The Town of Friday Harbor is adjusting its policies relating to utility billing and collection in response to Governor Jay Inslee’s Recovery Plan for the State of Washington. We ask you to call the Town as soon as possible if you are having difficulties making payments on your Town utility bill. Staff can walk you  Continue Reading

FREEZER BURNED: Tales of Interior Alaska is a regular column on the San Juan Update written by Steve Ulvi… (Author’s note: This campfire story is mostly fiction in terms of characters and events. Historic, ecological and political themes will always be sculpted factually. The wonders of the subarctic natural world are as I understand them  Continue Reading

Merri Ann Simonson shares another episode in her video series and says, Local San Juan fishing derbies, they are the best!

Islanders, unable to afford dental care, can receive it for free thanks to the local nonprofit Fish For Teeth on Friday, Oct. 2 and Saturday, Oct. 3 at the Mullis Community Center on San Juan Island. Due to health precautions during the COVID-19 pandemic, the clinic will host half of the number of patients usually  Continue Reading

Open Country Press is proud to announce the winner of the 2020 Open Country Chapbook Contest. Khaty Xiong chose Barefoot Up the Mountain by Tara Mesalik MacMahon of Friday Harbor, Washington. Tara Mesalik MacMahon, a graduate of Pomona College and Harvard Business School, is an emerging poet. Her poems appear or are forthcoming in Rhino,  Continue Reading

Flu shots are now available at Eventide Health. It’s important to get yours early this year. We will be hosting a few flu clinics this year and carrying on the tradition of San Juan Healthcare and offering the service as public health to the community. We will also be participating in joint flu clinics with  Continue Reading

Due to fire danger and stretched resources, San Juan County is extending the current burn ban to prohibit all outdoor fires (including charcoal), effective immediately and until further notice.  This change is prompted by several factors. Hot and dry weather has made conditions ripe for ignition and fast fire spread, and forecasts predict more of  Continue Reading

San Juan County Master Gardeners welcome keynote speaker Robin Haglund to the Annual Gardening Workshop Series. Robin’s presentation, Growing a Year-Round Hummingbird Habitat Garden, guides you through crafting and maintaining a gorgeous year-round garden that provides habitat for our resident hummingbirds. You will learn the vital elements needed for food and nesting, while enjoying the  Continue Reading

Be a Superhero for Planet Earth! 2020 Fall Great Islands Clean-up September 28 – October 4 We’re asking Superheroes of all ages to unite and help us clean-up our islands during this year’s Fall Great Islands Clean-up! The event will be a week-long household/individual effort beginning September 28 and running through October 4, 2020. This  Continue Reading

Pacific herring – also known as forage fish – play a key role in marine food webs as food for out-migrating juvenile salmon, seabirds, and even marine mammals. Herring rely on sensitive eelgrass meadows found along our tidelands to spawn and incubate their eggs. Herring spawning populations in the San Juans are classified by the  Continue Reading