancakes and bacon are only sometimes an option…
Lunches are typically charcuterie style with some combination of salami, salmon, nuts, cheeses, fruits, veggies, and hummus. Often, we will make tuna and chickpea salad with our local, sustainably caught tuna.
Dinner is often a highlight where we can reflect on the day and put some time and love into a big meal. Some popular dinner menu options are as follows:
Please give us a call if you have any concerns about food! We can easily accommodate vegan, vegetarian, gluten or dairy-free diets. Bringing treats to share is encouraged and our guides will often bring desserts or local beer or wine to share 😊
Ready to book or have more questions?
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My girlfriend and I had an incredible time on our 3 day/2 night Coastal Explorer trip! Our guide Cole was a rock star from start to finish and was incredibly knowledgeable on virtually every topic we could inquire about.
The kayaks provided are top notch, and the team did a wonderful job of assisting us with what to bring, as well as how to bring it (more small bags are better than large ones). The different islands we camped on were beautiful and saw loads of wildlife the whole time. Cole was wonderful about preparing meals and educating us on the day’s plan. We learned so much the entire time and best part of all, we were able to catch a big pod of resident orcas!
All in all, it was a fantastic way to spend the vacation and I would highly recommend this to anyone looking to go out and see the San Juan Islands in an adventurous fashion! – Martin F, Colorado
