Stardate 2016.745

Padilla Bay catches early light at a low tide. In the background float the eastern San Juan Islands.


The MS 150 – Washington Style – Concludes
Welcome back, ladies and germs. Are we ready for Day Two? Let's go...

No islands today; we stay on the mainland and start by heading north toward Bellingham, Washington. I hope you enjoy the pics as much as I did shooting them! You have to love early morning light. Top o' the day to ya!




This ride was through some very pastoral settings.




We just made a turn and are heading west toward the coast.




To the northeast rise the foothills of the serrated north Cascade Mountains.




The opposite side of Padilla Bay houses another mill of some sort (possibly wood products).




It's the Snowcatcher shadow dancing.




That's it for the MS ride. There's more Pacific Northwest to come though; stay tuned.

Adios!

Stardate 2016.740

The Deception Pass Classic
Day One's ride sped off to a good start. Our route took us to the port of Anacortes on Fidalgo Island. Then we rolled south toward Deception Pass and Whidbey Island for lunch. The return to Mount Vernon was a different, albeit scenic coastal route. I like riding on the coast. However, sometimes I feel like there's too much air. Maybe it's because I live at 5,700 feet, I don't know. (Yes, you can roll your eyes!) I seem to ride rather sluggishly at sea level.

The overcast skies released an occasional droplet of water and kept things on the cool side. Ambient coastal conditions also helped with Fahrenheit control. Below is one of Day One's morning views north while en-route to the port at Anacortes, Fidalgo Island.




Another morning view south while heading to Fidalgo Island and Anacortes.




I'm pretty sure this is the Swinomish Channel, which is the eastern separation of Fidalgo Island with the mainland.




It's time for breakfast! Thanks, volunteers and Swinomish Tribe.



The bike route crossed a portion of Fidalgo Bay. The bridge is about 0.5 mile long and not very high above the water. I'd like to see what it looks like at high tide. A volunteer was sweeping broken shells off the path to mitigate any potential tire punctures.




The eastern San Juan Islands come into view.



The only picture I took of Deception Pass during the ride. It was a madhouse of bikes and traffic. Vehicles were stopped by state troopers to allow large groupings of bikes to safely cross the narrow bridges. For context, the opening blog photo is of Deception Pass and was taken in 2014.




What's for lunch? How about roasted chicken, sticky rice and salad? Mmmm... Good stuff, Maynard!




There's something about being in a temperate rain forest. The wet season is right around the corner.



This is probably some sort of wood-products mill. I was too lazy to pedal over and see for myself. There's a very tall reason this area is a global logging center.




My final stop for Day One was again along the Swinomish Channel at the Swinomish Tribal Center.




Stay tuned. More Northwest to come.

Adios

Stardate 2016.732

MS-150 – Washington Style
Snowcatcher and I recently returned from a whirlwind trip to the Pacific Northwest. If you've never been there, you should try to visit sometime. It's a hoot. And scenic, too. Our main objective for the trip was to visit good friends and participate in the MS-150 fundraising bike ride. To shake it up a bit this year, we chose to volunteer for the Colorado Multiple Sclerosis Chapter and ride for the Washington Chapter. Moreover, I attended graduate school in the Pacific Northwest, and it's always nice to visit again.

We left after work, and our route took us from Denver to Casper, Wyoming. The next morning we made a B-line to Yellowstone National Park – a very cool place! Following Yellowstone, we had an easy Interstate drive across Montana and Idaho to Spokane, Washington. In Spokane, we had our finest room, and I'll leave it at that! The next day was a long drive across Washington and up the coast to the Mount Vernon / Burlington area for the ride. At Mount Vernon, we were about 50 miles due south of the Canadian border. We also were due west of the jagged, snow ramparts of the north Cascade Mountains.

After checking into our hotel, we returned for the pre-ride spaghetti dinner at the Skagit County Fairgrounds. The fairground was the staging area for the event both days. The only thing missing were Future Farmers of America and 4H kids and their stock. Following are some pics from the eve of the ride. I'm used to parking in dusty gravel and/or dirt lots. The grass was pretty nice.




By the time we left for the evening, the lot had filled up, as had the tent camping area.



One of the most important and unsung jobs is in the hands of the Honey Dippers. They deliver and maintain Honey Buckets. Love 'em or hate 'em, they're extremely important.




The U.S. Navy had a strong team. There's lots of Navy stuff in these island areas – I love it!




Hydrangeas were everywhere. Here at home, we're expecting mountain snow this weekend.




These two friends of mine are among thousands of recipients of services provided by all your wonderful donations each year!

Thank you donors!




It takes lots and lots of volunteers to pull off these events. Thanks, volunteers!




Well, there's a preview. Up next on the docket is the Day One ride. Later gator!

Adios