Orcas Island

Ian and the 3 girls enjoying the view (and fresh fruit!) in Eastsound
Me and the girls on Sunrise Peak - just up from our campsite
My own personal sous chef, and his goofy boss! Mmmmm!

Our little spot, our little bus, and her BIG hula-hoop earrings!Namche getting a bath and drink after a long hike.
Kiera and Kendall feeding deer at Rosario Resort

Well, I guess my "next island" didn't turn out to be the Galapagos - we stayed a little closer to home and just returned last night from our camping trip to Orcas Island. We stayed at Moran State Park in a little spot right on Cascade Lake. It was a perfect 4 days, and the extra bonus was that on this camping trip we didn't have to be towed into our campsite like last time (I'll fill you in on that story later)!

We left on Sunday morning at 8:00 and arrived in Port Townsend in time for the 9:30 ferry to Keystone (Whidbey Island). We drove up Whidbey over Deception Pass (another great camping spot!) and got to Fauntleroy in time for the 11:50 ferry to Orcas. Kendall was happy that the Orcas ferry was a "full grown ferry" as opposed to the smaller one from Port Townsend, which did not have a cafeteria (and hence the giant pretzels).

The scenery up in the San Juans is amazing and if you haven't been there I suggest you put it on your list of places to go. This was our first time up in that area and we were not disappointed. Orcas Island is one of 4 island in the San Juans that the ferry stops at (the rest are either uninhabited or accessible only by private boat or plane) and it's one big giant beautiful rock with 5 lakes, farms, quiet inlets, a charming town, and madrona trees greeting you at the ferry landing. It has the highest point of all the islands - Mt. Constitution at 2,400 ft - and the view from the top is 360 degrees and breathtaking. We could see all of the surrounding islands, Mt. Baker, and even Mt. Rainier in the distance. It was hard to take our eyes away from the scenery.

We camp in our '76 VW bus (we spent one night debating what to name it - I think we're going with "Daisy", with some understandable hesitation from Ian) and I must say we're all getting used to camping together and have found that we share responsibilites well. I asked Kiera what her favorite thing was about camping and she said, "working - keeping the camp organized". I love it because I never have to cook! Ian and the girls make all the meals while I relax, and I do cleanup with some help from Namche (yes, this dog has the good life and gets all the leftovers!). We all fit surprisingly well in our little green bus. It has a pop-up so two of us sleep up there, and the other two are on the pullout in the back. Namche even squeezes in on the floor. The girls each have cubbies that they pack with their clothes and books, and Ian and I share the little closet.

We arrived at our campsite around 1:30 on Sunday and spent the afternoon setting up camp and exploring the area. The girls brought their bikes and rollerblades and had fun riding around the circle near our campsite. We were right on the shores of Cascade lake (site #12, but we'd recommend site #9 if you can get it) and found we had a little beach all to ourselves, which made Namche very happy too since she could swim practically whenever she wanted. Ian and the girls made chicken/tofu stir fry for dinner and we toasted marshmallows/ smores before heading to bed.

On Monday we decided to walk to the State Park Beach which was about a mile hike along the park trails. It is a cute little beach that reminded me of the state parks in Minnesota. The girls and Ian took a quick swim, but since Namche wasn't allowed in the water we didn't stay long and decided to head back to our campsite. We have a small raft/ boat which we took out in the lake - Kiera spotted a rock on the other shore so she and I paddled with our hands over to the rock and she climbed victoriously up on top before we headed back. That afternoon we decided to see what the little town on Eastsound was like. It's right on the water and we found a fruit stand where we bought fresh cherries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries and they were delicious! The girls decided we needed to top it off with ice-cream. The closest thing we found was Gelatto and Kiera declared that she prefers the "regular ice-cream made with cream" rather than Gelatto which is made with whole milk. On the way back we decided to drive up Mt. Constitution to see the view and learn some hisotry of the island.

We got a late start on Tuesday, seeing that Kiera and I slept until 9:45!! Yep, we're on vacation! We had a quick breakfast and then decided to take a hike to Cascade Falls. After some grumbling from the girls about being tired, we made it and they both agreed that the hike was well worth it. Namche ran up to the bottom of the falls to take a drink then decided she'd just go ahead and lie down in the pool of water and drink while cooling off. We got back and went for a swim at our beach before heading out to take a look around the island some more. We found ourselves at Rosario Resort which is the former estate of Robert Moran. He was the gentleman who donated the 3700 acres which is now the state park. The girls had a special unexpected treat while here. The deer at Rosario are partially domesticated and we were able to feed them apples from the tree. After a few games of tetherball and a walk around the grounds we decided to head back. However Kendall had other plans and talked us into stopping at the State Park beach for an evening swim before we went home. It turned out to be a great idea and we ended up staying until nearly 8:00 - it was a beautiful, perfect summer evening and none of us wanted it (or our trip) to end. The girls swam in the lake while the sun went down and all I could think of was that this is what summers are supposed to feel like and I am so happy and feel so fortunate that we are able to have these memorable experiences together.