First Stop San Juan Island

Well it started as a crazy idea that turned into reality. If you are stopping over in Vancouver, Canada on the way to Dublin, why not jump in a rental and drive across the Canada/USA border, jump in a ferry and go see one of Americas foremost solar sea salt makers in San Juan Island. Wow if you thought Coromandel was remote and the roads a pain in the backside…try having your salt farm on San Juan Island in the magical Salish Sea, Puget Sound, literally the watery top of Washington State. Trip alone out to the Island, home to around 10,000 residents was beautiful, the Salish sea, renamed after local indigenous, is wonderfully protected by Vancouver Island and a fisherman’s playground.

We met Brady Ryan, the power behind the San Juan Island Salt Company and his team today. San Juan Island as you might have guessed is not big on Uber so we had to grab scooters for the 7km trip out to the salt farm. The adventure started early! After navigating the hi-ways and by-ways of San Juan and a long gravel drive we knew we were in the right place when we caught sight of 14 large plastic tent houses just like ours…only three times the size.

San Juan Island Sea Salt are solar salt farmers just like ourselves. Sharing our experiences with Brady and Ian Nixon his right hand man and chief salt maker was a blast. San Juan are ten years into there business and have distribution across the USA. The use of local ingredients in there salty seasonings mirrored our own ethos and there amazing new retail space in downtwn Friday Harbour, the biggest town on San Juan Island made us very envious. We left firm friends and with promises to share more of our journey on the salty road together.

 

So now its a quick trip back across the border to Vancouver. A quick bite, walk long the waterfront and get ready to hit Dublin and Newry just across the border in 24 hours!