Monday after we arrived, it became apparent we were going to miss our screened cabana (there are a good number of flies here), so we took a quick trip to the new WalMart in Mt Vernon, and then over to Camping World in search of a reasonably priced alternative. We were looking at $150 + at both places, and as we had a perfectly good one at home, we decided just to tough in out. A friend told me a to fill a plastic bag with water and then hang it on a tree or off the awning, and it will discourage flies, so we are giving it a try.
After the shopping failed - not exactly failed as WalMart here did have the "baby" Coronas that I like - little 7 oz size - that I can actually drink before it gets warm. A regular bottle is a bit of a waste for me. Anyway, I had never been to Big Lake which is just east of Mt Vernon, so we took a drive around it. There were homes and property there that are pretty darn close to my dream homestead. Homes with decks offering a sunrise view, with rolling grass hills down to the floating docks, on a lake big enough to allow motor boats. They are probably out of my price range, but now I have a dream. We did find an RV park on the lake. I'm not sure if they offer daily or weekly rentals, but they do rent by the month. There was no where really to pull over and take a picture, but I did have this older real estate listing that at least shows a picture. I don't recall seeing any For Sale Signs, and that is why I think this is an old listing - but the picture will give you an idea. I don't believe they have a website, but you can google the phone number and address if you are interested. It looked very clean and nice.
Big Lake Resort and RV Park
Tuesday's drive took us up WA 11/Chuckanut Drive. Do not drive your RV or pull a trailer here. There is a weight restriction, and the lanes are very, very narrow. However, there are plenty of places to stop and enjoy the view.
We also stopped in to check out Larrabee State Park. I think I am a shirt tail relative by marriage to the Larrabee the park is named for. I believe he was the brother or cousin of my paternal great aunt's husband. Charles Xavier Larrabe donated the 20 acres in 1923 and it became Washington State's first state park. There were a few FHU sites that would accommodate our 33' fifth wheel. According to the website there are 26 utility sites with maximum site length of 60'. This is a reservation park. I was surprised at the cost per night - around $35 for the FHUs. Pretty much what you would pay for a "resort" park in Western Washington. However, it was a nice park with beach access. Here are a few pictures. As you can tell, I'm going through "tree" thing, picture-wise.
I would have taken a picture of the camp sites but they were full and it seemed a little intrusive.
Wednesday's outing, took us back up to Bellingham for lunch with Kim's oldest son, Tim. We ate at Avenue Bread and Deli on Railroad Avenue. It was a great place for lunch with lots of options for sandwiches, salads, soup, and drinks.
Next we set out to cross off two things from my local bucket list. I have always wanted to go see the Sculpture Park at Western Washington University. It wasn't quite "hot" yet, so Kim agreed. Unfortunately, we found that the sculptures were spread out around the campus. I had surgery a few weeks ago, and wasn't up to a long walk. We will have to put this off until spring or fall, when the weather cools down.
We did, however, get to check one thing off the list; making the drive around Lake Samish. Lots of nice homes scattered among old summer cottages. We did cruise by a mobile home park (I believe it was called Park Terrace) where we saw some spots with RVs. From the look of things, they appeared to be long term renters (large propane tanks and decks with potted plants plus there was no signage welcoming over-nighters. It was clean and kept up, and they did have a lake access private park with a floating dock.
I saw a sign for a Whatcom County Park that looked like it had a swimming beach. We will have to check that the next time we are up here. It looked nice. The info for this park is below. I believe it is day use only.
Lake Samish Park
Tomorrow, I'm think a day trip to Anacortes and maybe Whidbey Island is in order.
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