2014 Olympic Driftwood Sculptors Showand Dungeness River Festival

Come celebrate the bounty of the waters at the 2014 Olympic Driftwood Sculptors Show and Dungeness River Festival, September 26th-28th, 2014!

The 6th annual Olympic Driftwood Sculptors Show and the 15th annual Dungeness River Festival come together to make for a weekend of art, fun, and festivities on the North Olympic Peninsula that you wont want to miss!

Held at Railroad Bridge Park and the Dungeness River Audubon Center, the celebrations are separate but intertwined, both focusing on the gifts of the area’s local waters.

The 2014 Olympic Driftwood Sculptors Show will feature driftwood sculptures by many artists, based on the LuRon® method. This style of driftwood sculpting was developed by Lucile Worlund of Seattle and is unique to the Pacific Northwest. The concept behind the LuRon® method is not to shape the driftwood to your own scheme but to work with its existing forms to allow the the inner beauty of the wood’s natural shape to come to light. The driftwood artist sees, develops, and refines this natural, inner shape in the found piece of driftwood into astonishing works of incredible art.

During the 2014 Olympic Driftwood Sculptors Show, artists will both display their finished pieces as well as demonstrate their process by working on pieces throughout the two days of the show. A Driftwood Boutique will offer various driftwood items for sale and attendees of the show will have the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets for a chance to win one of the sculptures.

Occurring simultaneously at the park, the 15th annual Dungeness River Festival will be providing interactive exhibits and walks for the whole family that examine and celebrate the giving waters of the Sequim-Dungeness Valley watershed. Come enjoy the festivities with crowd pleasing activities like fish painting, live music, crafts, contests, food, drink and more!

The North Olympic Peninsula Wine Country
Don’t forget: when you visit the North Olympic Peninsula, you’re visiting Wine Country! Stop by one or more of our Olympic Peninsula Wineries member wineries and cideries for a taste and a bottle or three of our fantastic wines and ciders! Most of our members are open for visitors, so don’t be bashful – stop by!

2014 Olympic Driftwood Sculptors Show and Dungeness River Festival
September 26th through the 28th, 10am to 4pm ~ Free Admission
Railroad Bridge Park at 2151 W. Hendrickson Road in Sequim, WA
for a full schedule and other details, please visit: www.olympicdriftwoodsculptors.org
and www.dungenessrivercenter.org

12th Annual Friends of the Fields Harvest Dinner

If you’ve a passion for locally sourced, delicious food, then you wont want to miss the 12th Annual Friends of the Fields Harvest Dinner, scheduled for Sunday, September 25th, 2014 on the North Olympic Peninsula.

An all-volunteer event, the Friends of the Fields Harvest Dinner is a collaborative celebration of the Olympic Peninsula’s local harvest. This multi-course, all-volunteer, gastronomic gala is local food, donated by the community and prepared by celebrated, local chefs, all for a good cause: promoting farmland conservation by demonstrating the quality of the local area’s bounty.

And it’s not just food – local drink will also be on hand in the form of beer and wine, along delicious desserts, and live music. (more…)

Come to the Jefferson County FairAugust 8 – 10, 2014

Barrel Racing at the Jefferson County Fair
August 8 – 10, 2014

It’s time once again for the Jefferson County Fair! August 8th through the 10th, 2014. Jefferson County’s annual fair is an old fashioned, country-style fair with contests, 4-H and FFA exhibits, live music and fun for the whole family.

The annual Jefferson County Fair is a traditional county fair, providing county residents and visitors to the area an exhibition of local accomplishments in livestock, agriculture, arts, crafts, husbandry, stewardship, and entertainment.

Here are just a few of the 2014 Jefferson County Fair scheduled attractions: (more…)

2014 Olympic Music Festival

If you enjoy pastoral scenery, open air, and beautiful, classical music, then Quilcene’s Olympic Music Festival is just the thing for you!

The Olympic Music Festival is an annual series of eleven, summer chamber music concerts held on a converted farm on Washington’s North Olympic Peninsula.

Started in 1984 by ex-Philadelphia String Quartet member Alan Iglitzin, the Olympic Music Festival was originally intended to be the summer home for the Philadelphia String Quartet, who had come to Seattle in 1966 as the University of Washington’s Quartet-in-Residence. Attendance of these first summer concerts, however, made it clear just how hungry Northwest audiences were for the combination of the setting and music. (more…)

Go Wild at the Olympic Game Farm

The Olympic Game Farm, on the North Olympic Peninsula, in Sequim, is home to a large collection of animals including ex-film stars and waving bears.

Yes, that’s right: waving bears.

The Olympic Game Farm started out as a kind of hobby for Lloyd Beebe, a logger-turned-dairy farmer and wildlife enthusiast who spent much of his spare time filming wild animals so that he could share his love of them with others. As his films became better and he took in more orphaned wild animals, his reputation grew and soon he had caught the attention of a little company out of California called Walt Disney Studios …

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Come Celebrate Sequim Lavender WeekendJuly 18th through the 20th, 2014!

Arguably the biggest event of the year, Sequim Lavender Weekend is back for its 18th year on July 18th through the 20th, 2014 – and there are a host of events for you and your friends and family to see, do, smell, touch, and taste!

The Sequim Lavender Festival Street Fair will be located in downtown Sequim, on Fir Street between Third and Sequim Avenue. Attractions include original, hand-crafted and lavender themed arts, crafts, oils and soaps, lavender bouquets, buds, plants and more! There will be special activities for children, local bands for entertainment, a wide selection of food vendors offering everything from vegan fare to BBQ to crab cakes, plus lavender flavored margaritas, martinis, and local wines served at the Beer and Wine Garden. Be sure to look for some of our members’ wines!
Sequim Lavender Festival Street Fair hours: Fri-Sat 9am to 7pm and Sun 9am to 5pm

The Lavender Arts & Crafts Fair in the Park at Sequim’s Carrie Blake Park will include booths featuring hand-made crafts and natural lavender products, more great food, a wine and beer garden, live music, and limited Edition Farm Tour & Fair merchandise including caps, tees, art posters, and more. You can also get information and tickets for visiting the farms on the Heritage Lavender Farm Tour.
Lavender Arts & Crafts Fair in the Park hours: Fri-Sat 9am-7pm and Sun 9am-6pm

The Sequim Lavender Festival Farm Tours include 7 different farms open to the public for free tours: Blackberry Forest, Graysmarsh Farm, Nelson’s Duck Pond & Lavender Farm, Martha Lane Lavender, Oliver’s Farm, The Lavender Connection, and Peninsula Nurseries. Get your map of the farms at the street fair or at any of the participating farms. Drive at your own leisure and pack a lunch to enjoy a full day of relaxation and lavender.
The Farms will be open for free tours throughout the Sequim Lavender Weekend from 10am to 5pm.

Heritage Lavender Farm Tour
Visit five of Sequim’s iconic lavender farms for the price of one admission ticket: Jardin du Soleil Lavender Farm, Lost Mountain Lavender Farm, Olympic Heritage Lavender Farm, Purple Haze Lavender Farm, and Washington Lavender. Tour breathtaking fields of lavender, sample and purchase lavender products, participate in workshops & demonstrations, enjoy food, beverages, live entertainment, and more.
Heritage Lavender Farm Tour hours: Friday through Sunday 10am – 6pm

The Sequim Lavender Welcome Center will be located at 7 Cedars Casino, off Highway 101 about 6 and a half miles outside of Sequim. Come in to pick up tickets for the Heritage Lavender Farm Tour and information about different attractions at the Sequim Lavender Weekend activities.
Advance 3-day Tickets, 40% off! (purchased by July 17): $15 – 3-day Tickets (purchased July 18 – 20): $25 – One-day tickets: $10 – Active Duty Military (must have valid ID) and children 12 and under are FREE. Tickets can be purchased online at SequimLavender.org or at: First Federal (Sequim, Port Angeles, and Port Townsend), 7 Cedars Casino, Purple Haze Store in Sequim, Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce, and any farm that is part of the Heritage Farm Tour.
Sequim Lavender Welcome Center hours: Fri-Sun, 9am to 5pm

And – of course! – be sure to look for member wines at the festivals and, if you have time, stop by any of our Olympic Peninsula Winery locations!

Port Angeles Underground Tours

Work begins on filling in the Port Angeles waterfront, circa 1914

Many people know that Seattle has an old underground section of the city that you can tour but did you know that you can take Port Angeles Underground Tours as well?

Located on the North Olympic Peninsula, Port Angeles, like so many towns at sea level, was initially built up … where it really shouldn’t have been.

Founded in 1862, with real construction beginning in the 1880’s, Port Angeles sprang up primarily near the water so as to facilitate ease of transport for its main export: logs. Unfortunately, this meant suffering the effects of high tides and what that brought in, namely the growing city’s own sewage!

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Visit Marrowstone Island, Washington

There’s a lot to see and do and see on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, no the least of which is a visit to the pastoral beauty of Marrowstone Island.

Marrowstone Island is located just off the Quimper Peninsula, southeast of Port Townsend, Washington. A long, narrow stretch of land, Marrowstone is connected first to the parallel body of Indian Island by land bridge, then to the rest of the Quimper Peninsula via a proper bridge.

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Port Townsend Rhody Fest 2014!

Rhody Fest 2014, Port Townsend’s annual Rhododendron Festival, is almost here!

If you’ve never been, you need to make the time to come and check it out. If you have attended before, well, I don’t need to say a thing, I’ll just see you there!

Rhody Fest has been the true herald of spring in and even well outside of Port Townsend for some 79 years, now. This historic, seaport town on the Olympic Peninsula goes all-out to celebrate the season and Washington’s state flower with a series of fun-filled and often hilariously zany events that are fun for the whole family.

This year’s Rhododendron Festival is scheduled to include: (more…)

The 2014 Northwest Wine and Cheese Tour!

Ah, spring: warmer weather, a greening of the foliage, blossoms – and the Olympic Peninsula Wineries’ annual Northwest Wine and Cheese Tour!

Yes, indeed, if you like wine – delicious, Pacific Northwest wines – and you enjoy locally made cheeses (oh, what a gimmie!) then this is the tour for you … for almost anybody and everybody, actually.

Come along with us and savor newly released wines and ciders paired with a variety of hand-crafted, local, artisan cheeses: (more…)

The 6th Annual Winter Driftwood Sculpture Show

Force of Nature by Marilyn Bruning

The 6th Annual Winter Driftwood Sculpture Show of the Olympic Driftwood Sculptors is being held March 22nd and 23rd at the Dungeness River Audubon Center in Sequim.

This year’s Annual Winter Driftwood Sculpture show includes a themed section entitled “Fantasia.” Each year the Annual Winter Show of the Olympic Driftwood Sculptors includes a separate display of sculptures based around a central theme. Past themes have included “Aviary,” “Regatta,” and “Aquarium.” The “Fantasia” theme collects together sculptures related to and or depicting scenes, characters, and icons of the fantasy related genre: dragons, unicorns, mermaids, and more. (more…)

Marrowstone Vineyards

Marrowstone Vineyards joined Olympic Peninsula Wineries this January and we’re so very happy to have them with us!

the beautiful view off Marrowstone Vineyard’s deck

Marrowstone Vineyards is located on Marrowstone Island, naturally enough, atop a hill overlooking Puget Sound. Sampling the vineyard’s wines while taking in the view from the winery’s deck is quite the experience: Whidbey Island setting there in the sparkling blue of the sound, the snow-capped peaks of the Cascade Mountains in the distance; sailboats and large cruise, Navy, or cargo ships passing; and the kind quiet you can only find when you’re well away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Breathtaking.

Ken and Judith Collins relocated from northern California to the Pacific Northwest in 2006 and found themselves with five acres and no real idea what they could to do with it. A Master Gardner’s class gave them the hint they were after, however, when they learned that, contrary to what they had previously been told, certain varieties of grapes do, in fact, do well here in the Puget Sound region.

Well, what do you know?

Marrowstone Vineyard’s wines use Washington and Oregon grape varieties, such as Madeleine Angevine, Siegerrebe, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Reisling. Their wines are Our wines are fermented to a crisp and refreshing dryness that pairs well with seafood, cheeses, and chicken dishes. They also make a delicious, spiced apple wine reminiscent of apple pie. Mmmmm!

Marrowstone Vineyards is more than just a winery, they also serve as a gallery for local artists. Sculpture, paintings, pottery, blown glass, and more decorate the walls of the tasting room and fill the upstairs gallery of the winery.

Marrowstone Vineyards is also available for weddings, reunions, and can even provide referrals for caterers, musicians, photographers, etc.

Marrowstone Vineyards

423 Meade Road, Nordland, WA 98358
Visit their website for more information or, even better, visit them in person the next time you are here on the Olympic Peninsula!