A three point deer heads across the prairie looking for a mate.

Plenty of spaces are still available for the bivalent COVID booster clinics hosted by the County’s Department of Health & Community Services next week. More than 230 slots are open between 1:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. on Monday, along with nearly 600 appointments between 8:45 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

You can register online through the Health & Community Services website.

With the arrival of colder fall weather, it’s good timing. Mike’s is now open from 4:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday through Monday, closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

The Town of Friday Harbor needs a citizen volunteer to fill one Planning Commission vacancy. It’s an at-large position reserved for a County resident — a resident of San Juan Island and registered voter of San Juan County who does not live within the town limits of Friday Harbor.

Friday Harbor’s five-member Planning Commission acts as the fact-finding agency of the Town with respect to growth and development. It is charged with reviewing the Town Comprehensive Plan and making recommendations to the Town Council concerning land use matters. It meets regularly on Thursday evenings.

To apply for the position, send a letter of interest to the Mayor’s Office at [email protected].

Coldwell Banker San Juan Islands is looking for a year-round full-time Front Desk Manager. Learn more in the Island Jobs section of the San Juan Update.

All three Friday Harbor Tigers football teams won their playoff games this past Saturday, so their postseason journey continues this week. On Saturday the Juniors head to Blaine High School for a 4 p.m. game against Ferndale, the Midgets play against Granite Falls at 2 p.m. at Mount Vernon High School, and the Pee Wees play Anacortes at noon — also at Mount Vernon High School.

On Sacred Ground sends along the details about their upcoming series of events.

The summer craze has crescendoed and is quickly transitioning into the calmer winter months. Islanders proclaim that the San Juans have been returned to them. So what are our obligations as we try to foster recovery of the land and animals that have been viewed so heavily in the summer months? How can we continue to protect our imperiled ecosystems with bounding visitation and a rising local population?

On Sacred Ground’s Leave No Trace Speaker Series touches on those topics as we cycle back to our 2014 voluntary commitment as a county to uphold Leave No Trace ethics. The Speaker Series is funded by a Lodging Tax Advisory Committee grant from San Juan County.

Leave No Trace and the Island Marble Butterfly
Sunday, Nov. 13, 5-6 p.m.
San Juan Island Library Conference Room

Come learn about the endangered island marble butterfly (Euchloe ausonides insulanus), how it copes with winter storms, and the simple things we can do to best its chances of surviving another year. Wildlife Biologist Jenny Shrum, formerly of the National Park Service and currently On Sacred Ground’s Island Marble Butterfly Program Director, will share highlights of her nine seasons studying this quirky critter and what LNT practices on the prairie will do to support the island marble butterfly.

Leave No Trace and the Southern Resident Killer Whale
Sunday, Dec. 4, 12-1 p.m.
San Juan Island Grange

Listen to Dr. Deborah Giles, Science and Research Director of Wild Orca and UW’s Center for Conservation Biology, share whale tales of the Salish Sea and how LNT on the water is vitally important to our way of life in the San Juans. Learn about her particular twist on LNT practices to support Southern Resident killer whales.

Leave No Trace – Where Do We Go From Here Workshop
Monday, Dec. 12, 6-8 p.m.
Wayfinder Wellness, Surina Business Park

What does Leave No Trace look like when you start to apply these ethics to your everyday life and not just your backcountry or frontcountry experience? What does it mean now for San Juan County to be a voluntary LNT county eight years after we have declared that intention? Is it just for tourists? Should it be applied even more rigorously to our way of life in light of our recent population growth? Join Sarah, On Sacred Ground’s Executive Director and Co-Founder, for conversations on how to up our LNT game and what actions we can take locally to implement LNT ethics. Please RSVP for this workshop as space is limited.

FHFF shares news about the winning films from this year’s event.

The Friday Harbor Film Festival thanks all the film lovers, filmmakers, volunteers, and sponsors for making the tenth anniversary festival a success. Over 600 people viewed documentaries at the in-theatre festival. Twenty-nine filmmakers attended, speaking at Q&As and at the Filmmakers Forum.

The 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Sidewinder Films/Foundation for Global Sports Development, followed by a screening of their production of Waterman. Orcas Island educator and photographer Robert Dash was honored with the Local Hero award. He presented a stunning slideshow of his work showing the complex patterns and textures of micro-nature.

Audience Choice Awards were announced Sunday evening, followed by a screening of the winning films:

• Best Overall Feature – The Long Rider, directed by Sean Cisterna
• Explorers & Adventures – Watson, directed by Lesley Chilcott
• Tales from the Heart – Corky, directed by Christine Caruso
• Things to Consider – The Pollinators, directed by Peter Nelson
• Best Short Film – Bring the Salmon Home, directed by Shane Anderson

Filmmakers and film lovers have been lavish in their praise of the festival. “I think you have set a new standard for how all local and even national film festivals should be organized and run,” said cinematographer Ron Precious. “After a two-year hiatus, you have come back stronger than ever and delivered a primo festival. The Filmmakers’ Forum was another highlight for me. It gives me such great joy to hear today’s young documentary filmmakers expressing their concerns about this art form and their passion to tell a story that has meaning and consequence.”

“Thanks so much for a remarkable festival this past weekend,” Local Hero award winner Robert Dash said. “Ranna and I enjoyed it tremendously, and we were overwhelmed by the hospitality and positive spirit that welcomed us all along the way. It was a great pleasure to connect with you, and to network with other creative participants. You’ve got a great formula and the best people to make it happen. May this festival continue to flourish and inspire far into the future.”

The altar is part of the community Dia de los Muertos event sponsored by the Joyce L. Sobel Family Resource Center, which concludes today.

Hadrian’s Wall — Photo credit: Michael Vouri

I was impressed when friend and local historian Michael Vouri set out to hike Hadrian’s Wall across northern England. Hiking the wall is a popular trek that follows the Roman Emperor Hadrian’s massive masonry wall and forts. During the Roman occupation of Britain, the wall defined the edge of the Roman Empire leaving the troublesome Scots on the far side of the wall. It spans the narrow waist of Britain at roughly 100 miles across.

Mike documented his trek in a brilliant series of articles in the San Juan Islander. Here you can benefit from an historian’s take on hiking the wall as you follow along over farmer’s stiles and through the boggy spots in sunshine and in soaking rain while taking in magnificent scenery. However, you don’t have to be quite that ambitious to gain health benefits from walking.

Adding just 10 minutes of walking to your day is very likely to extend your life. So says a recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine and written about in the New York Times by Gretchen Reynolds. The results of the study indicate that even a little extra physical activity can potentially stave off premature death.

I was not in great shape before the pandemic. Spending the first two years of it staying home by myself indulging in toast, cheese, and the internet did not help. Finally, my physical therapist assigned me two-minute walks on the hour. It has been a challenge to motivate myself that often. What has inspired me lately is that I have embarked on a virtual hike of Hadrian’s Wall.

That’s right — I count my steps right here in Friday Harbor. At the end of the day I post my distance on my Conqueror’s Challenge app. I can see my progress along the wall on a map, in a satellite view or street view. There are virtual postcards along the way. While obviously I’m missing some of the pleasures of hiking in real life, at least I don’t have to locate a bed-and-breakfast before I can sleep at night and I can make my steps in small increments throughout the day.

Once I have completed my virtual hike I will get a fancy medal for my achievement. This was paid for when I signed up and purchased the app for $29.95. Other virtual hikes through the Conqueror’s Challenge that I have my eye on are the Road to Hana on Maui, the road from Marathon to Athens, and the Great Wall of China. There are many more, plus a Facebook page occupied by supportive fellow travelers.

Whatever your level of fitness, finding what keeps you putting one foot in front of the other is a good thing.

San Juan Island Distillery wants to try making Poire Williams and they’re looking for island-grown pears — especially from older trees. If you have any to share, they ask that you drop them off at their building — 12 Anderson Lane, just off Armadale Road near Roche Harbor.