Let the Bellingham Adventure July 2024 Begin . . .
It is never a dull moment around the Lewis house. We are always off and running to the next great travel adventure. Our next stop this summer was to travel to the Pacific Northwest for our Bellingham Adventure July 2024. It was considered my birthday getaway but didn’t quite end up like I planned. Not only did we get a chance to see the kids but we also were able to explore more of this beautiful area with so much to see and do. It’s always awesome when you get a great view of Mt. Rainer! Plan to schedule at least a week so you can hit the highlights and then plan your next trip to spend more time doing it all again. Our trip got cut short because of a small accident – falling down some stair and getting an avulsion fracture! Here’s what we were able to do.
Penny Farthing & Chuckanut Bay Distillery
It was a pretty early morning to fly out to Seattle then a two hour drive to Bellingham made us pretty hungry. We decided to walk from the hotel to downtown Bellingham to see what we could find plus explore some of this cute downtown area. A gorgeous day made for a great walk to Penny Farthing and Chuckanut Bay Distillery. You have to love the option of food and beverage in the same historic building. The staff were warm and welcoming, very knowledgeable and provided us with great options for dining. Of course, I had a local cider since I’m not much for the harder alcohol. However, it was fun watching the crew in the distillery getting the next batch ready for consumption! Historic buildings are full of great architecture and this one did not disappoint! Great food, staff, atmosphere and local beverages make this a perfect place to start our Bellingham Adventure!
Coconut Kenny’s – “A Taste of Paradise in Washington State”
You know I love food of all kinds and Andrea knew the perfect place to grab something good in Ferndale where they live. This was a new experience for them as well and the food was amazing! Larger portions, local beer-sour-cider on tap and in cans plus a large menu of items which made selecting just one thing hard to do! They claim to have the “best pizza, sandwiches and premium brew” and we agree. As you can see below — we had to try a few items from the menu. Absolutely amazing!
Orcas Island Adventure
The bucket list has one item less now because we got a chance to make it out to the Island on this Bellingham Adventure trip! This is truly a day trip with all there is to see on the Island. It starts off with a great ferry ride on a beautiful sunny Friday morning! Get to the Ferry early because it can leave sooner than expected — we had to hoof it to get onboard before the departure. As we checked in and bought our tickets, the wonderfully funny lady behind the counter basically told us to “move your butts as the ferry is ready to depart”. So that’s what we did! Once onboard, we had so many options of areas to be able to get incredible views either outside on the deck or inside where you could get out of the wind. It was a bit chilly as the ferry picked up speed but standing on the deck in the sun was truly a wonderful experience. There was a snack bar onboard so we got to grab a snack and/or breakfast along with a drink as we started off to our destination of Orcas Island. There were a couple of stops along the way — such a great mode of transportation to get where you needed to be — first stop Lopez Island then Shaw Island and finally last stop Orcas Island. I will tell you that if you want to get around Orcas Island, rent a car and do it early! We didn’t because we had information that you could do it at ferry landing — maybe even rent a moped if you didn’t want to do the car. Not the case! Luckily we found a local taxi to take us into “Eastsound” for the day and just so you know, it is not truly walkable from the Ferry to town. It’s about 9 miles!
White Horse Pub
Once we arrived in town, it was now time to explore a bit and check out some of the shops and restaurants. I tend to opt for a pub, brewery or something like it and we found the White Horse Pub. Great location waterside to watch the fishing and sailing boats in the area. It was busy but we were able to get a table to enjoy the great food and beverages! There is a lot to choose from and portion size is large, so come hungry! When on the water, you need to make sure to try the seafood. Fish and chips are a popular choice for sure. Our waiter is only on the Island for the summer months and then he is off to other parts of the world.
The Famous Orca and the Beach
You can’t go to Orcas Island without stopping to see the Orca statue. Easy to find and a short walk through town you get to see some cute shops, wine tasting, a distillery and don’t forget to grab a picture with the Orca. Souvenirs abound throughout the town as well as quaint coffee shops and restaurants. In the course of our walkabout town, we found access to the beach. Can miss a chance to grab some shells and explore the beach, watch the fishing boats and even get your feet a bit wet! Okay, so maybe I had to get more than ankle high in the water . . . but that’s where the best shells can be found. Daddy and daughter moved among the rocks looking for crabs, creatures and whatever else could be found — at least I didn’t crawl on the big rocks!
The Lower Tavern
Exploring complete for today, we needed to find a place to grab as seat, sour or cider and a quick snack before we headed back to the ferry to go home. A bit more of walking around
the town brought us to The Lower Tavern! Outdoor seating provided a perfect end to an amazing day. A combination of ice tea, adult beverages and soda’s along with some chili cheese fries and mozzarella sticks rounded out our day on Orcas Island. This short stop was just the beginning of what this amazing Island has to offer. It definitely warrants another day of visiting . . . but this time we will get a car.
Back to Bellingham
Unfortunately, my day didn’t end on a high note, I took a spill down the stairs while waiting for the shuttle to pick us up. So getting back to the Ferry was a bit of a challenge, but the staff found me a wheelchair and the Ferry ride back to Anacortes was just amazing! The weather couldn’t have been any better and watching them dock the ferry was truly incredible to watch. The precision it takes from the crew on board is really exciting to watch. Once back at port we drove back to the hotel and iced my foot for the evening! Needless to say, my Bellingham Adventure has taken an unexpected turn!
McKay’s Taphouse and Pizzeria
Saturday dawned another beautiful sunny day in the Pacific Northwest. The plan was to rest my foot but then meet up with Nick’s family and spend some time getting to know them. McKay’s was the perfect location! Great pizza, sandwiches and sours were the selection of the day. I loved the décor and old world feel of a traditional pizza place with fantastic food, beverage selection and service!
B-Town Kitchen & Raw Bar
Nick and Dave decided that Disc Golf was on the agenda while Andrea and I decided relaxing and icing my foot were more of our plans for the day. Once they returned, we headed down to experience the hotel restaurant with raves reviews and an amazing Chef building Sushi right in front of you! The staff have energy to burn, personalities that make you feel like family and food that keeps you wanting to eat more and more! The patio was the perfect place to end the day and technically our Bellingham Adventure. With my foot the way it was, we decided to go home a day early so I could convalesce in my own comfortable surroundings!
Time to Head Home
So my Bellingham Adventure was not all I hoped it would be! As it turned out, I ended up with an avulsion fracture and we had to cut our trip short. However, I wouldn’t have traded a minute of this day for anything. Spending time with the kids, exploring Orcas Island and having one of the best Ferry rides was truly a highlight of this trip! We do need to come back because there are so many more things that we wanted to do but didn’t get a chance to see. Sometimes you don’t have to go very far from home to find your next great adventure!