Exploration by car was the task for today and we started out by driving into the part of the La Conner area called the Indian Reservation. It borders the Sound around the bay from the upscale tourist hell of La Conner. While the houses on the rez are spartan an unremarkable, the houses in La Conner proper are beautiful old Victorian and Craftsman classics located on the steep hills above the commercial district. Many of them have great views but the diesel is much cheaper on the rez so we filled up there. We could see some of the gorgeous houses from the filling station.
Peggy then drove us to a fruit and vegetable stand a few miles west of La Conner where we stocked up on corn, apples, zucchini, tomatoes and, for some reason, beets. There was no attendant at the veggie stand but there was a closed room with a loud TV inside and a box outside indicating that customers are on the honor system and should cram the appropriate amount of money to cover their purchase into a slot in a metal box that appeared to have come from a dismembered grocery store kiddie ride.
Groceries on board, we then drove north a few miles to WA-20. We turned west for a couple miles until we exited the highway for a frontage road running along the shore of Padilla Bay and around the north edge of Anacortes. Anacortes has a pretty substantial waterside industry and also a gorgeous downtown main street. The residences near town are quite attractive and views of the Sound from almost everywhere in town are stunning. Looking east in today’s beautiful weather, we could see an enormous volcano nestled in with many lower but no less attractive mountains across the water.
Anacortes occupies the north part of Fidalgo Island and we took a long leisurely counterclockwise drive around the whole island. There is a nice city park on the west side of town offering great views of the Sound and international shipping plying the waterways. After finishing our circuit of Fidalgo Island, we got back on WA-20 for the short drive to the two gorgeous bridges crossing Deception Pass, the quick way to the Sound from the boatyards and marinas on the east side of Fidalgo and Whidbey Islands.
Once over the two bridges, we were on Whidbey Island which runs almost all the way down the Sound to the Seattle area. You can access Whidbey by the route we took or by ferry. There are ferries to Seattle, Mukilteo and Port Townsend over on the Olympic Peninsula. I suppose you may be able to fly in as well but I’m not sure. I know the Navy guys fly in because there is a naval air station on the Island. We turned east off 20 onto Truxell Road which was a loop giving us great views of the Sound with the Cascades as the backdrop.
We finally turned around and headed back toward La Conner but took a detour around a bunch of refineries and a deep water oil port on the east side of Anacortes. There is no leaving the road but the views along this road are tip-top. We were bad and went to the local casino operated by the Swinomish and had dinner in their restaurant. I also almost instantaneously lost $5 in a slot machine that I had no idea how to operate. The money was gone faster than I could have burned it. The machine is faster than the eye.
We took some photos along the way and you can see them if you click here