August 5, 2014

August 5, 2014

Today we are up early and on the move. We drive the car to Anacortes, WA. There we get in line for the 9 AM ferry. We are very early so we relax and read a little. Once aboard, it is an hour to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, one of many glacier carved islands in the Puget Sound.

Once we disembark, we drive to the far south end of the 15-mile long island. There we find the American Camp of San Juan Island National Historical Park. We watch the movie and peruse the exhibit, to learn that this island was the focus of a boundary dispute between the US and Britain. A pig was killed in anger in 1859 and both sides sent troops to the island to reinforce their claim to the land. It languished this way in peace until after the Civil War when the German Kaiser mediating a settlement gave the San Juan Islands to America. It is not the most momentous piece of history but the park makes the best of it. I hike around the mostly windswept area where the American soldiers encamped before heading north to the English camp.  Aimee on the other hand got a private ranger tour on the handicap cart.

On the way we stop at a Lavender farm. This little farm has some small lavender fields, a store full of lavender products but for me most interestingly, a bunch of displays on the processing and extraction of the Lavender Essential Oil.

We also stop at an Alpaca farm. I take some pictures of flowers in the entrance way while Aimee shops for wool. She is disappointed to find most of it comes not from this farm, but from Peru.

Around the corner we enter the English Camp and walk the grounds. In comparison this place is heaven. The site is heavily wooded, along a pretty bay, and the parade ground has a beautiful English garden.

Back in Friday Harbor, we leave the car in the return ferry line and head around the corner for a quick lunch.  We finish in time to load the car on the ferry.  The return journey provides us good views of Mt Baker.  Too bad it is a volcano waiting to erupt.

When we arrive at our RV park we are surprised to find the place hopping. I am thinking the residents are throwing us a farewell party but it seems the adjoining park is having a combination Vintage Car rally and National Night Out. National Night Out is some movement that is devoted to safer communities. Every type of police force seems to have a booth setup. I am most curious of the ATF display of IEDs and bombs. The Border Patrol has a helicopter which leaves as we arrive. Probably a good thing as I was going to berate them for not doing a better job keeping the Canadians from crowding the highways and RV parks. We have a burger dinner from one of the charity vendors.