YMCA Camp Orkila
Encyclopedia
Orcas Island
Orcas Island is the largest of the San Juan Islands, which are located in the northwestern corner of Washington state in San Juan County, Washington.-History:...
in the San Juan Islands
San Juan Islands
The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the northwest corner of the contiguous United States between the US mainland and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of the U.S...
of Washington. It has been in operation since 1906. It is operated by the Greater Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
Area's YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
. It is open year round and offers many different programs ranging from conference and retreat hosting to summer camp and teen expedition programs for grades 3 through 12.
Camp Orkila is on the water and looks out to President Channel and the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Gulf Islands
Gulf Islands
The Gulf Islands are the islands in the Strait of Georgia , between Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia, Canada....
, which the sun goes down behind every night making for amazing, colorful sunsets. Most of Camp Orkila's 280 acres (1.1 km²) are preserved forest with hiking and horse trails. The cabins range from open air to full duplex style housing near the conference center. The facilities at Camp Orkila include a junior olympic sized pool, model farm with horses during the summer, many types of sports facilities, various kinds of boats including a 44' passenger cruiser, two dining lodges, a marine salmon center, outdoor chapel, a number of large covered and indoor gathering spaces, a skate park, a craft center with attached pottery studio, the requisite stage and campfire pit with Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
and the sunset for a backdrop, and a newly added (2011) tandom zipline. Camp Orkila also owns Satellite Island, and Twin Lakes which are used for field trips and as a base camp for expeditions crossing into the Canadian Gulf Islands
Gulf Islands
The Gulf Islands are the islands in the Strait of Georgia , between Vancouver Island and the mainland of British Columbia, Canada....
.
Canoe Island Camps
Canoe Island French Camp
Canoe Island French Camp offers children ages nine to sixteen the opportunity to learn the French culture while participating in traditional camp activities. The camp is located on Canoe Island in the San Juan Islands in Washington state. CIFC capitalizes on its secluded island location by keeping...
and Camp Four Winds Westward Ho are together with Camp Orkila the three overnight camps for children in the San Juan Islands
San Juan Islands
The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the northwest corner of the contiguous United States between the US mainland and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of the U.S...
.