Anchorage

Roche Barbor

Shelter: N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE
Seabed: mud
Anchoring: Allowed

Anchorage off Roche Harbor on the north-west tip of San Juan Island, Washington, with a mud bottom and shelter from most directions.

Water
Pontoon
Beach

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Approach from Haro Strait through Mosquito Pass or Spieden Channel. The bay is well sheltered and holds in mud across most wind directions, with the open quarter to the south-west. Roche Harbor Resort marina lies 0.5 nm east and monitors VHF for transient berths and the fuel dock.

Practical

Free anchorage with fresh water available ashore at the resort. The marina has diesel and petrol, showers, laundry and a chandlery. Tender landing and a small grocery sit on the resort waterfront.

Ashore

The resort waterfront is a 5 minute row, with the Hotel de Haro, restored lime kilns and a general store. The trail to the Westcott Bay sculpture park starts behind the village. Roche Harbor sits within the San Juan Islands, known cruising grounds in the Salish Sea.

History

Roche Harbor was a company town built around the Tacoma and Roche Harbor Lime Co., founded by John S. McMillin in 1886. The quarries and kilns supplied lime along the West Coast until operations ceased in 1956, when the Tarte family converted the site into a resort.

Key facts

Type: Anchorage
Coordinates: 48.61004, -123.16797 (48°36.60'N 123°10.08'W)
Country: United States
Shelter: Sheltered from north, north-east, west, east, south-west, south, south-east winds
Seabed: mud
Anchoring: Allowed
Services: Water, Pontoon, Beach
Updated: July 7, 2026