Here’s a thought…
“Old age is no joke, but it can feel like one.”
TAD TOMPKINS
San Juan County’s ‘wicked problem’
||| BY MATTHEW GILBERT, theORCASONIAN OP/ED REPORTER ||| The long wait for the release of comments to the draft San Juan Islands Destination Management Plan (SDMP) finally ended on July 8 when the results were presented to the County Council by Kendra Smith, Director of Environmental Stewardship, and Angela Broderick,
Summer is in full swing
||| FROM TERA in lieu of HILARY CANTY ||| Wow, the island is abuzz! It’s wonderful to see our local businesses swirling with traffic, flowers in full bloom and feel the sunshine bouncing around. There’s no shortage of summering to be done with plenty of interesting activities, music events, a robust
Washington State Ferries canceled 1,145 sailings this summer, with outsized impact on the San Juans
Washington State Ferries is low on vessels and crew. Nowhere is harder hit than the San Juan Islands where one in 20 trips were canceled this summer ||| FROM KNKX ||| San Juan Islanders are used to going to the mainland for doctors’ visits, though it often means spending often
Copenhagen may have cracked how to get tourists to behave: Free glasses of wine and kayaking
||| FROM BUSINESS INSIDER ||| Copenhagen will launch the CopenPay initiative to reward climate-conscious tourists. The monthlong trial offers incentives such as free museum entry for green deeds like cycling. The aim is to reduce the environmental burden of tourism on Denmark's capital. Copenhagen may have figured out how to
Weekly WSF Update | Ridership records; new ‘Ferry Talk’ podcast by 13-year old; sailing stats for week
||| FROM NICOLE MCINTOSH for WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| A message from Nicole As acting assistant secretary this week, I want to provide an update on our service levels. Summer is our Super Bowl, and all our employees are fully committed to providing the best service possible despite current crewing
Occam’s Razor | Our island, our world through the eyes, pen of S.C. Watson
Welcome to our weekly feature, Occam's Razor, from local artist S.C. Watson.
Cider, Mead Festival this weekend
||| FROM MICHELLE HASSEBROCK for ORCAS ISLAND HISTORICAL MUSEUMS ||| The 12th Annual Orcas Island Cider and Mead Festival is this Saturday, July 13. Over 20 vendors, large and small, will be pouring local and regional brews from 11am-4pm on The Village Green. There will be live music throughout the
Fires banned on DNR-protected lands
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| As of July 10, 2024, at 1:00pm, Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued a declaration banning all fires statewide on DNR protected lands. This ban extends to recreational campfires on DNR lands in San Juan County. Q: What are DNR protected
Free Concert, Delicious Food
||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND WINERY ||| Orcas Island Winery Saturday, July 13. Doors open at 5 pm Portland's beloved Any Given Session is a heart, rock and soul band comprising long-time friends and former bandmates, they are crafting original music that showcases powerful, soulful vocals, alongside eccentric, mind-bending guitar solos, all anchored
Whale Museum’s Global Orca Workshop
||| FROM TATE THOMSON for THE WHALE MUSEUM ||| Come join The Whale Museum’s Global Orca Workshop virtually through Zoom! The dates are Tuesday, August 27 from 1 - 8 p.m. and Wednesday, August 28 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. This workshop’s theme will be: Understanding orca eco-types around
4.7, 5.4, 6.4 earthquake swarm recorded off Vancouver Island
||| FROM VANCOUVER CITY NEWS ||| Earthquakes Canada says a magnitude 6.1 earthquake has been recorded off the west coast of Vancouver Island Thursday morning. The national earthquake agency says the quake, which was recorded at 8:08 a.m., is part of an ongoing “swarm of earthquakes offshore Vancouver Island, at
Great Swendini magic show
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Join us at the Orcas Senior Center on Monday, July 22 at 1 p.m. for The Great Swendini’ s mesmerizing magic show. Swen Nater, a seven-foot-tall former American and National Basketball Association player who graced the courts for eleven seasons, is
Letter to Editor | I strongly support McVeigh for County Council
||| FROM EMILY GEYMAN ||| As Superintendent of Schools in Friday Harbor for two years, Kari demonstrated the very attributes that a Council member needs: ability to listen to and work with others, creativity in evolving solutions to complicated situations, fairness and support to employees. She also has experience, in
How Native nations forced federal investment in salmon reintroduction
Work above the Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee Dams has proven that salmon will return home, pressuring the government to uphold obligations to Upper Columbia United Tribes. With further litigation on hold, the federal government has committed more than $200 million for salmon reintroduction efforts led by Native nations |||
Squirt guns and ‘go home’ signs: Barcelona residents take aim at tourists
||| FROM THE STRAITS TIMES ||| LONDON/ZARAGOZA, Spain - For the past few months, tourists in certain areas of Spain have found fewer welcome mats and more hostility. Anti-tourism graffiti loops across buildings, and tens of thousands of people have protested this year against unsustainable mass tourism. Over the weekend in
Green invasion hits Orcas Island’s Cascade Lake
||| FROM TOBY COOPER for THE SALISH CURRENT ||| Eurasian watermilfoil — a fast-growing, non-native aquatic plant that threatens the natural freshwater ecosystems, human recreation and domestic water infrastructure — has infested Orcas Island’s Cascade Lake, prompting the Washington State Parks authority to seek permits for control. The popular lake
