Paloma Rois: Orcas Island

After postponing for a month we were finally able to take our long awaited trip to Seattle and then out to the San Juan Islands and specifically Orcas Island. An early morning departure from the home was cold and rainy, practically snowing when we got to the Denver airport.

Tetons from the plane

We arrived to sunny and 70 in Seattle, quite a nice change. We visited with Maia, Zack, Henry, Maia's mother Jennifer and their newest baby girl (name?) in Seattle. They have a beautiful home with views from the upstairs of the downtown and Puget Sound. Henry loves Paloma and loved sharing his trains and trucks. After Maia and Zack's we met Kate Hestwood at Seward Park (?) right on the lake.

Seward Park

Paloma played on the playground, we watched the ducks and threw rocks. It was a beautiful day. We spent the night at Kate and Jordan's place in West Seattle in the coldest house ever. Thanks for turning up the heat Kate. Pho, diner breakfast, Trader Joe's and then northward to Anacortes to catch our ferry. We couldn't have asked for better weather. Hardly a cloud in the sky as we boarded the ferry in Anacortes for Orcas Island. Paloma ran around the boat in her sunglasses, showing off for everyone.

Pulling up to the Orcas Village Ferry Landing is what I would imagine Maine would be like, but maybe less craggy?

Orcas Village Ferry Landing

We seemed to drive forever to get to Eastsound, the main town tucked into a little cove. We figured we better start there and get a map and maybe a bite to eat. Everything was closing down so we headed off to Pebble Cove Farm. We pulled into Pebble Cove Farm, just short of Deer Harbor, and immediately it felt right. Animals were out in the yard which lead to the water. There was no formal welcoming. Just find the room, one of two, that has your name on it and make yourself at home. Lydia and John and their three boys. Goats, chickens, a pony, a huge garden, wild blackberries, fresh eggs, a patio right off our room that led down to a big backyard and then to Massacre Cove. We opted to stay in that night, cook some Trader Joe's pasta and sauce for dinner. Perfect. I think we went for a short rowboat ride that evening. To be honest, there's not much to tell about our trip. We didn't do a whole lot of anything. We slept and read a lot. It was what we needed. We went for some short hikes, we went out on the little rowboat, we visited the animals, we made breakfast in our room. We drove up to the top of Mt. Constitution a couple of times. We ate out a couple of times. We went to the pottery place. It was just nice and easy going. On the second or third evening we were wandering around the garden when I saw one of the boys run out of the house. I couldn't be sure but I was quite certain he was wearing a loin cloth, no shirt, and a coon skin hat. It seemed like one of those bizarre things that I would have thought I dreamt if Zoey hadn't confirmed seeing him. Later, we heard him crashing around in the woods and his Dad said he was gathering bark to tan his deer hides. That was just the beginning. The next morning Paloma and Zoey met Henry in the barn to watch him milk the goat. It was the beginning of Paloma's crush on Henry, and maybe ours as well. He was quite an intriguing young man. The whole family was interesting but Henry was special. Paloma really took a liking to Henry and kept asking about him. Our opportunities for Paloma to be around him were waning as the trip came closer to an end. We were busy trying to cram in a couple of last minute things and he was a busy guy. Fortuitously though, Henry was leaving with his Dad, brother and a friend on the same ferry as us. They were headed to a barter faire in eastern Washington. We tracked them down on the ferry and took seats int eh booth across from them. Paloma was suddenly very shy but she began drawing pictures and sort of moving closer and closer to Henry who was going over trip details with his group. Finally Paloma began to warm up to him. I'm not sure if he really knew what to make of the situation but ultimately he is a sweet boy who recognized that we thought he was a pretty cool guy and that it would probably mean the world to Paloma to hang out with her. He began to draw her a picture while she stood by and watched. Henry's father suggested they get some exercise by walking around the ferry. Paloma waited for them to circle around. Finally, Henry picked her up and carried her around the ferry for a couple of laps. She wouldn't dare let on but it was so fun, so exciting. The final day, as we were leaving, it was finally raining. We were so concerned that by postponing our trip we were setting ourselves up for miserable weather but other than being a little socked in for a couple of days, the weather was fantastic.