Trip to the South On Chuckanut Drive

I mentioned a few days ago that I had taken my first trip south of the border in many years.  I've been wanting get away from the usual spots and see some "new-to-me" scenery. but I did not want to go too far.

I thought if I went south I would have some good scenic views of the ocean to share with you.  I chose, Whidbey Island off Washington State's west coast.  I'd never been to Whidbey Island before but read on line that it wouldn't take more than 1.5- 2 hours to get there not counting potential delays at the border. I packed an overnight bag just in case I decided to spend the night.

Here is a map to show you that we are heading south on Highway 99 through Richmond, Surrey and White Rock in British Columbia,  just before reaching the Peace Arch Border Crossing (north side of Blaine, Washington).  From Blaine we will be on Highway 5, known in the USA as I-5 (Interstate 5) which takes you all the way to California. The highway is 1381 miles (2222 kilometres long).

As we get near the border, this is what we see.  The Nexus lane is for people who travel frequently to the USA.  You must apply to become a Nexus card holder and get quicker processing times at the border crossings.

The line up at the border looks deceptively short. Once you pass by the buildings in the far left, you will come across the scene in the next photo.

 

This is the Peace Arch Border Crossing into Washington State. There is a lovely park area here. I wonder how many people actually use it. 

Online, I read that the Chuckanut Drive route (Highway 11 on the map below) was a scenic route so that is the route we decided to take.  All the photos below are taken along Chuckanut Drive.  There were few places to stop to take photos but I managed to get some good drive bys.  We did stop but once or twice also.  There are many places where one could turn westward and go on hiking trails but that was not on the agenda for the day.

Click the photos to enlarge.

 

 

Come back soon for more photos from Washington State.

I'm linking up with Our World Tuesday this week.

Relaxing, Shopping & Quilting

Hi everyone,  I hope you've had a great start to your weekend.  The weather here has been glorious and sunny; warm but not hot. I understand though that we expect rain by the end of the weekend. The ground could sure use it as we've had far less than our usual rainfall this August. We got a lot of rain in the previous months of May, June and July.

In my last post I said I would share some  photos of my trip south.  I'll share sky photos taken in White Rock, BC at Crescent Beach yesterday, and at Bellingham, Washington (please scroll down for the sky pics).  I'm also sharing my latest "work-in-progress", a lap quilt.

Bits and pieces of fabric were purchased in Washington State on Wednesday and Thursday.  I also purchased a bit of fabric in Kamloops earlier in the week and was eager to get started on my quilt.  I want to make several quilts once this one is finished as I have a fair bit of fabric to use up.  The problem as quilters will know is that you always find more fabric to add to your stash!

The small leaf patterned fabric and the teal blue fabric were purchased in Kamloops when I was there recently.  The geometric Native American design fabric was purchased in Bellingham, Wa.

The brightly patterned black fabric is from mom's fabric stash.  I inherited it just over a year ago. Sadly I had to get rid of a lot of her fabric but I kept some of the pieces I thought I could use soon.

These are the two completed blocks for the quilt. I have completed all the blocks.  The blocks will have a different placement to what you see in the photo and they will be framed by a solid colour.  Though it looks a bit busy now, I think it will all work when I'm done. I was trying to use small bits of fabric and had to adjust my original vision for this quilt.  I may have to buy more fabric for the backing or I may use some muslin fabric which I have on hand.

I took a fabulous trip to White Rock, BC yesterday.  White Rock is very near the BC-Washginton State border.  There I soaked up the sounds of waves on the shore at Crescent Beach before heading south to Washington for shopping.

The first 5 photos are taken at White Rock's Crescent Beach.  It was a hot and hazy day so the conditions were not ideal for taking photos.

 

This is the approach to Bellingham, Wa. from the I-5 freeway. Mt. Baker is in the distance.

I hope you've enjoyed the short tour.  I'll be sharing a lot more scenic photos of my recent travels so please visit again soon.

If you haven't already visited at Skywatch Friday, I encourage you to join in  here to see more glorious skies from around the world.

I also invite you to check out the wedding photos if you haven't already. You can see them here and here.

Enjoy!