For a smaller museum, taking only about 20 minutes to walk through, it is a fantastic museum,…read moreshowcasing Orcas Island history. The docent that greeted us was friendly and informative, telling us that the museum was at one time six separate one-room residences that were dismantled and rebuilt to make this current museum. Full of many early and late century household items, placard's describing the way of life on the island, and has loads of interesting artifacts, photographs, and materials showing Orcas Island early community and civilization.

There's so much to see in this little house. I'm particularly awed by the display of the submarine…read morecables which brought power to Orcas and the nearby islands. There are displays of cobblers and black smiths which are well preserved.

If you are looking for an usual experience on Orcas Island do not forego visiting this very special…read moreprivate museum that has over 800 works of art from 250 San Juan Island artists. It features the largest collection of HELEN Loggie's work and an extensive collection from James Hardman all in an exquisite architectural setting on the water with breathtaking views complete with follies. It is breathtaking and will provide you with inspiration and awe along with thanks that people like Leo Lambiel exist in this world.

Leo Lambiel's guided tour of his awesome home cum museum is awesome, and well worth the $20 fee per…read moreperson. His taste in art by San Juan Islands artists is eclectic -- inspiring, humorous, ironic, abstract, representational -- in a range of media. The house reflects his own craftsmanship in construction and decoration, and grew from its origins as a cabin to a mansion of many rooms, soaring ceilings, windowed walls, and outdoor stairways. Leo's folly is the grotto, which he continues to work on after 17 years. Wine also is his passion, and his wine room has patterned walls made of used corks. Altogether, a wonderful tour.

A lovely mansion to stroll along in the afternoon with the family. You get to read about the…read morehistory of the home of Bob Moran, who used to be the mayor of Seattle. It's well kept and I got to walk around and explore to my hearts content. Then, I went to the Lounge.

This is mainly for the winter season but also the island as a whole. This may get an update in the…read moresummer. Orcas Island is really pretty. The water views are fantastic. If you're lucky, you'll see a whale or pod of whales. However, I definitely do not recommend coming here in the winter. Everything is pretty much closed -- at least all the really good stuff. If you want breakfast, forget about it. Pretty much all the breakfast restaurants are all closed for the season, which makes zero sense, so you only have one option (Island Skillet). It's not a bad restaurant, but imagine you're visiting the island for a week. That's all you pretty much have unless you want to eat pastries at the bakery all the time, but those are a bit pricy. The weather also ruins a lot of the fun. Don't even try to visit Mount Constitution because you won't see anything. We paid $10 for a state park parking pass and saw the view for about 5 minutes before a wall of fog rolled in. Then it just poured with heavy winds. The nearby towns are okay. You drive in, you drive out. Not much to see. This isn't really a touristy island. It is an artsy place, though, so I appreciate all the galleries. Olga gallery is a good one. All the clothing stores are mainly targeted toward an older demographic and older women. There's a toy shop in a pharmacy and a bookstore, but that's pretty much it for younger people. This is a good island to get away from it all but I personally love San Juan since that has more to see and do.

It's the best island compared to the ones we've been to which are Shaw, Lopez, and San Juan. The…read moreEast Sound has a lot of inns, shops, and restaurants. Camping at Moran State Park can be the closest thing to heaven. There are walkable beaches everywhere. We love the flowers that blooms everywhere around the July time.

Most people visit East Sound using the ferry. But for those who flew in will find the museum…read moreinteresting with old displays of past aviation. It's a good place to spend an hour or so.

This historic school house is beautifully restored. The volunteers, who offer personalized tours,…read moreare so knowledgeable and friendly. You can see items donated by previous students who came to this school once upon a time, and standing inside feels like you've traveled back in time. There are also many original items such as the oil cloth lesson board, the original chalk board, wall lanterns and more. In the summer they also feature a spooky story telling. Touring the museum is a must-see if you're staying on the island!

We stopped by the Crow Valley School on orcas Island and were delighted with how well preserved the…read moreschool was with original lesson plans and account books available to peruse, a headmaster's black dress displayed, some original school desks, and several enlarged old photographs of students. We received a personal tour of the school from Rebecca and were delighted to visit this historical spot on Orcas.

very beautiful artwork, but were steered away from purchase from lack of energy and engagement from…read morestaff. we did end up buying an item, and the staff member told us how paper receipts would give us cancer. fair warning

This is a gorgeous shop right on THE corner in Fremont (IYKYK). They sell from multiple local…read moreartisans, although the most well known, most recognizable is their ceramics with colorful designs. Valeri, who was running the shop on this day, and is one of the artists, (how cool is that?) was very helpful and informative. Told us all about the different items, how they are made, what they are made of, etc. In addition to their flagship ceramics, they have gorgeous paper art, cards, jewelry, bath&beauty items, kitchen items, and probably more. This is a new location - they are originally located in Orcas Island. They plan to have classes and/or a workshop in this location soon.