Our first stop back in the United States was Whidbey Island, Washington, in the shadow of Mt. Baker the northernmost volcanic peak in the Cascade mountain range. We parked the RV just a mile south of Deception Pass, and the scenic bridge that crosses it. The Navy has a jet base here and at times we felt like we were back in Virginia Beach, with the sound of freedom. The nearest town of Oak Harbor has a scenic waterfront dominated by an old fashioned windmill. A few days after arriving back in the USA we took the ferry back to Canada to visit friends who live in Sidney, on Vancouver Island. The scenery on the trip over and back was fantastic. We saw many beautiful boats along the way and there were hundreds of them docked at Friday Harbor. It was also neat to see so many float planes coming and going.
Upon arrival in Sidney our friends Tom and Diane Murphy met us at the dock and escorted us to our hotel. They are another Canadian couple that we have become friends with while wintering at Pueblo El Mirage in Arizona. As with Gerry and Myrna in Vancouver, Tom and Diane went out of their way to show us the sights. On our first evening in Sidney we went to the weekly downtown market on the main street. We picked up a few homemade Jams and jellies and Josie found a bracelet she could not live without. The next day we drove into the scenic city of Victoria. We had been here before but Tom and Diane showed us all the great things we had missed. From the downtown dock we took the brightly colored Pickle Boats across the channel and had a great lunch at Spinnakers Brewpub. The harbor was very active with float planes, and boats of all sizes. The Empress Hotel along with British Columbia Legislature House dominates the skyline. They took us to Beacon Hill Park where we saw the tallest totem pole and a sprinkler can water feature for the kids to play under. We also did a little browsing in the local stores and Tom tried on one of the fashionable Irish golf hats. As in the National Parks we again found the red chairs and Josie and Diana tried them out. We made one last stop in Sidney to pick up some famous Roger's chocolates before we had to catch the ferry back to the USA. We are looking forward to seeing all our Canadian friends back in Arizona in October.
I took a whale watching trip out of the port of Anacortes, Washington one afternoon. Not so much for the whales but to see a few pelagic birds without having to go out into rough waters and risk getting sea sick. For the first hour we had rain but it did stop and we were treated to Orcas and a Sea Lion. I also found a few birds along the way but had a hard time getting pictures because this was a whale watching trip and they did not stop for birds.
We spent our final three days sightseeing around Whidbey Island. We drove south down to the Admiralty Head Light House on old Fort Casey and were impressed with both the "cute" lighthouse as Josie called it and the Forts large cannons, which were never fired in war time. From the cliffs over looking Admiralty Bay we saw three Sea Lions just floating with the current. Walking back to the car we scared up a mother California Quail and her covey of young who took off in all directions into the bushes. Mother Quail stayed behind and watched to see what we would do and then she too ran into the brush. Later we saw a mother deer and her fawn grazing by the side of the road. The Western Red Cedars here grow to great heights and the one below is in Deception Pass State Park just across the highway from our site. One afternoon we had lunch at Seabolts Smokehouse, the number one rated restaurant in Oak Harbor on Trip Advisor. After our lunch of Cod and Chips and Steamed Prawns we agree with the rating. Not only did we eat well but we took home two Dungeness Crabs, a nice piece of smoked Coho Salmon and a two pound Wine Cured Salami. We ate the crab the next evening and I have a piece of the salmon with a beer every evening. We will save the salami and have it with Tillamook Cheese while we spend the next eleven days in Portland, Oregon.
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