20 September 2011
I packed up early in the morning and rolled over to the Seattle Amtrak station, which was just two blocks from the hostel. The plan would be to go from Bellingham to Anacortes, where I would spend two nights (allowing for one day trip to the San Juan Islands).
A couple of hours later I was in Bellingham, about 20 miles south of the Canadian border.
I started riding south along Chuckanut Rd, which is right on the edge of Bellingham Bay. The road gives a great view of the bay, at least, when you can see over or around the trees.
After a while the scenery flattens out and the road turns inland through farmland. From a distance, Mt. Baker towers spectacularly over the region.
I stopped in Edison and ate a demi-baguette for lunch. Returning to the shore past Edison, I joined the Padilla Bay multi-purpose trail, which stays away from the main road and cuts over to Route 20.
Route 20 is busy with car traffic but the stretch of riding along that road is short. Bikes turn off at March Point Rd, where the city of Anacortes has helpfully put out maps that show you the best way to get in to the city.
The bike route crosses Fidalgo Bay on a trestle so as to bypass the main road.
I got into Anacortes in the early afternoon and rode through the downtown area to the Ship Harbor Inn, which was right next to the ferry terminal. This would set me up to take the ferry the next morning to Orcas Island.
Tragically, the hotel was not really next to any restaurants. At dinnertime I walked back downtown (over an hour's walk, yuck) and ate at the Adrift Restaurant. Their pork tacos really hit the spot. (Not about to go for another hour's walk after dinner, I called a cab to take me back to the hotel.)