Cotton Anniversary Celebration - Secret Outing: Popeyes and Hama Hama!!

The instructions from the Friday night were - pack enough clothes for an overnight stay, with one outdoor outfit.  With that, the anniversary celebration plans are set in motion!

We woke up somewhat early on Saturday morning, and headed down towards the ferry terminal (as I had correctly guessed).  What I did not realize though was that we were headed to Bremerton, and more did I not know was that we were headed to Hama Hama - the land of oysters!!!

The first unexpected surprise was after getting gas, we stumbled upon a Popeye's.  Popeye's as folks here know is pretty rare in the west coast, but this Popeye's was like no other.  This Popeye's in Bremerton is probably the best Popeye's I've had in years.  Clean, super hot, super crispy, great service - if every Popeye's was like them, they'd take over the world!



After the brief surprise, we would proceed northwest towards the first destination.  Hama Hama Hood Canal.  Eating oysters by the picnic table with a bottle of wine, facing out into the bay... Ahhhh life is sweet!

After the snack, we headed to Alderbrook Resorts, where we would spend the night at.  This is where we discovered how helpful a pillow fortress is...

 

The next morning, we got some breakfast in bed.  Then after started off with a light morning hike.

Then we proceeded to Oyster Fest!

Oyster Fest was really really fun even though it was not what we expected.

Given it was an Oyster Fest, we (or at least I) was expecting it to have tons and tons of raw oysters waiting for me to buy and devour.  Instead, it turns out there was only one small stall shucking oysters, and the rest were mainly cooked food (some oyster related liked baked oysters, or bacon wrapped oysters, but also other food like coconut shrimp, shaved ice, candied apple, etc.).  Luckily, that one stall had 3 shuckers, and 3 different types of oysters, and not a long line up.  I would easily end up eating 18 oysters when all is said and done.

We also witnessed an oyster shucking competition.  Pretty amazing to see these shuckers go.  2 dozens oysters shucked and plated in less than 3 minutes (~7.5s per oyster).. and they were not even the fastest of the day!!!

The coconut shrimp was actually the best tasting (yes, even over the raw oyster), and I got a free beer at the beer garden when someone who was leaving gave me their ticket (so nice of them).  We also found some high quality candied apples, which we gladly bought a few of.

So in a nutshell, this was a very well run event that showcased a lot of the local organizations.  There was even a couple booths with kids making food and what not (ie. a booth for boy and girls scouts, and even the local high school).

Thank you lil friend aka wifey for organizing.  You are the best wifey in the world!