This Saturday, for the first time in nearly a year and a half, my boyfriend and I will be spending the night on Lummi Island. We won’t be staying at my family’s longtime cabin — it’s currently being rented by some nice island folks — but we’ll be relatively nearby at an Airbnb with similar views of Hale’s Passage, Portage Island and Mount Baker.
My brother and his very small dog will be visiting from New York City for the mini-reunion of people and places, and I’m fully prepared to play tourist during our stay. Luckily, there will be plenty happening throughout the weekend to keep us busy. For day-trippers looking to get out of town for the Labor Day holiday, some of the following suggestions may come in handy.
One of the first places I’d like to visit is the Lummi Island Congregational Church, 3913 Legoe Bay Rd. I’m eager to check out the progress of The Gathering Place, a 2,600-square-foot building next to the historic church which will soon be available to all islanders and visitors with event space, a commercial kitchen, ocean views, ample parking and ADA accessibility. My late father was a proponent of the project and helped in its initial planning, and I’m sure he’d be thrilled to see it nearing completion.
Behind The Gathering Place, visitors will find the path to the church beach. Barring construction blockades, it should be open to the public, so walk down the stairway and take in stellar views of Orcas Island and the surrounding environs. It’s the perfect place for a picnic, but remember to pack out what you pack in. (If access to the path is prohibited, ask a local for directions to sunset beach — also referred to as agate beach and Granger beach.)
Serendipitously, Saturday, Sept. 3 will also be the first day of the Lummi Island Artists’ Studio Tour, taking place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m at 24 locales around the island. Getting a sneak peek at painters, jewelry makers, photographers, sculptors, quilters, glass artists, woodworkers, potters and other creative types is part of the allure of the semi-annual event, but getting to talk to the artists themselves in the places they bring their visions to life is an added attraction. Look for balloons marking the way, or pick up a map at the Islander store, located near the ferry dock.
During the tour, the Lummi Island Heritage Trust will also be hosting a one-day event featuring works by traditional and contemporary artists from Lummi Nation from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday in the field next to the Otto Preserve, 3560 Sunrise Rd. Traditional cedar bark artist Floyd Warbus, multi-media maven Saalmathlat Ethel Hillaire-Warbus, painter and muralist Jason LaClair, wreath crafter Rosalee Qweleesia Revey-Jacobs, knitter Aletha Ballew, and beaded jewelry maker Eliza Julius — who’s also a resident of the island — will be on site. In the afternoon, violinist Swil Kanim will share music and stories.
“While Lummi artists may now live on the mainland, Lummi Island is part of traditional Lummi territory,” the Heritage Trust said in a recent press release. “It is home to ancestral villages and ceremonial sites, as well as hunting and foraging grounds. Reefnet fishing is an ancestral Lhaq’temish (Lummi) technology that is still practiced — primarily by non-tribal fishermen — at Legoe Bay on Lummi Island … Art is a way to start to bring Lummi back to the island, and the island back to Lummi.”
After perusing the works at the Otto Preserve and getting deeper insight from the Indigenous artists, it might be time to refuel. From 5–6:30 p.m. on Saturday, the annual Lummi Island Salmon Barbecue will take place at the Grange Hall, 2215 N. Nugent Rd. Fresh, local salmon will be on the menu with all the fixings available for $10 for youth 12 and under and $20 for adults, and there will be plenty of indoor and outdoor seating.
I’ve also been meaning to check out the new iteration of the Beach Store Cafe, which is right next door to the Grange. David Vogler and Elizabeth Berg reopened the restaurant this spring, and their seafood-inspired menu with dishes such as Totten Inlet mussels, seafood chowder, Sicilian seafood salad, fish and chips and a Bay shrimp melt — in addition to burgers, Greek fries and a number of Detroit-style square pan pizzas — sounds enticing.
When we get tired of touristing, it’s nice to know we’ll have a scenic view to come home to, even if it’s not the one we’re used to. Of course, on Lummi Island, a lovely vista is never far from sight.
To find out more about what to see, where to go and what to eat on Lummi Island, head to lummi-island.com.
