What to Do on Lopez Island: A Complete Guide for First Timers

Explore “Downtown” Lopez

We used quotes here because downtown Lopez Island, known as Lopez Village, is barely a downtown.

There are two small grocery stores, a handful of restaurants / eateries, a couple of places to shop (a bookstore and an art gallery, mostly), and the Lopez Island Historical Society. 

You can cover it in about 20 minutes, tops. 

That being said, this is where you’re going to find the best places to eat, drink, and shop on Lopez Island. Mostly because they’re the only places to eat, drink and shop on Lopez Island. 

Here are a few places not to miss in Lopez Village. 

Isabel’s Espresso: For us, the best coffee on the island (there are only a couple of coffee shops, the other main option being across the road from Isabel’s). Friendly staff and a good cortado, plus some fun seasonal drinks if you like your caffeine flavored. 

El Taco ’Bout It: A taco truck with a perpetual line for lunch. Lunch only, Friday through Sunday. 

APIZZAPIE: Wood-fired pizza out of a food truck. Good thing it never gets that hot on Lopez, because that sounds miserable on a hot day. They have gluten free crusts, but are transparent about the fact that they absolutely use shared equipment (because it’s a truck with limited space). 

Lopez Island Historical Society: More on this below, but they have some cool photography on the outside of the building that tells a story about Lopez Island’s history. 

Lopez Creamery: Ice cream right in the heart of Lopez Village with HUGE portions. They’ve been around since the 80’s, though they outgrew any possible facility on Lopez and now make their ice cream on the mainland in Anacortes. The scoop shop is open Thursday to Sunday only. 

It’s also worth visiting the farmers market in Lopez Village, which takes place on Saturdays from 10am to 2pm from mid-May through September. 

Devour Pastries from Barn Owl Bakery

First of all, this bakery is absolutely not gluten free. But Alysha HAD to try it. You know, for science. Their bakery is located in a barn in the center of the island, across the road from Hummel Lake, and it’s more of a farm stand than a full storefront. 

In addition to being a great bakery, it’s also emblematic of what makes Lopez special. Their bakery farmstand basically operates on an honor system. 

There’s no cashier, so you basically collect your goods inside and then go pay out front (the cash box is just sitting out on a table). They do take credit cards, but with an upcharge.

Alysha had a blueberry tart (“it wasn’t too sweet – the blueberries were the sweetest part!”) and grabbed a delicious Sicilian flatbread covered in seasonal veggies for lunch later that day.

They are closed Sunday through Wednesday, so make sure to plan your visit around that. 

They also have a stand at the Lopez Island Farmers Market, which is on Saturday mornings in Lopez Village. 

Enjoy the Noodles at Setsunai

For many trips, one of the sources I use to gather information and find some new things to do is Reddit. I did the same for Lopez, and one of the first threads that I came across had a very specific recommendation. 

I was looking for things like “do XX hike” or “don’t miss YY beach,” but instead one of the top rated comments said “the noodles at Setsunai.” The replies all said some version of “came here to say this.”

If that many people’s favorite thing on Lopez was this noodle bar, it was something that we (read: Alysha) would have to try. You know, for science (lots of science going on here!). 

We stopped by for lunch on a weekday, and it wasn’t too busy. However, they don’t take reservations, so be prepared to wait during peak hours (weekends in the summer, mostly). 

We got a nice table overlooking the bay out front, which is a lovely backdrop for enjoying some noodles. 

They source much of what they serve from farms on the island and from other farms in western Washington (though, given the type of food, they obviously source things from elsewhere too). 

It’s a welcome addition to Lopez’s restaurant scene, which has a lot of historic pubs and farm-to-table restaurants. 

The star of the show here – even for Alysha, who actually got to eat the food – was the plum shrub. Maybe it was the fact that we had done a couple of hikes earlier that day, but it was 

SO refreshing. 

It’s on the road that skirts Fisherman Bay on the western side of Lopez, about seven minutes from Lopez Village. 

Dive into the Island’s History

While it’s a small space, I really enjoyed the Lopez Island History Museum right in the heart of Lopez Village. You walk in and it’s essentially one room, but it’s full of displays and photographs from Lopez’s history. 

One of my favorite things to do in Portland is to check out the Oregon Historical Society – which has an excellent exhibit on the history of Oregon (with copies of the original documents they’re talking about) – and I’ve really come to value the act of archiving and displaying artifacts around the history of a specific place. 

This museum tells the story of Lopez from its time as the home of the Straits Salish people through present day, including how things changed when European settlers arrived in the northwest corner of the United States. 

There are also exhibits on the flora and fauna found on the island, some cool maps, and tons of historical photographs depicting life on Lopez Island over the years. 

It costs $5 to check out, and I think it’s well worth it.

However, even if you decide the $5 isn’t worth it, I’d still head over and take a look at the archival photographs on the outside of the building, which depict events from Lopez’s history. 

Head Out to Spencer Spit

We made a last minute call to extend our stay on Lopez, and ended up booking another night of camping at Spencer Spit State Park, which is on the northeast corner of the island.

We didn’t enjoy camping there quite as much as Odlin, but it is an interesting historical time capsule that tells you about Washington’s history. 

Spencer Spit, like many state parks in Washington, was basically a rich family’s estate that they claimed as a homestead in the 1870s until the state acquired it in the 1960s and made it a state park.

It’s actually named after the second family that lived here. 

Today, there’s a replica of the guest cabin that they built out on the spit, and the stone cellar of the main house, which sat on the hill above the spit, is still there. 

The cool part about Spencer Spit is the fact that, in the middle of the triangular spit, you’ll find a saltwater lagoon that has been formed and is an excellent area for birdwatching.

You can see migratory birds here, like herons, and it’s particularly good in the winter. 

Speaking of birds, we actually saw an owl in a tree above our campsite during the daytime, which seems pretty rare. 

Since this is a state park, it’s covered by a Discover Pass (Washington’s state parks pass). You can also buy a $10 day pass on arrival. 

Catch a Sunset (at Odlin County Park)

We spent the majority of our time on Lopez Island camping at Odlin County Park, which is on the northwest side of the island near the ferry terminal on Lopez. 

The park is basically split into two sections; a forested area and a wide open beach area (which is where the day use area is – day use is free, too!). 

We were treated to two excellent sunsets here, including the best sunset we’ve seen in a while on our very first night on the island (basically right when we arrived on the island). 

There are two good places to watch the sunset here. 

First is the beach, which is pretty obvious. There’s a few picnic tables, a bunch of driftwood to sit on, and the view straight out to the west is great. 

Second is from the short trail that leaves the campground and heads south along the coast past the hiker/biker campsites.

It ends at a nice bench with a view out to the southwest.

Oh, and it’s also worth noting that we got extremely lucky and saw seals, otters, AND orca whales from our campsite (!!). 

The whales were far away – past the point out on the bay – but we saw dorsal fins and blowholes (and were only tipped off to them by the 5-7 big boats following them). 

Spot the Wildlife at Shark Reef Sanctuary

Shark Reef Sanctuary – which, sadly, has little to do with sharks – is a little park on the western shore of Lopez Island. It is, however, an excellent place to see harbor seals and, if you’re extremely lucky, whales. 

At the end of a 10 minute walk on a boardwalk you’ll emerge out onto a bluff overlooking the (relatively) narrow strait between the southeastern corner of San Juan Island and Lopez Island.  

In the foreground, you have a couple of small rocky islands where you’re sure to find harbor seals lounging on the rocks. 

We were amused at Lupine’s (our dog) reaction to the noises they were making, especially when the seals would get feisty and have little scuffles with one another. Lots of cocking her head and listening intently. 

Part of the reason, though, that this place is well worth your time is the backdrop in the distance.

You have the southeastern corner of San Juan Island (and the Cattle Point Lighthouse) in the middle distance, and further south you have the Olympic Range rising above the Strait of Juan de Fuca. 

This would be another good option for a sunset outing because you’re looking directly west across the southern edge of San Juan Island. 

Getting to Lopez Island

This section is important, because the ferry system is an obvious bottleneck when it comes to getting out to the San Juan Islands, and the ferries absolutely fill up during the summer months. 

Here are the basics you need to know about the ferry system to get to and from the San Juan Islands. 

To get to Lopez Island from the mainland, you have to take a ferry from the Anacortes Ferry Terminal, which is two hours (84 miles) northwest of Seattle (here on Google Maps).

It’s a scenic 45 minute ferry ride, and you can bring your car on the ferry. 

We’d recommend making reservations for the ferry from Anacortes if you’re traveling between Memorial Day and Labor Day, which can be made in advance here.

It’s also worth noting that this reservation is simply to save you a spot on the ferry and give you priority boarding over the first-come-first-serve people, you’ll still have to pay a roundtrip fee at the toll booth (you can find updated rates here to calculate the cost). 

The reservation is not free – it is a refundable fee of $13 that is a “no-show” fee. 

If you make a reservation and do not cancel it before the day of your trip, you will pay the no-show fee. If you cancel the reservation outside of that window, it’s fully refundable.

If you take the trip as planned, you don’t get charged the no-show fee. 

You need to be through the toll booth at least 30 minutes before the ferry departure time, which means you should show up 45-60 minutes early. Yes, even if you have a reservation.

This is a super popular ferry route, and there’s only one way to get to the island. 

Taking the ferry is not cheap (see prices here) but it’s worth noting that this cost covers you roundtrip.

As long as you’re traveling west to east (i.e. San Juan Island to Orcas Island, or San Juan Island to Anacortes), it will be free.

Let’s talk about when to book your ferry crossing.

Reservations are released in thirds; one third two months before the trip, one third two weeks before the trip, and one third two days before the trip. All reservations are released at 7am PST. 

Coming back from Lopez to Anacortes is free, BUT the lines can be LONG, particularly on Sunday afternoons and Monday mornings. 

We found this guide to ferry capacity by sailing useful, and you can see that there are a couple of sailings a day that are exclusively Lopez to Anacortes (versus stopping at Lopez on the way from Friday Harbor or Orcas) that have significantly higher capacity. 

If you aren’t able to get reservations, don’t panic.

First, check back two days before your trip at 7am, when more slots are released.

Second, try traveling standby, which means you need to show up extra early (60-90 minutes in advance).

Third, try traveling on either the first or last ferry of the day, which are generally the least crowded.

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