Leavenworth, Washington - the inn

Sunday July 11, 2010

We took a risk by arriving in Leavenworth in July without a hotel reservation but I had the feeling that tourism isn't what it used to be. As soon as we arrived in the town, we set about looking for a place to rest our heads for the night. Originally, we had planned to stay here for three nights, but that would change.

We had hoped to stay where we did last time, at the Blackbird Inn. We liked it for the simple decor, the balcony overlooking Blackbird Island and the breakfasts that were delivered to the room in the morning. Unfortunately it has since turned into a time-share.

So we settled on Pension Anna just a couple of blocks away. The price was more than I wanted to pay but the people were friendly, rooms looked clean and breakfasts were included. I really should have got a photo of the staff who were all decked out in dirndls and lederhosen.
(I'm told the sign below, which was on our door, means 'Welcome - come on in.')

Pension Anna

Breakfast room. Although the inn is a little B&B-like, you can eat at a table for two. I can't remember exactly what was available for breakfast but I think there were cold meats, cheeses, buns and other baked goods. The owner made us hard-boiled eggs which came with little chicken covers, reminding me of my favourite felt chicken that I slept with when I was little.

Cabinet in hallway.

Our room. The owner told us this room had the most expensive furniture. It was only available for one night though; the next day we would have to move to another. It was quiet and comfortable enough. What it lacked were two things important to me: a view and really good plumbing.

This church next door, formerly St. Joseph Catholic Church, actually belongs to and is part of the inn.

Leavenworth, Washington - a Bavarian-themed village

Sunday July 11, 2010

We considered staying another day in Marysville but since the only thing we hadn't fit in was a trip to Costco, and since we woke up to an overcast sky, it seemed a good idea to follow the sun and head east. So, after a late breakfast we checked out of the Holiday Inn and drove inland through the Cascade Mountain range to Leavenworth. It took maybe three hours with occasional stops.

Glenn and I took our first trip here together 14 or 15 years ago and had a great time. It is a town of festivals - the Bavarian Ice Fest, Spring Bird Fest, Maifest, Ale Fest, Wine Tasting Festival, Chamber Music Festival, Autumn Leaf Festival, Oktoberfest, etc., and probably the most popular one of all, the Christmas Lighting Fest.

Last time we were here it was boiling hot and it was this time too. It felt like it was in the 90's. Someone told us it was hotter still - over 100° farther east in Wenatchee.

Unlike LaConner, this place is still bustling and it can be a challenge to find a parking spot. It's hard now to imagine that the town nearly died out after its sawmill closed and the Great Northern Railway Company pulled out. In the 1960's the community made the wise decision to take on the appearance of a Bavarian Village. Not only were the buildings redecorated, but many of the people in town dress the part. If you happen to wake up to the sound of an alp horn, you can easily forget that you're in the USA (but there are enough American flags around to remind you).

It's unfortunate when you're driving that many of the most scenic spots are seen in passing, and there is nowhere to pull off. This a scene, above, was by the highway as we neared Leavenworth.

Typical street scenes.

It was so hot that Glenn and I sat on a bench in the shade of a big tree for some time. The two pictures above, left were taken from that spot. On the right is the 'Maipole' (or Maypole depending on who spells it).

Streets scenes early the next morning when the town was quiet, and cooler.

Just a sign I liked.

I also like a place that has edible decor! We had a very good, fresh almond tart in this bakery.

Fly in - Hot Air Balloon Night Glow

Saturday July 10, 2010

This was something I'd never seen before. At dusk, five hot air balloons were set up for the 'night glow' display. They don't fly anywhere. They're just lit up, sometimes in succession, randomly, or all at once with breaks in between to keep them from getting too hot.

Afterwards Glenn's son helped us find our way in the dark to our very dusty car parked out in a field. Note to self: next time, take a flashlight.

Antique aircraft - Stinson

Saturday July 10, 2010 ♦ Arlington Fly-in

2010 replica of a 1933 Stinson Model O, from Sacramento

Even if the colour isn't our favourite, it's another beautiful airplane!

Antique aircraft - Waco

Saturday July 10, 2010 ♦ Arlington Fly-in

This 1934 Waco YMF came from Sitka

The silver pin-striping appears to be hand painted. No expense seems to have been spared on this gorgeous airplane.

Off it goes for a flight. Does it get any better than open cockpit flying? We don't think so.

Antique aircraft - Stearman

Saturday July 10, 2010 ♦ Arlington Fly-in

A couple of Stearmans

Antique aircraft - Travel Air

Saturday July 10, 2010 ♦ Arlington Fly-in

A beautiful 1930 Travel Air 4000 from Seattle

Many pictures of the same airplane, but I like it. :-)

And off they go for an early evening flight.

Another Travel Air

Fly-in - Antique airplanes!

Saturday July 10, 2010

Our favourite part of the fly-in was the antique airplane section.

Fleet 2

Glenn's all-time favourite, the Fleet 2 - although he'd prefer it in red instead of blue and without the checkboard pattern.

Fairchild 24

Waco

Ryan ST

Not an antique but an ususual RV7 on floats

At the Arlington Fly-in

Saturday July 10, 2010

We arrived to find the airshow already in progress. That's because I got it into my mind that it began at 4:00 instead of 3:00. So we completely missed Julie Clark's aerobatic show. Glenn didn't get to meet up with Bud Granley (who was there flying with his son Ross) after the show either, which was a shame because Bud gives great hugs.

Both our cameras are useless for taking fast action shots so I don't have any to post.

Above: A nice loop over the New Standard biplane - the same biplane Glenn and I rode in last time we were here. We no sooner arrived over by this plane than Glenn was behind the ticket booth. He says: "Can you believe it? I just went over to stand in the shade and the pilot said to sit down and hold the fort while he and his girlfriend wandered off for a coffee. Then I was suddenly inundated with folks wanting to go flying in the biplane. A girl asked me if it was safe and I told her the pilot would be sure to fly 'low and slow'! Both she and her husband got quite a kick out of that. By the time the pilot showed up I had a dozen customers ready to go!"

We met Glenn's eldest son at the fly-in and he treated us to hamburgers, which were really good, followed by cold mango sherbet in the shade of his camper.

It was hot but we were lucky that it wasn't blazing hot that day. Still, it was nice when the sun went down. What a lovely evening for a flight.

La Conner, Washington

Saturday July 10, 2010

If there was a theme on this trip it was that there are a few places we don't need to go back to. La Conner was such a place.

It was too hot to spend the entire day at the fly-in. We wanted to see the airshow in the afternoon and the balloons in the evening, so we used the morning to visit an outlet mall and also La Conner. The little town, which is about 55 miles north of Seattle, was named for an early settler's wife, L.A. Conner. When I first visited with Mom many years ago, it was a lively place with interesting stores. We had fun. Now it seems as if it has had its day - some shops sit empty. It has a pretty good book store though.

The town sits on the Swinomish Channel.

Back when my Mom and I visited, the Hotel Planter (bottom left) was just being renovated. I remember watching a fellow paint the name on the side of the building. The antiques store (top left) that was there then, still exists.

A courtyard on the main street.

I hiked up stairs on a cliff to get to a higher area. At the top is the Quilt & Textile Museum (left) and a church (lower right). Upper right: down in the town were some watercolour paintings.

An odd sign. Apparently the town is known for its wild turkeys.

This part of Washington is a big tulip growing area so it would still be nice to see in springtime.

A road trip to Washington & Oregon

Friday July 9, 2010

The main reason for this trip was to attend the Arlington fly-in, but since I'm not working we were free as birds. The only constraint was money.

Original proposed route
(wound up being very different)

We decided to include the Bavarian-themed town of Leavenworth on this trip. Our very first trip together was to Leavenworth, 14 or 15 years ago. From there we planned to head north to Osoyoos in BC, then drive back west through Canada. But that didn't happen. Instead, we drove west through Washington via the Cascade loop, and then south to Oregon.

We've been on this ferry route between Sidney and Anacortes before so I won't spend a lot of time on it. I wish I'd taken a picture of one of the very rusty Washington State ferries passing by because it was a quite a sight - they don't look well maintained at all.

Here we pass Spieden Island, an unusually dry and barren island in the San Juans, privately owned by a sunglass billionaire.

We had to chuckle when a passenger discovered, as the ferry sailed past San Juan Island, that he wasn't going to that island after all. He was so annoyed that he wanted to speak to the captain, as if it wasn't his own fault that he failed to check the schedule.

Most of the San Juans look more like this, similar to our Gulf Islands.

Our ferry cruised around aimlessly waiting for a place to dock. We should have been at our hotel by mid-afternoon. Instead, it was suppertime. We were starving by then since there isn't much to eat on the Washington State ferries other than hotdogs, popcorn and baked goods. It would have been smart to take our own food.

We checked into a Holiday Inn Express in Marysville, which is just a few miles (miles not kilometres in the US) south of Arlington. I hadn't stayed in a Holiday Inn in decades so was not sure what to expect. We were pleasantly surprised. Staff were friendly and efficient, the room was just fine and do-it-yourself breakfasts are included at the Express hotels.

Top and bottom left: Our room was well equipped with a small fridge, microwave, coffee maker, desk, iron, sitting area. No in-room safe though.

Top right: Glenn was happy to see the sink in the bathroom like this, rather than outside of it as is the case at some hotels. I was surprised that there was no tub, only a shower in this room.

Bottom right: Breakfast room off lobby. Thumbs up for lots of bananas always being available. Glenn gets cramps if he doesn't have one every day. Here is a curious thing - there were biscuits, hot scrambled eggs, sausage paddies and then some liquid stuff that we couldn't identify. I figured it was some sort of porridge but later we saw this exact same thing in another hotel and found out it was gravy (for the biscuits maybe). We concluded it must be an American thing, just like salt-water taffy seems to be more popular in the States. Another difference between Canada and the US is that their gas is much cheaper.