Orcas Island
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Orcas Island is the largest of the San Juan Islands, which are located in the northwestern corner of Washington state in San Juan County, Washington. Orcas Island is one of four stops on the inter-island Washington State Ferry route serving the San Juans. Ferry access to the islands is from the mainland terminal at Anacortes, Washington (between 45 minutes and an hour and fifteen minutes), or limited service from Sidney, British Columbia.
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[edit] Geography
With a land area of 57.3 square miles (148.4 km²) and a population of 4,453 (2000 census), Orcas Island is slightly larger, but less populous, than neighboring San Juan Island. Orcas is shaped like a pair of saddlebags, separated by fjord-like East Sound, with Massacre Bay on the south side, and tiny Skull Island just off the coast. At the northern end of East Sound is the village of Eastsound, the largest town on Orcas and the second largest in San Juan County. In 1989 the Lummi Nation regained a village and burial site on Orcas Island's Madrona Point near Eastsound, and now operates it as Madrona Point Park, a private preserve characterized by hundreds of twisting madrona trees sprouting from the rocky shoreline. There are daily commercial flights to and from Orcas Island Airport in Eastsound, as well as seasonal seaplane flights to different locations on the island, including Rosario, West Sound and Deer Harbor.
Other, smaller towns - or hamlets - on the island include Orcas (where the inter-island/mainland ferry lands), West Sound (technically part of Eastsound), Deer Harbor, Rosario (technically part of Eastsound), Olga and Doe Bay. There are overnight accommodations for visitors in each. Of these Olga and Doe Bay are on the less-populated and generally quieter east side of the island. At Olga, there is a popular cafe and art gallery in a former strawberry-barreling plant, where local artists sell their work, and studios for pottery and glass art. Doe Bay is known primarily for a rustic resort of the same name.
[edit] Moran State Park
Mount Constitution (elevation 2409 ft. - 734 meters) is the highest point in the San Juan islands and is a prime tourist attraction. The drive to the top takes about 15 minutes (except in the worst winter weather when park rangers close the road) and provides a dramatic 360-degree marine view. The mountain is part of Moran State Park, the most popular attraction in the San Juan Islands and the largest public recreation area in the San Juan Islands. Moran State Park encompasses over 5,000 acres (20 km²) of woodland and has several lakes, used for swimming, fishing and non-motorized boating, especially kayaking. There are numerous waterfalls, as well as miles of walking, hiking, biking trails, and a campground.
Moran State Park rangers manage Obstruction Pass State Park, a marine park three miles past Moran State Park that is used for hike-in or boat-in camping. The Obstruction Pass Park has a half mile trail leading to a public beach and campground area. There are 11 campsites and 3 mooring buoys at the park. There is a public boat launch on Orcas Island, with a small loading/off-loading public dock, trash dumpster and compost toilet, located a mile past the trailhead road on Obstruction Pass Road. Lieber Haven Resort and Marina located a short distance from this public boat launch also have a guest dock with short term boat moorage (often the public dock is full) and a sandy beach area designated for passing kayakers to land. The resort is a WiFi hotspot, enabling boaters to get internet access. There is a small visitor information center on the dock and next to the nearby grocery store, which includes a public phone.
[edit] Historic camps and museums
Orcas Island is also home to three historic camps: Camp Orkila, Four Winds Westward Ho and Camp Indralaya. Camp Orkila, operated by the Greater Seattle area YMCA, is located on the island's northwest shoulder. In operation since 1906, Orkila caters to families, schools, and other organizations during the school year, and during the summer operates an overnight camp for boys and girls entering grades 3-12. Four Winds, located on the southwest corner of Orcas Island in Four Winds Bay, is a non-profit summer camp founded in 1927 which offers activities such as sailing, canoeing, horseback riding, arts and crafts and landsports to 7-18 year olds. Camp Indralaya was founded in 1927 by the Theosophical Society as an experiment in theosophical living. It operates year-round with a program season from April to October.
The Orcas Island Historical Museum is located down town Eastsound and is the only object-based, interpretive heritage facility for the island, with a permanent collection containing approximately 6000 objects, paper documents and photographs.
[edit] Name
The name "Orcas" (pronounced 'OR-cass', not 'OR-caz' like the orca, or killer whale) is a shortened form of Juan Vicente de Güemes Padilla Horcasitas y Aguayo, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo, the Viceroy of Mexico who sent an exploration expedition under Francisco de Eliza to the Pacific Northwest in 1791. During the voyage, Eliza explored part of the San Juan Islands. He did not apply the name Orcas specifically to Orcas Island, but rather to part of the archipelago. In 1847 Henry Kellett assigned the name Orcas to Orcas Island during his reorganization of the British Admiralty charts. It was this work of Kellett's that eliminated the patriotically American names that Charles Wilkes had given to many features of the San Juans during the Wilkes Expedition of 1838-1842. Wilkes had named Orcas Island "Hull Island", after Commodore Isaac Hull. Other features of Orcas Island named by Wilkes include "Ironsides Inlet" for East Sound, and "Guerrier Bay" for West Sound. One of the names Wilkes gave remains, that of Mount Constitution. Wilkes' names follow a pattern: Isaac Hull was the commander of "Old Ironsides" (the USS Constitution) and won fame after capturing the British warship Guerriere in the War of 1812.[1]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Phillips, James W. (1971). Washington State Place Names. University of Washington Press. ISBN 0-295-95158-3.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Orcas Island is at coordinates Coordinates:
