San Juan Islands gain first all-islands club volleyball team as Puget Sound Express launches Edmonds–San Juan Islands whale tour
The san juan islands are seeing two new programs that expand year-round activity on and off the water: island families have created the first all-islands club volleyball team, and a regional operator is starting a full-day Edmonds-to-Friday Harbor whale-watching excursion. Both moves alter travel patterns for residents and visitors and open fresh opportunities for competition and tourism.
SIVA SJ roster and schedule
Local organizers formed SIVA SJ after island players and their families grew weary of frequent long-distance travel for club volleyball. More than 40 girls tried out in November; coaches ultimately selected a 13-player roster—larger than a typical 10-player club—because they could not narrow the group further. The team includes athletes from Orcas, San Juan and Lopez islands, as well as nearby Anacortes.
Practices take place twice weekly at the Lopez Island School gym. SIVA SJ is scheduled to compete in eight tournaments between January and May, with stops in Auburn, Seattle, Ridgefield and Burlington and a season finale planned in Las Vegas. Players pay a fee that covers training and tournament costs.
The initiative grew directly from the strain of off-island commitments with Skagit Island Volleyball Academy (SIVA). Parents described long travel schedules and overnight stays that disrupted schooling and family routines; one family said they spent much of the week living in their RV while following the club circuit. That burden prompted outreach to SIVA’s leadership, and the club’s existing director supported establishing a team on the islands. Former high school coaches from Lopez and Friday Harbor joined as head and assistant coaches, respectively, creating what organizers called a “dream team” of local leadership.
Puget Sound Express Edmonds–San Juan Islands tour
Puget Sound Express is launching a new full-day whale-watching tour that departs the Port of Edmonds at 10 a. m. and returns by 6 p. m., operating from May 1 through September 7, 2026. The Chilkat Express, a jet-powered catamaran, will carry passengers on a narrated journey through Puget Sound with an onboard naturalist and a two-hour port call in Friday Harbor for independent exploration of shops, restaurants and the Whale Museum.
The itinerary is expressly flexible: captains will alter the route in real time to follow wildlife reports, giving teams the ability to target sightings before, after or on both legs of the Friday Harbor stop. That operational flexibility is intended to increase the likelihood of encounters with Bigg’s orcas, humpback and gray whales, as well as sea birds and pinnipeds; passengers can also listen for vocalizing whales on a hydrophone. The company guarantees a whale sighting—if none are observed, the next trip is free—and says 99% of trips encounter whales.
Puget Sound Express markets the Edmonds departure as the only Seattle-area whale-watching tour that includes a stop on San Juan Island, positioning the route as a day-trip option that combines wildlife viewing and a shoreline visit. The company operates other departures from Port Townsend and Port Angeles and highlights its role as a founding member of the Pacific Whale Watch Association, framing the new service as part of a broader commitment to responsible wildlife viewing.
What makes this notable is that both developments reduce the need for extended off-island travel: the volleyball team keeps more practices and some competition locally, while the Edmonds day trip provides a condensed option for visitors and residents to reach Friday Harbor and the wider archipelago without an overnight stay. In practical terms, that shifts how islanders plan schooling, tournaments and tourism, and it concentrates economic and social activity on the islands during key parts of the calendar—winter and spring for volleyball and late spring through early fall for whale-watching operations.
Organizers and company managers framed their initiatives as responses to demand for convenience and connection. The club’s founders emphasized building community across the islands and offering playing opportunities outside school sports; the whale-watching operator described the tour as designed to give guests maximum flexibility to find marine life while also letting them spend time ashore in Friday Harbor.
Both projects begin service within defined schedules: SIVA SJ’s competitive season runs through May, and the Chilkat Express Edmonds-to-Friday Harbor tour will operate daily across the May–September window. Together, they represent concrete additions to island programming and visitor options for the coming months.
