Flower Baskets

An annual tradition at Rosario Resort is the arrival of our lamp post flower baskets... special thanks to John Roberts of Green Frog Nursery in Bellingham who created this year's beautiful baskets! He and his wife began growing these baskets in his green houses in February.






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The Quilted Pig

Congratulations to Chef Madden Surbaugh for opening The Quilted Pig Restaurant at Rosario Resort today! General Manager Christopher Peacock welcomes Madden and his staff to the Rosario family! Small, intimate dining gives everyone a spectacular view of Orcas Island. For information on The Quilted Pig (and where the name came from!), visit the dining page of our website.

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Waterfront Accommodations

We take many phone calls during the day in which we describe our accommodations. When we say our "Waterfront" rooms have decks located right over the water's edge, this picture will give you an idea that we are not exaggerating!




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I'll take "Resorts" for $100 Alex

It was an honor to host Alex Trebek of Jeopardy and his wife Jean at Rosario Resort on their 20th Anniversary! Alex was so nice to take the time and chat with the staff and pose for this picture with Christopher. Happy Anniversary Alex and Jean!





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The Spa is Open!

The Spa at Rosario Resort is now open! Our crew of Deena, Bobby, Dave, Andrew, Heather and Scott have done a great job with their talent and passion. Here is a peak at the century old indoor pool, the newly remodeled whirpool area and the new women's changing room.









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Bird's Eye View

Here is a great shot of Rosario Resort and Orcas Island from high atop Mt. Entrance. Rosario neighbor John Fletcher shared this shot after a long hike to the top. What a great perspective of the resort.... thanks Fletch!

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February Flowers!

With most of the country experiencing a harsh winter, the Pacific Northwest is experiencing one of the warmest winters on record. Spring is in full bloom at Rosario Resort and on Orcas Island.... in February!







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Spa Remodel

The big project this winter at Rosario Resort on has been our spa restoration and renovation. It has been awhile since the fiberglass coating on the pool has been repaired. Here is a picture of it before painting...



The former boutique area is becoming a relaxation area for guest enjoyment pre and post therapy treatments. This is the Moran Mansion's former recreation area and the tile work is amazing!



In searching for leaks, we stripped the dry wall to the original concrete walls, uncovering a few hidden windows and the original paint colors of the stucco wall (notice the mustard color halfway up).



Here is another original color on one wall with a mysterious oval and iron hook. When looking very closely at an original Moran picture of the area, we discovered this was where a moose head had hung!




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Happy 2010!

Neighbor Beth Smith took this photo at dawn over Rosario Resort and Cascade Bay on Orcas Island. As she sent this to me today, it seemed appropriate to be the first post of 2010. Happy New Year!




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Merry Christmas

Lavender Popcicles

Recent cold weather on Orcas Island made ice form on the Rosario Resort lagoon fountains. This weighted them down and redirected the water onto the surrounding lavender, forming lavender popcicles!



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Halloween Speakeasy

The Moran Room at Rosario became a 1920's Speakeasy on Halloween night. Silent film star Zetta Zarbo hosted North Side crime boss Hal Sapone and South Side gangster boss Beanie O'Dannon. It was a great night until one of the guests ended up dead...Oh well, the party pretty much continued until the murder was caught. The moral of the story was a line from one of Silent FIlm star Zetta Zarbo's movies, "_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ "

Here are the Guys...


Here are the Gals...


Here are the Guys and Gals...

Fall Canvas

Here are a few more fall vignettes from around Rosario Resort. Season to season, Orcas Island is always spectacular!





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Fall Foliage

It has been a beautiful fall on Orcas Island. The fall colors have been spectacular with the diverse variety of trees around the grounds of Rosario Resort.



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Night Light

Thanks to Maintenance Engineer Bobby Matheson for all his effort in keeping the Moran Mansion and Rosario Resort grounds all lit up! Still powered by Robert Moran's original hydro electric plant, the mansion had to be an amazing site for those arriving to Orcas Island by boat over a century ago.




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Safe Harbor

The San Juan Islands had two days of high winds over this Labor Day Weekend, but our Rosario Marina staff did a great job in bringing all the boats in safely. This photo from last night is definitely the calm after the storm.



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Workplace Obstruction

If you have been to Rosario Resort on Orcas Island, you know that numerous deer make themselves at home on our grounds. This buck is definitely slowing our groundskeeper Brieanna Bitzer down a bit, since her job on this day is to mow the lawn the deer is laying on!



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Rainbow's End

This evening a rainbow appeared to end at the Rosario Resort Marina on Orcas Island!


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Last Day of August

Here are two stunning displays of color on the historic lamp posts at Rosario Resort. The first features the summer colors of the flower baskets being overwhelmed by the quickly changing fall colors of the trees (too quickly!) The second is on the neighboring lamp where a Stellar's Jay was sitting, complimenting the beautiful blue and purple hues of the flower baskets below.



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Patina Design

One of our favorite wedding designers at Rosario Resort is Leslie Ginnes of Patina Floral Design here on Orcas Island. She provided a cool lime theme at yesterday's wedding at Rosario... perfect for a beautiful summer evening!





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Orcas Moon

Another beautiful scene at Rosario Resort - the "Orcas Moon."

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Oh Deer

The deer are plentiful around Rosario Resort on Orcas Island. It is a magical place for the young at heart!

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The World Comes to the San Juans

The World came to the San Juan Islands yesterday. It only took us a few minutes to circumnavigate the World, but it is big! Rarely does a ship this size stop in the islands, although many go by on their way to Alaska from Seattle. It is a private condo ship, with each luxury cabin (suite!) being privately owned (sweet!).





Once we left this World, we returned to our world.... a Washington State Ferry passed by!



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Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th! One of the great things about watching the fireworks on Orcas Island is the amazing reflections created in the surrounding water.
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