The Lower Skagit River Valley was our target for today. Although WA-20 runs along the north bank of the Skagit River from Anacortes on Puget Sound to Okanagan in north-central Washington, we decided to scout both sides of the River from Concrete to Sedro Woolley without using 20. As it turns out, there are alternate and very scenic roads that meander along both shorelines.
The north side of the river holds gigantic pastures divided up by stands of massive, mature hardwoods. Many of the residences along the road are architecturally stunning and lots of folks have brilliant flower gardens and great landscaping. Between the residences are sections of road with green canopies of trees that put the road in endless shade.
The south shore doesn’t seem to be as heavily populated as the north side and the road runs right along the edge of the River with rock cliffs on the other side of the pavement. Where cuts are close to the road, small waterfalls are spread along the route. Moss covers almost everything in the shady grottoes of trees. The loop around the Lower Skagit River is gorgeous.
When we closed the loop at Concrete, we decided we needed a reward for fooling around all day and stopped for the second time at Annie’s Pizza. We got a pizza with Canadian Bacon, chicken, bacon, Gorgonzola cheese sauce along with the usual mozzarella on a perfectly-cooked crust. Our brains failed us on selecting a size and we ended up with almost half going home in a box. Oh, goody! I doubt the remainder will survive past 9:00 PM.
We made another foray into the National Forest north of Concrete, driving up a skinny, gravel, serpentine, single-lane road to the Shannon Lake boat ramp. We don’t have much to do with boats but the view of Mt. Shuksan, Mt. Baker, the surrounding forested mountains and the lake in the foreground is magnificent. Don’t let the crappy road frighten you – folks we met were driving carefully and were very nice about pulling out where it was easy for everyone.
It is difficult to imagine a region more suited to our needs. Here, in June, in or near our campground a few miles from Concrete we can enjoy nearby good food, a beautiful campground (although wifi would be nice), an adjacent turquoise-colored river, an air museum, extraordinary mountain scenery, volcanoes, engineering projects like dams and powerhouses, glaciers, massive lakes and substantial waterfalls. The locals have been nice, too.
There’s some pix of stuff we passed by today. To see ’em, click here