A group of nine folks and Crosby dog left the Boathouse promptly at 1:00 as promised. It was filtered sun (by clouds, not smoke!) and temps in the low 50’s as we proceeded around the marina viewing pleasure craft of all shapes and sizes, both sail and power. Hundreds of boats, all nicely lined up, but they never seem to leave their slips. Following the paved walkways, we headed kind of north, then east, following the waterfront around to the Bellwether Hotel area and past the Coast Guard facility. We were on a city sidewalk briefly and then caught a gravel trail behind American Marine’s giant warehouse. The trail wound around and eventually led to the old Georgia Pacific settling lagoon. A nice wide gravel trail wraps 3/4 of the way around the lagoon**, but the last section is fenced off, so we retraced our steps and eventually made it to Roeder Ave. Heading south, we walked along the industrial/commercial side of the waterfront. Shipyards and repair shops abound. Continuing on, we passed the SSC grounds full of parked garbage trucks and rows of port-a-potties waiting for your next outdoor shindig. By the way, SSC’s signboard lists job openings for CDL drivers. Good benefits. See the Flickr photos for more info. We crossed over the Whatcom Creek waterway, where earlier this year a sunken sailboat sat for a month waiting for someone to haul it out of there. That brought us to the Granary Building and Waypoint Park where the group broke up briefly for snacks, restroom breaks, or just sitting on a bench. The Granary building is slowly filling up with little shops… coffee, tea, cider, and the rolled ice cream shop mentioned in my earlier notice. Only one member decided to give the rolled ice cream a go, the rest reluctant to pony up the eight bucks for the treat. Though two women did say they might return one day with the grandkids.
After 20 minutes we reassembled and briefly discussed investigating the rest of the goings on in the area: the condo construction, the pump park, the acid ball, the 6 missiles, and the container village. But there was no enthusiasm for any of it, and we headed back. Once back in the marina area, we took the road and walks closest to the Bay, and checked out the commercial fishing fleet all lined up there.
No one had a mileage counter with them, but based on the actual walking time at a brisk pace (2+hrs.) I figure we went about 4 – 5 miles.
**The trail around the lagoon surprised me with the length. Maybe a half to 3/4 mile in each direction. It sure would be sweet if the City could find a way to allow a complete loop back up to Roeder Ave.
Photos on the MBC Flickr Page.
Richard Klemm
p.s. I found out today that my last name in German means “pinch”. As in your finger in a door.
p.p.s. Did you know that Paula Chu used to be Club Pres? That was before my time though. I joined in 2015.