This is part 5 in a series, where I travel to places that are within 30 miles of my home in northern Washington state. I had friends visiting the area for the first time, so off we went to be tourists for a few days. We started with Birch Bay, a small town on the northern coast of Washington, just miles away from the Canadian Border. We were there on a brisk Fall day, but that didn’t stop us from walking quite a distance along the coastal walkway, stopping to admire the scenery and to take photos. Between the pandemic and the Fall season, our choices of where to eat and drink were a bit limited, but we found 2 really fun and delicious spots.

Having never eaten at Bay Breeze Restaurant & Bar, and seeing that it was the only restaurant located directly on the waterside of the road, we went in for lunch. We arrived on the later side of the lunch hours, sometime around 2:30 or so, which was great for us because “happy hour” had already started so we ordered some beer from local breweries and settled in. They offer a variety of seafood options, as they should, being right on the water, along with burgers, other sandwiches, and larger entrees. The fish and chips were delicious, as were the steamed clams, salmon sandwich, and the tiramisu for dessert. It was so peaceful sitting at a window table and just watching the tide rise as we ate.

After lunch and our walk along the beach, we stopped at another local place that has only been in business for about a year now. Beach Cat Brewing is a fairly small brewery inside but it offers a large deck outside, with gorgeous views of the water across the street. There was music playing when we arrived, but it wasn’t coming from the brewery, it was from the deck of the restaurant next door. This proved to be even better, as we could hear the music, but we could also hear ourselves talk. Beach Cat Brewing had quite a few different beers and some ciders to choose from, so I opted for the sampler of 5 so that I could taste a variety of beverages. I tend to go right for the dark beer, which I did, but the others that I sampled were just as good. This place doesn’t offer food, so I’m glad that we had eaten before we arrived.

On the second day of driving within 30 miles of my home, we decided to spend some time in the town of Bellingham. When I’m on my own, I’m usually just heading into town to run errands and sometimes meet up with a friend for a quick beer but today was the Saturday outdoor market. This market is held every Saturday from 10 am to 2 pm and a portion of the market is totally covered. As with most town markets, you’ll find local fruits and vegetables, bakery goods, and arts and crafts items. I didn’t get a photo of the Market with is on Railroad Ave., but I did get a photo from just around the corner at the Wednesday market, from a few days earlier when I was there, which is on Granary Ave. and offers some of the same items. After the farmers market, we walked down to Holly Street to one of my favorite restaurants for lunch – Black Sheep “A bar with tacos in downtown Bellingham”. Their fresh food and fun cocktails never disappoint and now that it’s getting a bit chilly, their outside tables now have mini “firepits” for warmth and a great atmosphere. Before we headed home, we stopped at another local brewery “Kulshan Brewing” and enjoyed a sampler. We went to the James Street location which has a decent-sized indoor option to sit, and also a large tented outdoor option in front. Kulshan doesn’t offer food, but there has always been a food truck out front any time I’ve been there – another great local spot in Bellingham.

For the third day of driving 30 miles, we headed east instead of west on Mount Baker Highway and went as far as the road let us – to Mount Baker ski area in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, WA. It doesn’t matter when I go there, any season or time of day, it’s just breathtaking. We happened to time it just right as the temperatures had dropped the night before and what was rain at my house, was a fresh blanket of snow on the mountain.

I’ll end this post with a quote from Dr. Seuss that sums up our few days of local travel in Washington – “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened”.