Whales and Sails.
Port Townsend boasts a maritime working waterfront, a Victorian heritage, and a vibrant connection with all things maritime, including the impressive Northwest Maritime Center. Jim stopped to chat to a pleasant young man who no doubt had a passion for keeping the history and craft of wooden sailboat alive.
The main street was loaded with history and artsy flair. We enjoyed dining in a full-blown 1950’s soda fountain/diner that featured authentic (and working!) machinery including a jukebox. Fizzy cokes (loaded with extra phosphate soda for bubbly fun) and burgers served with a smile. Walking off lunch, we strolled through town to do a bit of ‘book-sniffing’ at a bookstore lined from floor to ceiling with books galore, a funky vintage store that I would’ve gone crazy with purchases had I the room to store them back in the RV, ha, and a cool toy shoppe.
The main excursion on today’s agenda was a four-hour Whale Watching cruise. Leaving out of the historic Port Hudson (where, by the way, we made note for future visits that a campground was literally right on the water), the boat taking us and 48 other souls was impressive on its own. The ‘Chilkat Express’, to quote their brochure, ” is a very special boat for a very special tour. No other passenger vessel on the west coast can trael at 40 kts/45 mph to points north in the San Juan Islands or west in the Strait of Juan de Fuca to view whales and be back in four and a half hours. The vessel is a hybrid, combining the stability of a multi hulled catamaran and the speed of a hydrofoil which rides on underwater wings. This combination is known as a foilcat. To say that driving her is more like flying an airplane is not an understatement“. Spotted Orca whales!!! Bonus to see a pod hunt down a seal. They all took turns slapping their flukes on him to stun him, then took turns sharing a meal. Nature in action right before our eyes. Wow. This particular pod was transient Orca’s, known as Biggs Orcas, and harbor seals are their favorite meal.
Not yet ready to leave this charming town and head back to our home base in Sequim, we drove around the town and visited Fort Worden State Park and went to the very tip out at the Point Wilson Lighthouse. Bonus here to see both deer and Elk grazing so peacefully on the campus of the Fort, as well as in blooming gardens of residential yards.
What a Day! Tomorrow we don’t stop – we head out on a ferry for a day trip to Canada!
Orcas and Port Townsend pics – Album #39
