About Us
 

 

About Us

 

Our Story Begins

Founded in 1996, the family owned and operated farm and business takes pride in its distinct character and history. It is hard to say if there was one defining moment when Once in a Blue Moon Farm/Sleeping Sea began. We've never had the desire to be a standard hotel or B&B, but only a focus to be ourselves. Our story began with Once in a Blue Moon Farm, our family home, and a healthy passion for animals, landscapes, natural systems and their human connection. Over the years we began offering more island experiences to our guests than just our farm. Sleeping Sea developed and evolved into a rural yet sophisticated alternative vacation destination in the San Juan Islands of northwest Washington. Three generations of our family are involved in our day to day operations. It is our commitment to a lifestyle, the people, the land, and the environment that makes Sleeping Sea an unequaled treasure anywhere in the Pacific Northwest.

History

Our farm estate has a rich history dating back to the first homesteaders on Orcas Island. Stories and lore from the farm boast how the apricots were too big to fit into a canning jar. Their strawberries consistently won prizes at the county fair. Fruit and produce from Orcas Island were shipped by boat, then train all along the West Coast and inland over the Cascades and Sierras. This farm had an orchard of hundreds of tall growing fruit trees. Rows of Gravenstein and King apples, Orcas and Bartlett pears, cherries, plums, peaches, and yes, apricots.

Many of our farm's historic apple and pear trees still stand and produce literally tons of fruit. Some of these majestic trees are over 100 years old and are heirloom varieties that are no longer grown or even available from seed. For those who walk quietly under their huge boughs, feelings of peace and awe are sure to overcome. Still, there are many other untold stories and secrets held on this land from the impossible to the unbelievable. For more history of the island be sure to visit the Orcas Island Historical Museum.

  

Timeline

1880's - 1940's:
It was John and Rachel Boede with their nine children that homesteaded the 200 + acre farm, with all 11 of them living in a 425 square foot pioneer cabin. The original pioneer cabin was later relocated in the early 1950's to Eastsound and became one of the buildings of the Orcas Island Historical Museum.

Mid 1940's - 1982:
In the mid 1940's, on a visit to Friday Harbor one of the Boede heirs bet the main portion of the farm in a poker game. The man who won the game did not want the farm or the land. The Eastman family purchased what was left of the farm from the winner. At some point during this time, the large original barn was lost in a fire.

1982-1996:
The farm changed hands once more in the 1980's when the 35 acre farm was purchased from the Eastman's. The new owners extensively remodeled the old 1915 farmhouse, leaving little of the farm's history. The estate was then renamed Truffle Hill Farm after the hundreds of truffles they planted in the old apple orchard.

1996 - present:
The estate was on the market several times in the mid 1990's, but many potential buyers passed it over because of all the needed repairs and general maintenance. The land wasn't much of a farm any longer. The property was without a functioning well or heat system, noxious weeds had overtaken the pastures, and other issues presented a large challenge. Our family purchased it with mostly passion and little experience of farming. We quickly and aptly named the farm Once In A Blue Moon Farm. Years of continuing hard and relentless work, Once In A Blue Moon Farm expanded into more than just a farm, with complete renovations and remodels of not only the buildings, but the land itself. We now have three generations working together, making it possible to keep our farm and passions alive and well.