We're at Orkila!

Dave, Dan J, and Pullyou are at Orkila! Yep, that's right. We'll be here all week, and will be hosting the First Time Camper Overnight this weekend. If you're registered for this summer, and have never been to Orkila before... this is a great opportunity to learn more about Orkila first hand.

The folks in our Camping Services Office can tell you more about it, and they can be reached by the number on the right. Space is quickly filling up!

We'll post pictures and updates from Orkila in the coming days AND shoot more crazy videos...

Get excited!

Carrots!

We're wascally wabbits, in the Orkila Cubicle.

In honor of Earth Day (two days ago) we decided to turn off the lights. Thus, we ate carrots to help with our vision at night. Until that is, we learned that it's all a matter of lore. You can read more about the erroneous history of carrots and vision here.

Today is EARTH DAY!

That's right, it's Earth Day! Plant a tree, consume less energy, save a polar bear, say thank you to our planet!

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

ORKILA UPDATE #3: I'm an (Out Trip) Monster!

M's Opening Day!

It's today! 3:40 pm, first pitch. Yay!

In the news AGAIN!

Orkila was in the news again! This time, on King 5. The story aired on this morning's broadcast. It's also been replayed throughout the day on NWCN. Wow! Here's the link:

"Making Summer Camp Affordable for Families"

Also, today is the LAST day to vote for Orkila via the Evening Magazine's Best of Western Washington & Northwest Escapes. Last time the results were visible, we were in the lead. However, they turned off the ability to see the progress - so your vote is super important! We'll keep you posted on the final results, to be announced May 4th.

VOTE NOW

ORKILA UPDATE #2: With a Little New Flair

Lunch at Pike Place

For lunch today, Dave and Pullyou walked down to the famous Pike Place Market. In addition to a munchin' luncheon, they also walked away with a
bunch of carrots, four artichokes, muscat grapes (so good), a peck (or bushel, depending on who you ask) of spinach, two avocados, and baguettes! Also, did you notice the lovely tulips in the background of the picture? Tulips have taken over Pike Place, they're everywhere!

Speaking of tulips, if you love them you should seriously consider visiting the 26th Annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. It runs through the month of April up in Mount Vernon, WA. Which is a hop-skip-and-a-jump from Anacortes (where the ferry departs for Orcas/Orkila!).

Summer Time Weather

What a day (and weekend)!

The sun is out, weather is great, and we hope that you were able to enjoy it. And while it may feel like summer, it's not here quite yet. Which is good, since we're still getting ready for the upcoming season (which will be AWESOME, by the way).

In the meantime, if you're missing the San Juan Islands and wanted to see what's going on up there - check out this link to view "Island Cams" from the various islands!

Cheers!
Dan, Dave, & Pullyou

Emerald City ComiCon

Looking for something to do this weekend?  If you're in the Seattle area and you like comic books, science fiction stuff, and/or Battlestar Galactica - then the Emerald City ComiCon might be the thing for you.

You can find more information here: 

http://www.emeraldcitycomicon.com

Pullyou will be there, that's for sure!

Maintenance Staff Hard at Work

It's a year-round process to maintain the 280 acres of Camp Orkila. Our dedicated maintenance crew (Steve, Jason and Don) help keep the facilities safe, ready, and operational for our campers, membes, and guests.

Jason repairs a roof after a winter storm

New Porch on Saturna Cabin

Don and Jason make repairs to the water and sewer systems, Yuck!

The sewer lift station was replaced for better reliability and safety

Steve Miller, Facilities Director, capably and confidently leads our maintenance crew.

Not pictured: bus driving, lawn mowing, vehicle repairs, toilet plunging, preparing cabins for incoming schools/camps, getting up in the middle of the night because something is flooding, repairing anything and everything you can think of, and other tasks that you probably don't want to think about!

A lot goes on behind the scenes and Orkila. And rarely do those that do the "dirty work" - the things we take for granted - get the thanks or the credit they deserve.

THANK YOU for your continued service and great work!

Orca whales create transportation company, donate services to Orkila

Really, what's more amazing? The fact that the orca whale J, K, and L pods of the San Juan Islands joined forces in a work-related partnership OR that they are offering their services as WHALE EXPRESS. This new joint venture has a simple business plan: to provide a new, fast, courteous, and fun transportation option for the residents and visitors of the San Juan Islands. The company's name was chosen to honor the historic "Pony Express" mail delivery service back in the 1860's.

The whales wanted to show their appreciation to the horses, fellow animals in the transportation business.

Whale Express will provide dock-to-dock service anywhere within the Islands, as well as have the option of daily scheduled trips between Orcas, Lopez, San Juan, and Shaw Islands. A Washington State Ferries spokesman declined to comment about this direct competition. The ferries will continue to corner the market on vehicle transport, at least until Whale Express starts their planned expansion with the Gray Whales in 2011.

In an unprecedented partnership between animals and humans, Whale Express has allocated the entire L Pod (the largest of the three pods) for exclusive transportation of Orkila campers. Whale Express President/CEO Ruffles (J-1) had this to say about the enticing endeavor:

"We are excited about this partnership between Whale Express and YMCA Camp Orkila. Not only will we provide transportation for campers arriving at Anacortes, we will make daily shuttle trips between Sucia and Satellite Islands for their overnight trips. Adding to Orkila's existing programming, hopefully this unique partnership will make Orkila even more awesome."

As a show of support for Whale Express, Orkila's Marine Biology program will be providing daily refreshments for the orca whales when they pick-up and drop-off at Orkila's Dock. Think of it as a free lemonade stand. But instead of fresh squeezed lemon juice sweetened with sugar, imagine ground/blended salmon spiced with plankton. Yummy! Orkila has coined the term "salmonade" for this new concoction.

Even in this current economy, Ruffles doesn't seem too concerned with the financial situation of his new company. This is due largely to the immense compensation received as royalties from the film "Free Willy." Both Granny (J-2) the 98 year-old matriarch and Ruffles made appearances in this classic film.

Whale Express will begin service in May 2009. And in closing, this is all an elaborate way for us at Camp Orkila to say April Fool's Day :)