The Orcas Christian School junior high class recently visited San Juan Island as part of their study of Washington state history. They spent time touring American Camp and Lime Kiln state park and lighthouse. Students wrote the following reflections:

“I think it might be cool to live in a lighthouse.”

“My favorite part about yesterday was learning about the Pig War and seeing the Lime Kiln lighthouse. I wonder if the lighthouse keeper’s children that carry that heavy thing (kerosene) ever got a break?”

“I think that it would be cool if we could go back in time and see what American Camp looked like before the houses were taken away. It would also be cool to meet the people.”

“The American Camp was really old. I wonder what it was like to live there?”

“I wonder why the dude cared so much about a pig? If someone shot my pig for trespassing, I would just turn it into bacon. I also wonder who had the guts to invite the English camp over for fourth of July.”

“I really enjoyed seeing the whiteboard (at Lime Kiln) with all of the numbers of whales, dogs, birds, and people who went by the lighthouse that year. It’s crazy to me that the guy who did that job has done it for over 30 years. The top of the lighthouse was also cool, and it had a pretty view.

I wonder how bored the guy who just sits there and counts gets. He just sits there and counts the bits that fly by, the dogs that come by, the people. I wonder if he ever stares off into space and what he thinks about during those times?

I think that it’s really sad that the orca whales are very low in numbers, and also the salmon that feed them are going down fast. I liked watching all the cool ships that passed by, but felt bad for the whales whose echolocation gets disturbed from the noise.”