May (13th – 23rd) – Spokane and Bellingham Washington –
My next stop one out of necessity and the other one of discovery. Angeline was in need of some scheduled maintenance and I had made an appointment for her to get it done. Angeline has been serviced in 4 states so far. I definitely want to keep her in top condition as she serves us well! The dealerships are well equipped for the clientele with coffee, snacks and WiFi. I do most of my scheduling via various websites. I find this is also great places to meet people and share some of my travel adventures. I had been to Spokane in 2025 as the last stop that my sister and I had on our Amtrak adventure before heading back to Denver. Since we arrived on the train and had not opted to rent a car it was a little difficult to move around. I wanted to see a little bit more since I did enjoy our time in Seattle and the train ride was filled with beautiful trees, rivers, and mountains. All things that bring me joy.
I took the time to venture to see more of Spokane but it did not resonate with me and I was really looking forward to Bellingham. You may ask why Bellingham? I am always looking for unique ways to travel that include both me and Angeline. We’ve done the only Auto Train that is currently offered in the US where both you and your vehicle can travel via Amtrak. It takes you from Sanford Florida to Lorton Virginia or vice versa. Angeline and I had traveled on ferries from Gulf Shores to Mississippi and I had researched the possibility of riding a ferry in the Pacific NW. I had toyed with the idea of driving to Alaska via the AlCan (Alaska Canadian) highway with a destination of Anchorage but found that a lot of this trip would be traversing the Yukon and I wasn’t willing to make that trip solo. I asked AI was there an alternate mode of travel for me and Angeline and it made me aware of a ferry that runs from a port in Bellingham Washington to various ports in Alaska. I am excited at this point. I had been looking into this since January and found that the closest port to Anchorage would be Wittier but was a little disappointed to find that this particular route had been taken out of commission for the past couple of years. Alas by the time I made the decision to possibly go to another port like Juneau or Skagway the timing wasn’t right. I would still go to Bellingham as it still seemed like it would be a good place to visit and it definitely was.
Bellingham has access to many mountains, islands, beaches and parks. I took the opportunity to visit a different location daily. Getting off at 2pm PDT/5pm EDT has its privileges. I booked an evening cruise that was scheduled to depart at the same time as the ferry that went to Ketchikan and Juneau Alaska and was able to see it depart just as my cruise was departing. The ferry offers cabins or lounge chairs, areas to pitch tents for overnight voyages. Check out these options for unique vacation options for voyages from Bellingham to various Alaskan Ports. Alaska Marine Highway System
My visit to Bellingham sparked a desire to see more of the state of Washington. Bellingham is about a 1.5 hours from Vancouver, British Columbia. While on the evening cruise I met a delightful couple from Vancouver while taking in the wonderful views of Mount Baker and Chuckanut Mountain. I could live here. I felt such a sense of peace in this area but would reserve judgement as I would return after my next adventures to Anchorage and Honolulu using the flight credits from my trip to New Zealand in March. I would be flying out of Seattle Tacoma (SeaTac) airport and had booked Angeline a stay at a nice parking facility for the 3 weeks I would be away visiting the 2 places I had long desired to see.
Spokane and Bellingham couldn’t have been more different. Spokane had more of a city vibe and Bellingham a mix of seaport town with some city amenities. I found it interesting that there were signs for speed in mph (miles per hour) and kph (kilometers per hour) as I stayed at a very nice Holiday Inn located close to the Bellingham Airport. I got a sweet deal for the week using my Sundance Vacations package. I did capture some beautiful sunsets during my stay in Spokane. As I ready myself for my flight to Anchorage I made a decision to checkout more of Washington before making my way to yet another explored state (by me that is)… New Mexico.
Only a few snapshots to share – Sunrise and sunset in Spokane and my cruise in Bellingham.
Miles driven 671 , year to date 6,051
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