Amazing Dog-Friendly Lavender Farms in Sequim

Located 20 miles east of Olympic National Park, a visit to Sequim can easily be added to any itinerary without a detour. As we learned from our lovely trips to the lavender farms, the Olympic mountains are responsible for Sequim’s unique geography. Like a hot knife through butter, the mountains carve through the rain clouds near Sequim, causing only 16 inches of rain a year, while the rest surrounding areas get triple the amount. The result: sunny and mild temperatures perfect for growing lavender!

Like many other Washingtonians, we were looking to escape the city for the weekend with our pup, Nike. With summer officially arriving and lavender season upon us, an ideal weekend road trip from Seattle made Sequim a natural choice (for the record, in our opinion the ideal weekend getaway is around a 2-3 hour drive).  

Having lived on the East Coast for five years, we often visited “pick your own” orchards. Coming back West we miss that experience and were excited to visit some farms to pick our lavender. Below are two amazing dog-friendly lavender farms we visited. We love supporting local businesses that are dog-friendly!

B&B Lavender Farm

Our first stop was B&B Lavender Farm. The farm was named after the owners Bruce and Bonnie — the former whom we had the pleasure of meeting. Bruce and Bonnie retired about a decade ago and were living off a boat in Alaska. They found retirement boring, so they decided they wanted to work again and live at least 50 miles from the nearest interstate. Starting a lavender farm in Sequim? Check and check! This farm became a true family farm, as their children moved from San Diego to join their business. 

Our lavender experience began with their awesome son-in-law Zion, who gives free tours of their farm daily. He took us to the barn and showed us how they harvest and make their own lavender oil. Interesting tidbit: the English varieties are used for cooking and have a stronger scent. French lavender is bigger and often grown for decoration.

Afterward, we headed to the fields to harvest our own lavender! We walked around the gorgeous rows of lavender, smelling and harvesting many varieties. Not wanting to hurt too many lavender plants, we picked a couple of small bundles. Upon seeing our measly bundle, Zion ran out and got us some more for a “proper bunch”. 

At the Shoppe, we bought Lavender Lemonade and Lavender Pear Jam (Zion’s recommendation).

Visit B&B Lavender Farm on Instagram: @bbfamilyfarm 

Lavender Connection

Next, we stopped by Lavender Connection. They open for the season July 2nd and were gracious enough to invite us a few days early for a truly unique lavender experience. 

We met the owners Rebecca and Doug on the lovely farm as they were wrapping up a hard day’s work. Fun fact: Rebecca and Doug used to live in Seattle. They came to help their parents repair a historic barn and originally planned to stay only a few months. However, like so many others, the pandemic altered their plans and caused them to re-evaluate their lives. Why wait out a pandemic in a tiny city apartment when one has the option to properly social distance on a beautiful family farm? Fast forward and here they are: farming lavender and beekeeping.

After taking a tour of the field and harvesting our lavender, we got to experience something truly unique: lavender aromatic tasting. With over 48 varieties of lavender and 20 varieties of oil, Lavender Connection offers a feast for the olfactory buds. The “Hidcote Pink” is a very sweet-smelling oil and our personal favorite. 

Visit Lavender Connection on Instagram: @lavenderconnection

A Must For Your List

Both farms welcome dogs – to protect the lavender, keep dogs on leash at all times and clean up after your pup. Everyone was so welcoming to Nike and she got lots of pets.

Anyone visiting the area — whether it’s a trip to Olympic National Park or a road trip around Puget Sound — should visit these farms. In addition to having a car smelling like lavender for the duration of the trip, you get to meet some great people. 

These family-owned farms and small businesses are truly the salt of the earth. We saw first-hand how helpful and caring they are towards others. Zion openly shares trade secrets with a friend of a neighbor who was struggling to grow her own lavender. Doug is helping two neighboring farms with their beehives after the community beekeeper abruptly retired.  

Who would have thought going to the lavender farms of Sequim would be good for the senses and the soul?

Photo credit: @hungrynike and @adventuresoncall