Windjammer Park – one of Whidbey Island’s great public parks:
Oak Harbor is fortunate to have many great parks and public spaces. The crown jewel of Oak Harbor is Windjammer Park…formerly known as City Beach Park….located on the waterfront next to the shops along Pioneer Way in downtown Oak Harbor.
I was there on the first day of winter:
Come see for yourself!
There are lots of great activities this holiday season on Whidbey Island. Get out and enjoy and support our local businesses while you are out there!
Dec 2 & 3 - Big Brothers & Big Sisters Festival of Trees – Black Tie event including a silent auction on Friday night, and tree viewing on Saturday afternoon at the Elks Lodge. Read more about this benefit for the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Island County.
Dec 2 – Concert on the Cove - Concert on Friday night at Camp Casey, Coupeville
Dec 2 – First Friday at Greenbank Farm – enjoy the wine tastings and tour the art galleries at Greenbank Farm First Friday
Dec 3 – Christmas Tree Lighting and Parade in Oak Harbor – parade at 4 PM, Santa Claus arrives at 6 PM, and the annual Christmas Tree Lighting starts shortly afterward. Read more at the Whidbey News Times
Dec 3 – Greening of Coupeville - parade Saturday afternoon and tree lighting ceremony on Saturday night in downtown Coupeville. Read more in the Whidbey News Times
Dec 3-4 – Country Christmas at the Fair – Arts & Crafts Fair at the Island County Fairgrounds in Langley
Dec 3-4 – Deception Pass Dash – for the not-faint of heart, paddle your kayak through Deception Pass. Definitely not for the inexperienced. Register here for the 2011 Deception Pass Dash or read more about it at the Deception Pass Dash Blog or at the sponsor’s website
So get out there and enjoy the weekend. And make sure to spend some money to support our local businesses while you are out there!
September is always a great month on Whidbey Island. The weather is usually nice even though the summer is winding down, and there are all kinds of great outdoor events to enjoy. This coming weekend September 17-18 is the Whidbey Island Farm Tour.
There are two great resources to help you find your way during the tour. The first is the Whidbey Island Farm Tour Guide Supplement published in Coupeville’s Whidbey Examiner newspaper.
The second is the Whidbey Island Farm Tour Blog on the internet, which has a great map. The blog is the source of the YouTube video below. Remember this video is for last year’s tour, this year the Farm Tour is on September 17 & 18, 2011.
Have a great time!
How did it get to be the end of summer already? I for one, am not ready. Luckily the weather has been great for the last couple of weeks, and this weekend looks like it may be the best weekend of the year in our area! Here are some things to do if you want to get out and enjoy the sun and fun this weekend:
9/10 Military Appreciation Public Picnic - Oak Harbor, at Windjammer Park adjacent to City Beach. A free picnic to honor the members of our military community, the public is welcome, and encouraged to attend. Always a fun event, it should be moreso this year with warm weather providing a great environment for swimming in the lagoon in front of the windmill at Windjammer Park!
9/10-11 Ride M/S - Bike ride in support of the fight against Multiple Sclerosis – starting in Mount Vernon, with routes through Skagit County to Fidalgo Island, across the Deception Pass Bridge, and down West Beach Road on North Whidbey Island. It isn’t too late to contribute – you can make a contribution here or sign up at the event to ride.
Have fun this weekend, and don’t forget the sunscreen!
Ahoy mateys, thar be a mighty battle brewin` in th` seas o` Penn Cove next high tide’ an’ Sundee.
Lady Washington under sail. Photo by Thomas Hyde.
Th’ Lady Washington an’ th’ Hawaiian Chieftain be raisin’ the’r sails an’ settin’ ou’ fer a swashbuckle t’ victory durin’ th’ Coupeville Arts & Crafts Festival this weekend. th’ battles be scheduled fer 2 PM on Satterdee an’ Sunday
Images courtesy of the 2011 Grays Harbor Historical Seaport Authority and the Lady Washington website.
English to Pirate translation courtesy of the Pirate Speak Website in honor of Talk like a Pirate Day coming on September 19th.
Just a quick post of a couple of fun, family oriented events going on this weekend on North Whidbey Island.
Saturday, August 13, 2011 – North Whidbey Car Show - Windjammer Park, Oak Harbor
We are the premiere Auto show in northwest Washington. Come join us every second Saturday in August for lots of cool rides, music, food and fun. On the waterfront in beautiful downtown Oak Harbor!
This is not a pet-friendly event, as there will be big crowds and the car show participants get very upset if your doggy does his business on their spit-shined wheels and tires, so please leave the hounds at home!
Sunday Aug 14th 2011 – The 4th Annual Oak Harbor Fidalgo Ave. Block Party & Free Pig Roast - Oak Harbor
Annual block party on beautiful Whidbey Island. A fundraiser event consisting of a free pig roast meal, BBQ competitions, family activities, beer garden, band performers and much more. All proceeds go to local Oak Harbor charities.
Sat & Sun, Aug 13-14, 2011 - Coupeville Arts & Crafts Festival - Coupeville, WA
the Coupeville Arts and Crafts Festival is one of Washington State’s oldest, continuously run festivals. The Festival is renowned for its primary focus on quality arts and crafts, handmade by artisans from the Pacific Northwest and beyond. The historic town of Coupeville is located on Penn Cove, Central Whidbey Island, WA. Shoppers, vendors and visitors will all be charmed by the waterfront views.
I hope to see you out there this weekend!
Whidbey Island Race Week is here again!
One of the biggest events of the year in Oak Harbor starts today It is the annual sailing Regatta know as Whidbey Island Race Week. With over 100 boats competing from all around the country, this should be a really fun event for all participants and spectators.
The pictures below are from last years event. Below that are links to some recent stories and current blogs so you can get more information about what is happening this week:
Links, Articles, & Blogs:
Whidbey Island Race Week Blog - dedicated to Race Week
Affordable Seattle Blog article about Race Week 2011
Whidbey News Times article: Oak Harbor readies for Race Week 2009 July 12-17
Facebook Group for Whidbey Island Race Week
The Whidbey Examiner article Navy Hosts Race Week Party
The Coachman Inn article about Whidbey Island Race Week
Whidbey News Times article about the 2010 races Smooth sailing: Whidbey Island Race week doesn’t disappoint
Pressure Drop blog article Whidbey Island Race Week 2011 – The Adult Summer Camp
Another Pressure Drop article Whidbey Island Race Week 2011 – Picks and background
Have fun, whether you are a spectator or participant, and I hope to see you there!
Whidbey Island Garden Tour and More this weekend!
If you want to help benefit some great local organizations, you should take part in the Whidbey Island Garden Tour this weekend. From their website: “The proceeds from this year’s Garden Tour will benefit our 
community through the support of educational projects and public space enhancement.” Among those organizations to benefit is the Good Cheer Food Bank.
In addition to the gardens that are on tour, there are additional interesting sites open for FREE this weekend: “They include the Good Cheer Garden, the Master Gardeners’ Education Garden, and Meerkerk Gardens.”
The Good Cheer Garden
Meerkerk Gardens
So if you need something to do this first weekend of the summer, come out and support our local community, and enjoy some incredible gardens in the pro
cess!
Summer Events for Whidbey Island 
I’m late with my summer calendar of events, but here are the events for the next few months:
June
6/11-12 San Juan 24 North American Championship – Oak Harbor Yacht Club
6/18 Beachcombers Bazaar – Oak Harbor Windjammer Park
6/18 Round the Rock Annual Benefit Motorcycle Run – Coupeville
Boys & Girls Club
6/19 Father’s Day Auto Show at Meerkerk Gardens
6/25 Whidbey Island Garden Tour
Recurring Whidbey Playhouse “Annie” – Oak Harbor
July
7/3 Celebrate America—Freeland
7/4 Old Fashioned 4th of July Grand Parade – Oak Harbor
7/4 Old Fashioned 4th of July Family Celebration – Oak Harbor
7/4 Old Fashioned 4th of July Fireworks – Oak Harbor
7/1-5 Oak Harbor’s 4th of July Carnival – Oak Harbor
7/9-10 Choochokam Festival of the Arts
7/17-22 Whidbey Island Race Week – Oak Harbor
7/23-24 Loganberry Festival – Greenbank Farm
August
8/2 National Night Out – Oak Harbor
8/6 Whidbey Island Triathlon - South Whidbey Island
8/13 Celtic Society Highland Games - Greenbank Farm
8/6 Challenge Series Soap Box Derby – Oak Harbor
8/13 North Whidbey Car Show – Oak Harbor – Sponsored by North Whidbey Lions Club
8/13 Coupeville Arts & Crafts Festival - Coupeville
8/14 Fidalgo Avenue Pig Roast – Oak Harbor
8/18-21 Island County Fair – Langley
8/20 Driftwood Days – Oak Harbor
8/20 Windjammer Jam – Oak Harbor
8/21 Annual WAIF Wag n Walk – Greenbank Farm?
8/26 BBBS Golf Ball Drop
8/27 Backpack Throwdown
Recurring Events all Summer
Oak Harbor Farmer’s Market – Every Thursday 4 PM – 7 PM
Coupeville Farmer’s Market – Every Saturday 10 AM – 2 PM
Bayview Farmer’s Market – Every Saturday 10 AM – 2 PM
Greenbank Farmer’s Market – Every Sunday 10 AM – 5 PM
As always, if you have suggestions of other events, please share them with me in the comments below. Have fun, and see you there!
The Oak Harbor Farmer’s Market is open every Thursday through September
The Oak Harbor Public Market (most people call it the “Farmer’s Market”) has opened for the season, with the first market held last Thursday the 19th of May. It runs from 4-7 PM each Thursday through September, and maybe longer if the weather permits.
The video below shows the first market of this year. Since it opened early this season, the turnout was a bit sparser than typical, but it is also a little early in the year for the farmers to have much produce to bring to market!
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The market is located on Hwy 20 in Oak Harbor, between the North Whidbey Middle School and the Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce. The map below is interactive, you can zoom or pan for better detail:
