August Newsletter
Commodore's Message
It’s been a great Summer here on Whidbey Island with glorious weather, excellent crabbing and memorable events like the SWYC Crab Fest. A number of people have told me they thought this year’s Crab Fest was the best ever. The YSA has wrapped up another series of successful youth sailing classes on Deer Lake, the Kayak group has done several awesome group paddles including a camp out on Sinclair island and the Laser and Pelican racers are going strong.
I want to again personally thank all those who have worked so hard to help organize and make these events and programs possible as well as all who have attended and participated.
And the summer is not quite over yet! Next up is the August Social hosted by the Windward Women and it should be an extra special one. The August Social will be held on Wednesday August 20th at the Organic Farm School in Clinton. You can register and pay on-line or when you arrive. The $15 fee includes wood fire pizza provided by the school as well as a tour of the farm.
Looking ahead to the Fall (is it really that time already) we will be resuming our monthly Club Meetings in September at the Progressive Club in Greenbank. The Board has kicked off planning for next year with the formation of the Nominating Committee to select a slate of candidates for the next Board. Jim Rogers has graciously agreed to serve as the committee chair. Please let myself or Jim know if you have an interest in serving.
As always this newsletter is probably the best way to keep up with what is going on in our Club so please keep reading! Most important of all, whether by sail, power or paddle, take some time to get out on the water while the getting is still good.
Vice-Commodore's Report
ATTN: MARK ALL SINCLAIR ISLAND YACHT CLUB MEMBERS “SAFE” FROM THE TSUNAMI! WE ARE SURVIVORS!!
Solidly into Summer and what a fantastic year! Had an absolutely fantastic “Cooking Class” at Leslie and Greg’s beautiful home. She offered it at the silent auction and boy, oh boy, what an evening. If you don’t know about parchment cooking, you should. I will never eat dry fish again! (Insert your best “Gone with the Wind” rendition here.) The CrabFest was the best ever! And how about those desserts? Great food, conversation and fun. Sinclair Island was a dream with great paddling, sailing, and food. Seriously, any one of these events would be reason enough to join the SWYC, but wait, there’s more!
We have August Social in our sights, looking forward to some great pizza and learning about organic farming. Once again, I’m reminded of all the goodness that goes into planning all these events. Truly a can-do group of people that sure know how to have fun! And I appreciate the true community in our Club, it’s certainly needed in what I consider, turbulent times.
Thank you to all our sailors, cruisers, racers, kayakers, and assorted Windwards who make these events a joy!
See you on the water,
Kapitan J
Kayaking by Co-Fleet Captains Nina Fitts and Diane Lagerstedt
Sinclair Island
Trip Report
The Sinclair Island camping & paddling trip was a huge success. Nine kayaks in the water, one pocket yacht named Sesame Seed and our trusty safety boat Sundancer all made the crossing from Guemes Island to Sinclair Island and had fun circumnavigating Sinclair Island, paddling across to Cypress Island, circumnavigating Towhead Island and exploring the Cone Islands for a total of 20 miles paddled over three days. Great meals on the beach and good conversation were had by all! Thank you to Barb & Pete Grimlund for hosting us on their property. We had seventeen kayakers in total for Possession Point Kelp Bed kayak event. It was a beautiful day with all mountains in view and lots of healthy kelp teeming with kelp crab and feeder fish. Thank you to Gayle Austin & Bob Kuehn for leading this paddle. We had a number of people comment on the SWYC Facebook page that they saw all seventeen of us out there that day on the beach or at Bailey’s Corner Store afterwards! August is slipping by quickly with still more fun to be had by the kayak fleet.
Upcoming Kayak Events
- August 20: SWYC August Social at the Organic Farm School. 6:30-8:30pm. You will need to register ahead of time and buy a $15 ticket in advance for this event so that SWYC can get an accurate head count for the social. See the link on the website for SWYC. Click Purchase Ticket on the website and it will take you to a page where you can pay $15 to cover the cost of the pizza and the venue expense
- September 18-21: Orcas Island/West Beach Resort Kayaking Trip. We will be putting out details regarding this trip in a separate email and in the Group Me chat specific for people attending this trip. This trip is open to all SWYC members, whether you paddle or just like to visit Orcas Island with friendly SWYC members.
- September 25: Baby Island Circumnavigation & Potluck Brunch. If the burn ban has been lifted we’ll have a fire in the fire pit to warm you up. Thank you Manfred Bartz for organizing this paddle!
- October TBD: Port Townsend Witches Paddle. Once Port Townsend announces the date of their Witches Paddle, we will put out this information to our group to take the ferry over to PT for a costume paddle.
- November 15: The annual Commodore’s Ball hosted by SWYC
- December 5: Christmas Carols and Kazoos on Deer Lake. Decorate your kayaks with festive lights as we paddle around the lake and sing Christmas carols together. This paddle was a group favorite last year!
- December 10: SWYC Christmas Party at Freeland Hall
Details and RSVP for the upcoming kayak paddles and events can be found on the Group Me invitations located in the Group Me Calendar for the SWYC Kayak Group. Not on Group Me for the Kayak Fleet? Contact Nina Fitts or Diane Lagerstedt to get you set up.
Save the Date!
SWYC Camping / Kayaking Trip
June 2026
Already planning next summer’s activities? Be sure to add next year’s SWYC Camping/Kayaking trip to Sun Lakes/Dry Falls State Park scheduled for Monday, June 22 – Thursday, June 25, 2026. All SWYC members are invited to join our kayaking members for 3 full days of exploring the high desert dramatic landscape, local points of interest as well as the lakes in this park and region. Swimming, boating, sailing, kayaking, birding, wildflowers, hiking, paddle boarding, golf, biking, group dinners and camaraderie. Lots to do.
If you’re tenting, you’re welcome to stay in our reserved group campsite. If you camp in anything other than a tent, you’ll need to make your own individual site reservations. Reservations open September 22, 2025 at 7:00 AM. Camping not your thing? There are several resorts and other accommodations in the area to reserve so you can still join in the fun.
More information will be shared later this fall. In the meantime, check it out and make your reservation, if needed.
Windward Women by Fleet Captain Katy Shaner
Slow down summer. Not so fast. August is here already. And with that, Windward Women activities are almost coming to a close.
AUGUST WINDWARD WOMEN ACTIVITIES
On Tuesday, August 12th, four of us Windward Women met at 9:00 to hike Ebey’s Bluff Trail. It was a perfect day for a hike on one of Whidbey’s most scenic hikes. The trail is just under four miles – up the bluff, through the wooded bluff trail and down to the beach with a casual walk back to have our picnic lunch overlooking the Sound.
Windward Women Scheduled Hikes
Saturday August 23, 1:00-3:00 “WANDER/WONDER: a sculptured dance happening”
Price Sculpture Forest 678 Parker Rd Coupeville Suggested donation: $20 or pay-what-you-can. https://sculptureforest.org/dance/ Lunch prior at Beaver Tales Café, Coupeville Wharf, 11:30 – 12:30
Trillium Community Forest – Wednesday, September 10, 9:00. Hosted by Leslie Flohr.
Meet in the parking lot off Smugglers Cove Rd.
There are plenty of lovely trails through many acres of the Trillium Woods, managed by Whidbey Camano Land Trust. We’ll hike about 2-3 miles through mostly level trails. Hosted coffee and snacks after at Leslie’s home (very close by).
Windward Women Scheduled Socials
WICA Summer Nights Series 5:00 -7:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 23 – Fiddle Chix — Brigitte Tennis (violin), Bev Heising (mandolin/fiddle), Susan Hanzelka (fiddle), Penny Livingston (guitar), Jing Jing Tsong (double bass).
Remember, you can always go on the SWYC website for the calendar of WW activities.
All women of the SWYC are invited to participate in Windward Women activities.
Sailing / Racing
Pelican Fleet
Pelican Racing Returns to Lone Lake
Pelican Racing took a break during YSA sailing camp, but started up again on Wednesday evening August 6th. The latest Lone Lake algae toxin test results were below the state recreational limits, so we decided to race there. Five boats competed and another stayed in the parking lot for lack of crew.
Clyde Jenkins sailing with Lisa Irwin won the day with 6 points closely followed by Bob Rodgers sailing with Sara Stawarz was a close second with 9 points. Randy Weers sailing with Starke Scott with 13 points edged out Clay and Judith Canfield with 14 points for third. Michael Schmitz missed the start of the first race and so was at a disadvantage finishing fifth with 18 points. Full results and standings for the season to date are posted at Sailwave.
There is one more 2025 race date scheduled for September 3rd. We hope to get another favorable algae toxin test and stay at Lone Lake for the final event of the season. Also, we expect to schedule a party after the last races. Pelicaneers should watch their email for details.
Bill Brown
Laser Fleet
The Series II races continue. Check out the results at Sailwave.
Next races: August 19 and 26, September 2 & 9. 4:30 pm.
– Zak Malbin
Cruising by Fleet Captains Jim and Kathy Rogers
Upcoming Events
September Cruise
| When | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Sept 9 | Elliott Bay Marina Seattle. | Reserve on their website using DockWA. |
| Sept 10 | Dock Street Marina, Tacoma. | Call them at (253) 250-1906 |
| Sept 11 | Gig Harbor | Reserve on their website using DockWA. |
| Sept 12 | Brownsville | NOTE: Contact me at (210) 846-7766 or email james.rogers05@gmail.com, and I will make reservations for you. Do not call the marina directly. |
| Sept 13 | Poulsbo | Call directly at (360) 779-9905 Ext 1. |
| Sept 14 | Kingston | Call directly at (360) 297-3545 and choose option 2. |
Youth Sailing Association
After Action Report
by Clay Canfield, YSA Leader & SWYC Safety Officer
This year the Youth Sailing Association’s Youth Sailing Camp was very successful, rewarding, and safe. There were thirty-one Beginner students, and twenty-two Intermediate students. Literally everyone who observes the kids sailing on Deer Lake is enthralled with the view of youth learning to sail, capsizing, racing, and doing circus tricks such as sailing backwards, standing on the bow while sailing, or sailing in formation.
The beginner classes sailed primarily in El Toro sailboats, which are eight feet long, wood construction, with a single sail. These boats are very cute to see, quite old, and normally need some repair after each camp. This year we also purchased two O’pen Bic sailboats, which are a modern design with roto-molded hulls and mylar sails. The students who sailed them loved them, not least because they were able to capsize them and recover.
The Intermediate classes sailed Lasers, which are 12.5 -foot fiberglass, high performance sailboats which are part of an international fleet of over two-hundred thousand boats and also an Olympic class boat. The sailors love these boats because they are a higher performance boat, cap-sizable, and fast.
The great values of sailing for youth include learning hands-on physics, aerodynamics, situational awareness, knots, hand-eye coordination, simple navigation, operation of a complex piece of equipment, balance, how one’s movements affect the boat, and how to make the forces of nature work for them. whether the sailors realize it or not. The greatest value in my opinion is the huge increase in self-confidence they acquire, especially after learning to recover from a capsize. The first capsize is normally difficult, as it goes against their natural instinct to stay safe. The second one is a little easier but the safety instinct is still visible. However after about the third or fourth capsize and recovery, the increase in self-confidence is palpable, after which capsizing is almost all they want to do!
The Youth Sailing Association is also focused on mentoring youth instructors. Asking them to assist other youth in learning to rig and sail the boats also increases their self-confidence, in addition to improving their own sailing skills. Although a secondary or support function, this is still a vital part of the Youth Sailing Camps. For the adult instructors, it is very rewarding to see youth have fun, stay safe, and learn a skill that will benefit them for a lifetime.
YSA also conducts Adult sailing camps in June, during which Adult beginners learn in Pelican sailboats, and more advanced adults learn more serious, higher-performance sailing on Lasers. To a person everyone I have spoken to has had a great time learning sailing skills in either class.
All of the volunteers, instructors, helpers, and shore support staff are well deserving of a huge THANK YOU! for their dedication, expertise, and time spent in support of the program.
If you or anyone you know has any interest in sailing, I highly recommend signing up for a class next year.
Clay Canfield
Safety Officer
YSA meets every Wednesday at 9:00 am. Check the club calendar for meeting locations.
Crab Fest
Post Event Update
Crab Fest 2025 was a tremendous success for the yacht club’s first time hosting this annual event at the Freeland Hall Community Center. Wonderful crab fests in the past were held at the Honeymoon Bay Club House, but we simply have outgrown that location with the size of our group, and we were thrilled to be able to host it in Freeland.
Feedback about the Crab Fest was overwhelmingly positive with so many of you commenting on the incredible historic property with that beautiful view of the water before us. It really was a spectacular day. We are pleased to announce that South Whidbey Yacht Club raised just over one thousand dollars for Whidbey Island Veterans Resource Center, our 2025 charity partner. Thank you to all of you who participated in the charity dessert auction and our many volunteers who gave their time and energy towards hosting this event. If you didn’t have the opportunity to join us this year we hope you will put it on the calendar for next year in July
New Members
This week, our Board of Directors had several applicants to review and approve. Please welcome the following new members:
Jill Eikenhorst
“I plan to race lasers. Participated in the Laser class in June..”
Sponsor: Zak Malbin
Andrea Handley
“I started here as a summer kid in 72, I use to go fishing with my dad per recreation, kayaked a little as a child but mostly on lakes not in the sound. I have always lived near a water way. When I lived in Idaho I was on a catamaran on Henry’s Fork river, that was interesting to say the least but fun. Floating the Boise river probably doesn’t count. I moved away in 95 and recently came back in 2018 to help my mother with my father, she recently passed and he is in Germany. I had every intention on moving out of the area until I came to the realization that this really is heaven on earth.
I saw all the Kayaks at Baileys and peeked in and chatted with them, when i came home I realized I wanted to be part of that group. They were all very nice. It would be nice to be a part of a group with like minded people.
I’m interested in Volunteering as well. I live here year around so I’m pretty flexible. I have been a foster volunteer for just over a year with Bulldog Haven Northwest, I have a waterfront cabin i currently airbnb but always have time for more 🙂 I’ve never been on a sailboat…..”
Sponsors: Kayak Club
Sharon Jarnigan & Christy
“Sharon and Christy (lifelong friends and roommates) have a strong passion for boating, fostered through years of sailing and power cruising on the waters of Florida and California. We are also avid kayakers and stand-up paddleboarders.
We bring experience as first mates on larger vessels and commanders of our small vessels. We are eager to join South Whidbey Yacht Club to connect with fellow boating enthusiasts and contribute to the club’s vibrant community.
Outside of boating, we are educators who are new to Whidbey Island. Sharon is a classically trained soprano and Christy specializes in humanities and community involvement. We both value the camaraderie that South Whidbey Yacht Club fosters, and we hope you will consider our interest in your club.“
Sponsor: “Our good friend Tom Kenyon from Freeland Hall spoke with your John Porter earlier this week about how we should apply. John mentioned that the current Membership Chair would probably contact us about membership and we look forward to the contact. We are very excited about this opportunity!”
Stacie Lorenson & Charles Norton
“We have both recently retired from Boeing and moved to Coupeville. We have wanted to get a small sailboat after retirement and have just purchased a Pelican.
We have both acted as crew on friends’ sailboats in years past, but are otherwise beginners. We are excited to learn and spend time on the water!“
Sponsor: Judy Canfield
Jan & Paul Standeven
“I grew up sailing on the Chesapeake Bay on yachts ranging from 26 to 36 feet, and have always loved spending time on the water. My husband and I just recently moved to Freeland and would love to make connections in the community. I haven’t sailed seriously in 30 years, but I am eager to get back out on the water. By becoming part of your community, I hope to gain knowledge of the local waters and types of smaller craft that are safe and fun for this area.“
Sponsor: Judy Canfield
In the News
To Study Viking Seafarers, He Took 26 Voyages in Traditional Boats
An archaeologist in Sweden spent three years traveling in vessels built like those from 1,000 years ago. He discovered lost sea routes, hidden trade harbors and new respect for Viking seamanship.
Coming Events
August Social
Sponsored this year by SWYC Windward Women
August 20th (this Wednesday)
6:30 – 8:30
Organic Farm School
6390 Maxwelton Rd.
The August Social is almost here, and the Windward Women have been enjoying putting together a fun event for you.
For both the venue and the pizzas, there will be a shared expense of $15 per person for those attending this event. Because of that and to better plan for the number of pizzas to bake, the club is asking for a RSVP and payment in advance through the club’s website.
Some reminders for those of you who are going to this event. The Organic Farm School has both a covered area and an outdoor area where picnic tables will be available to us. In the covered area is the wood fired stove where the pizzas will be prepared and cooked for the evening. There will be a few tables inside, as well.
Most of the pizzas will be made from the produce the School grows off their land. Some will have meat added (for the meat eaters among us), some will be gluten-free and dairy free.
Salads will be provided by the Windward Women made from produce purchased from the OFS.
Members are being asked to bring appetizers, side dishes and desserts.
The OFS provides all the compostable plates, utensils, cups and napkins so you will not need to bring your own. There is wine, beer and soft drinks left over from the Crab Fest that will be available to the August Social. As the quantity is not known at this time, please feel comfortable bringing your beverage of choice.
Since most of the picnic tables will be outside, those of you who may be sun-sensitive may want to bring folding chairs that can be placed in the shade.
During the evening, OFS is offering a guided tour of the gardens. As August is the height of the growing season, you will have an opportunity to see much and learn even more!
Thank you to all who have already purchased your tickets on the SWYC website.
See you on the 20th!
2025 Calendar of Events
Check out our Calendar for the dates of all of our Annual Events. And be sure to get them on YOUR calendar!
All Annual Events
SWYC Branded Clothing & Merchandise
Looking for snazzy SWYC apparel for the summer boating season? Or maybe looking forward to the cooler fall/winter season? Don’t forget about warm hats, canvas tote bags, aprons, towels or throws for the boat or home? Two different SWYC logos plus Windward Women logos to choose from. Make your customized selection and order on line.
Land’s End Online Store
Alternatively, Washington Design Company, here on Whidbey Island, offers a broad range of SWYC branded apparel. Shop online, then either ship to your address, or pick up at their shop in Ken’s Corner.
Washington Design Co. Online Store
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