San Juan Islands, carved in layers of birch
Every depth a real step in the wood, not a print.
“Beautiful piece, expertly crafted. Packed well and arrived in perfect condition.”
Mark S., Hudson, OH. Verified buyer
The San Juan Islands in stacked Baltic birch, 24.5 by 31 inches: the archipelago carved one depth contour per layer, channels, passes, and all the islands the ferries weave between.
Details
- Dimensions
- 24.5 x 31 in
- Material
- Baltic birch, hand-stained water
- Build
- Up to nine laser-cut birch layers
- Detail
- Carved bathymetric relief, laser-etched labels
- Soundings
- NOAA nautical survey data
About this piece
The San Juans count their islands in the hundreds at low tide, and their history in oddities: the Pig War of 1859 nearly brought Britain and America to blows here over one shot pig, settled instead by a decade of polite joint occupation. Today the islands run on ferry schedules and orca sightings; Lime Kiln Point on San Juan's west side is ranked among the best places on earth to watch whales from shore, the resident pods working the Haro Strait current just off the rocks. On the chart, the deep channels between islands, San Juan, Rosario, Haro, cut engraved lanes through a birch field of summits-turned-islands.
Each contour is a separate laser-cut sheet, stacked by hand and engraved, behind acrylic glass in a solid Baltic birch frame in Dark or Light.
Islanders navigate by ferry line loyalty and favorite anchorages. Both are chartable, and charted.
The engraving spans Friday Harbor and Roche Harbor, Orcas and its sound, Lopez, Shaw, and the passes between. The wider water runs on the Salish Sea chart.
- 24.5 × 31 in
- Solid Baltic birch frame in Dark or Light
- Acrylic glass front, ready to hang
- Free next-business-day shipping on orders placed by 2 PM EST
- 14-day returns
Shipping and returns
Orders placed by 2 PM EST ship the next business day, free anywhere in the US, with tracking.
14-day returns if the size or frame is not right for the room.
Going on someone else’s wall? It ships packed and ready to wrap. Add a gift note in your cart.
Not a print
Run a finger across it. You can feel the water get deeper.
Up to nine sheets of Baltic birch, each one laser-cut to a real depth contour from NOAA survey data, stained darker as the water gets deeper, then stacked by hand. Deep water falls away layer after layer; the shallows sit close to the surface, just like the real thing.
How the water becomes wood
Anyone who grew up on this water has a spot on this chart.
The dock, the crossing, the stretch of shoreline that meant summer. Most people find theirs in the first minute. Every shoreline, island and depth contour of the San Juan Islands is cut, layered and etched from real survey data.
Built for the wall it ends up on.
A solid birch frame in Light or Dark, an acrylic front that keeps dust off the layers without the glare of glass, and hanging hardware already on the back, so it goes up the day it arrives.
From the people who hung one
23 reviews, 5.0 average
Live from the water
Questions people ask before they buy
Straight answers to the things that stop an order.
When will it arrive?
Orders placed by 2 PM EST ship the next business day, free anywhere in the US. You get a tracking number as soon as it leaves.
Which size should I choose?
The larger size is the one most people hang in a living room, over a sofa, console or mantel; it reads clearly from across the room. The smaller size suits a hallway, office, bathroom or boat. Both carry the same detail.
How is it packed? Will it survive shipping?
Each piece ships framed, with the acrylic front already in place, in a box built for it. "Packed well and arrived in perfect condition" is the most common thing reviewers say about delivery.
What if it is not right?
14-day returns. If the frame color is wrong for the room or the size is not what you pictured, send it back.
Is this a print?
No. The water is up to nine physical layers of birch, each laser-cut to a real depth contour and stacked by hand. The names and depths are burned into the wood. You can feel every step.
Do you have my lake?
195+ lakes, bays and coastlines. Use the map below to find yours, or search it. Each of the Great Lakes, for example, is also available on its own chart at closer scale.
Not your lake?
195+ lakes, bays and coastlines
Pan the chart, jump by region, or let us find the waters closest to you. Every pin is a piece we carve.