It’s Thanksgiving week and I’m thinking back on our many trips to Washington state. I am thankful for the beautiful memories, the time together with family, our health, and the privilege to be able to travel. Looking back to a year ago today, we were getting ready to head out to Seattle to celebrate the holiday with family over a long weekend. Traveler hint: If you fly out early from MSP on Thanksgiving morning, you can be in Seattle before noon and if you stay until Monday or Tuesday, flight costs are super-affordable. It turns out not too many people fly on the actual Thanksgiving day. That’s during a “normal”, non-pandemic year. This year, I have no idea about prices, as we’re not going anywhere. Sigh....
Washington has been the gathering destination of choice for my family, with my sister Becky living on Camano Island and our daughter Mazzy, going to school at Western Washington University. My parents and brother usually join the party, along with a few other relatives or adopted family, making for a fun-filled holiday. While jigsaw puzzling is often an activity of choice for a few, others get out to see the sites and explore nature. In this post, I’ll focus on areas north of Seattle, and follow up with a later post on Seattle itself.
Weather—what to expect in Washington in late November? Always be ready for rain in the Pacific Northwest and you will feel blessed if you have a sunny day. We always plan on spending time outdoors, so waterproof gear is a must. I admire the locals here, who never let a little (or a lot of) rain keep them indoors. This PNW crowd is hardy and rugged and can somehow be cool with limited sunny days (about 50 less sunny days than average for the US.
Western Washington University is located in the coastal city of Bellingham. The setting of the city is quite dramatic and beautiful, with a large harbor to the west and the Cascade Mountains to the east. Only 21 miles south of the Canadian border, Bellingham is closer to Vancouver than it is to Seattle (90 minutes away). Bellingham has a progressive, small town, hipster hybrid-driving vibe (you know, lots of bearded plaid shirt-wearing guys who dress like lumberjacks but most likely oppose logging).
Bellingham was incorporated in 1903 when the cities of Whatcom and Fairhaven consolidated. They chose a neutral name, reflecting the name of the bay, Bellingham Bay. There are still two distinct downtown areas, including the Fairhaven Village, which has a boutique, historic feel and has many unique shops and restaurants, and is close to the Amtrak station stop and bus depot. BTW, Train travel is quite common and convenient in this area. Make sure to get a window seat for the Amtrak Cascades route from Vancouver BC to Seattle as the scenery is quite wonderful.
Bellingham is truly a college town. The campus of Western Washington University is perched high on the hill overlooking the bay and the city. WWU was the first college visit stop for Mazzy and little did we know, but we could have stopped looking right there. She loved the campus and the vibe of the city and area. As a mecca for environmental science majors, Mazzy fit right into this outdoor wonderland.
Mount Baker is the largest mountain and volcanic peak in the area, 31 miles east of Bellingham. Mazzy has enjoyed skiing there, as well as snow cave camping (she’s way tougher than we are). Beyond Mount Baker lies the North Cascades National Park. Despite many trips to the area, we haven’t made it to this national park yet. Some day.
Downtown Bellingham has many unique shops and restaurants, with a focus on locally sourced foods. We have been known to frequent Boundary Bay Brewery & Bistro, La Fiamma Wood Fired Pizza, and Mt. Bakery Café.
To the east of downtown Bellingham is Whatcom Falls Park, a lovely and expansive city park with waterfalls, moss-covered bridges, gardens, and trails leading to the edge of Whatcom Lake. I highly recommend spending a few hours in this park to explore the paths.
Chuckanut Drive is a thrilling scenic byway that hugs the sandstone cliffs of the Chuckanut Mountains. With gorgeous views of the bay and the San Juan Islands, there are plenty of pull-outs to enjoy the scenery. We hiked up Oyster Dome last year, a fairly rigorous vertical climb of 3.5 miles that was rewarded with a really wonderful view at the top. This was an excellent way to work off the turkey dinner from the day before. For those with bad knees (me and my brother Kyle), the hike back down can be more painful than going up.
My sister lives on Camano Island in a unique house that sits atop a cliff overlooking Elger
Bay. With an authentic house pole as a backdrop, the house features wonderful views of the Olympic Peninsula and Mount Rainer and across the bay towards Whidbey Island. From the deck, we look down on eagles that fly along the shore and if you are lucky, you can watch grey whales feeding or porpoises frolicking in the bay. It’s not hard to understand why this beautiful place was home to so many indigenous tribes. The Coast Salish, Stillaguamish, and Tulalip tribes all lived in this area. (If you are interested in knowing whose land you live on, check out this website: https://native-land.ca/)
Speaking of whales…..during a spring visit one year, we were able to go on a whale-watching trip. We left out of Anacortes through Island Adventures and were fortunate to see three separate Orca whale pods. It was thrilling to see the 9' tall dorsal fin of the largest whale in the pod. I highly recommend this experience but it’s critical to remember the Dramamine beforehand. These boats can really rock and roll with the waves.
Camano Island is connected by bridge to the mainland city of Stanwood. The island is under 16 miles long and 6.5 miles wide and is home to about 16,000 people. Camano Island has its own relaxed vibe. It’s clearly a place to escape the hustle and bustle and traffic of Seattle. The island features two state parks, Camano Island State Park and Cama Beach Historical State Park, as well as many other hiking trails. Cama Beach is the site of a former 1930’s era beach resort. The Center for Wooden Boats operates the historic boathouse and shop.
Although Whidbey Island is just across the bay, driving to Whidbey takes about an hour from Camano. Deception Pass State Park is a sacred place for our family. My sister Kim’s ashes were spread on the beach of Deception Pass State Park in 2008 and we spread cousin Kent’s ashes in 2019. Kim lived not far away in Arlington WA, where she had a log cabin and horses, goats, bunnies, dogs, and cats at her farm in the flats at the base of the Cascade Mountains. She was an incredibly smart and gifted electrical engineer that absolutely loved living in the country with her menagerie of animals.
Coupeville, a historic town on Whidbey Island, is Washington’s 2nd oldest community. With small shops and restaurants and views of Penn Cove, this little town is worth a stop and a stroll through the downtown or a stop in a restaurant for some seafood.
If you are in the Mount Vernon area in the spring, you will find yourself in the midst of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. This valley is known for its broad fertile plain and cultivation of tulips and strawberries. I stopped at Roozengaarde, which is the largest tulip-bulb grower in the US (somehow they even snagged the internet address tulip.com, which seems remarkable). Enjoy the stroll through the colorfully striped tulip fields and try not to compare it to Keukenhof.
Stay tuned for future posts on Seattle.
The Pacific Northwest has always been a draw for me- it’s family and more. It’s the weather that never really gets too hot. It’s the lush greenery that thrives in the misty air. It’s the dramatic scenery that places one never too far from either the water or the mountains. And perhaps it's my Nordic DNA that feels right at home in this place.
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