The Rosario Resort and Eastsound, WA

On our first visit to Orcas, we were fortunate to spend a couple of days and nights at the Rosario Resort.  Talk about amazing views - both of the forest and the ocean, beautifully decorated suites, friendly staff, and the kind of dining where you wish you could just order everything on the menu.

Since it was dark when we arrived the first evening, through the windows we could see little white lights twinkling in the dining room and the cozy scene of people in the lounge being entertained by a young man playing the guitar and singing, how could we not go in and find a place to sit? 

The musician was fantastic - he looked and sounded like a young Jackson Browne or James Taylor, and was even playing some of their songs.  So much talent - and we would have missed it if we hadn't gone in.

We both ordered the Fish and Chips, and I have to say - they were the best I ever ate.  I highly recommend this place for a wonderful island getaway!

Please click on the Rosario Resort's link - it is full of interesting information:  the history of the place and the founder who lived in the mansion house, as well as photos of the rooms and grounds, and more.  You won't be disappointed!

The front drive into the Rosario Resort

 

Great Mexican food is not just in the southwest, as I always thought.  On Orcas Island this is one of our favorite places to eat:  Chimayo en el Dia

 

Side street in Eastsound, outside of Chimayo

Getting Used to Things

I have never liked moving - I always wanted to have a home and live in it, have my kids grow up in it, have grandchildren visit, and finally retire in it.  I guess I got that from my parents who only moved once while I was growing up; from St. Louis to Sierra Vista, Arizona when I was ten.  Since they passed away - my Mom in 2000 and my Dad in 2006 - I have moved three times.  Illinois. San Francisco. And now here.

I have to say that this place intrigues me like no other.  I grew to love nature and hiking and mountains in the canyons of the Huachucas in southeastern Arizona.  I admit that most of my senior year in high school was spent not in class, but with friends hiking the canyons, driving the canyons, loving the canyons...

This place brings that all back to me.  Wearing hiking boots and walking on damp soil, surrounded by an aroma of a pine forest, is beyond heavenly.  I think this opportunity came along at exactly the right time in my life - city living is not something I choose anymore.  Right now, in this place, my hiking boots and I are happy to explore =)

Starting the morning off right

 

Healthy food from the Island Market

(pay no attention to the Jim Beam)

 

My Second Visit to Orcas Island

"My second visit to Orcas Island" is no doubt a curious way to begin a new blog.  You see, I have been here once before - but it is on this second visit that I am actually making the island my home. 

And what a home it is ... a one year rental, so I want to blog my time here and make every day of the next year a special one. 

This is a lovely, lodge-style house, very large with wooden beams in the ceiling and bamboo floors to quietly walk across - surrounded by tall, green pine and fir trees, and other trees whose names I have yet to discover.  Each of the windows of the house offers a different, breathtaking view and in the last few days I've often found myself asking:  What have I done to deserve this beauty?  Someone up there must really like me - thanks Mom, Dad, Andy, CO. 

From the side deck we have an incredible view of Mount Constitution - on sunny days it glistens like a large sparkling diamond; on rainy, overcast days the fog and clouds creep into the crevices and canyons, creating a mystical and awe-inspiring sight.  I can't wait to go hiking there - I imagine the views from the peak are equally impressive, if not more so.

The upstairs of the house has a lovely entryway (a circular styled front door that is supposed to be feng shui, but the word "hobbit" keeps going through my mind), a cook's delight of a kitchen, a laundry room, a large family room and dining room, guest bath, and master bedroom and bath.  Downstairs are two more bedrooms, a bathroom, laundry room, and an art studio!  Oh how I love that =)

Family Room and deck

 

Mount Constitution

 

Misty View