Skagit Bay

One reason for me getting the boat a couple of years ago was the desire to get to some places I couldn't get to otherwise.  Yesterday, I drove up to Whidbey and paddled across to Hope Island - one of those many Washington State Parks that you can only get to by boat.  The crossing was short enough and the conditions good enough so I felt comfortable making the trip.

The weather was perfect - almost too bad that the cold water requires me to be dressed much warmer than I would prefer.  Mount Baker was crystal clear.  There was a constant stream of boats heading out towards, or back from, Deception Pass.  And by the time I got back to Ala Spit, folks with coolers and umbrellas were beginning to show up to enjoy the warm day and the low tide.

As usual, more pictures over at Gravel Beach.

Cama Beach

I headed back up to Cama Beach this morning to check on the landslide - and the scones.

The trip from Seattle is about 65 miles and takes about an hour and twenty minutes - which on my road trip spectrum is somewhere between an impulse and a whim.  My Seattle latte (Diva) was still warm when I pulled into the Park and hung the Discover Pass on my windshield.  I spent an hour or two on the beach and another hour chatting - seems like visits to Cama are becoming almost as much social as they are geologic or recreational.  But maybe that's part of the appeal.