We were up this morning at 6am to finish packing up the car and were on the road by 7am. We were making good time and decided we had enough time to pop in to the Lynnwood Chick-fil-A to pick up some breakfast sandwiches and get back into their system for future coupons.
Orcas Island is only accessible by ferry and this was our first time there. There were 11 families this year and instead of tent camping we had several cabins and a big lodge with a full kitchen. So in actuality we weren’t really camping at all. Getting ferry reservations over a holiday weekend is an absolute must and it’s tough to get convenient times – there were a few families on the same ferry over with us. I didn’t do a great job journaling and since my camera was busted I only have phone pictures, but in summary the weekend was an absolute blast and Orcas Island is so beautiful. All of the kids had an amazing time, the cabins were nice, the food amazing and plentiful, the lake was picturesque, SO MUCH FUN!
This was our private beach and dock
Most of us brought paddleboards (the one we brought had a hole) and the facility also had several canoes available for us to use.
Carly ended up on canoe that filled up with water and overturned so a rescue crew ended up helping her and Kesley push it back to shore.
There aren’t any predators on the island so the deer are absolutely fearless and walked around our camp day and night. Some of the kids even got close enough to pet and feed them (a no-no).
Our campsite was near several lakes and several of us ladies went on a long hike Saturday afternoon. It was so beautiful.
It is always a special experience to attend church during this weekend and today was no exception. The members on Orcas Island actually meet in a Methodist church and we more than tripled their attendance. Being fast Sunday it was neat to hear so many of our teens share their testimonies. Per tradition there’s always a crew of kids (and an adult or two) who don socks with their sandals for church.
We hiked up to the top of Mount Constitution for some amazing views! Lush green islands as far as the eye can see!
I really love the PNW!
Of course lots of games were played…
Not as much gaming for the adults this year, but we did spend several hours playing a sort of “name that tune” activity on evening. Also, lots of fun conversations and storytelling over the campfire at night.
We had a horrible situation occur on Sunday night. I went into our cabin around 12-1am to go to bed. Drew was the only one sleeping in the cabin with Justin and I since all the other kids joined up with friends in “kid cabins” – a first for Jason and Katie. Anyhow, it reeked when I stepped inside and it didn’t take long to figure out that Drew had gotten sick on his top bunk and puked off the bed to the left and off the bed to the right and plenty of puke on the top of the bed as well. And Drew was sound asleep laying in it. So, so gross. The kid had been eating licorice all night and I guess his stomach couldn’t take it. Drew was fine and after cleaning him up we relocated him to the others side of the cabin so we could clean everything up. It took Justin and I probably an hour to clean up the mess – it was everywhere.
Love these kids!
We tried to take an earlier ferry home on Monday afternoon, but everything was full so we headed back to the lake for a few hours to wait for our 8:30pm ferry home. We got home super late – all the kids were out cold by the time we got home, but it was SO worth it. Love this tradition!
Abigail put together a video of the weekend and I loved it so much I asked her if I could share it with the other families. She was hesitant because the video was about her experience and didn’t represent everyone, but they loved it. I love the connections these kids have made over the years and it was touching to see the memories made – especially since this was likely the last Labor Day camping weekend for Abigail and several others.
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