We had to set the alarm clock for 5 a.m. because the ferry leaves Anacortes to Sidney at 8:30 a.m. (only one a day) and we needed to be there about an hour early, we thought, to park and buy our tickets. It was about an an hour and a half to Anacortes and we drove through a fair amount of rain but it stopped near our destination. There was a good secure parking lot right at the ferry entrance for $20 for 48 hours. We purchased our tickets - could only buy one-way because of customs and immigration coming back. Senior fare was 1/2 price so it was about $8 each for the nearly 3 hour trip.
The ferry was run by the State of Washington - the Chelan. There were plenty of seats and lots of big windows to see the scenery. There was a cafeteria and a duty free shop. We settled in for the ride through the San Juan Islands with one stop - Friday Harbor - along the way. The seas were very calm so it was a comfortable trip with lots of clouds but no rain. We enjoyed the scenery and arrived on time in Sidney. We cleared immigration and our friends, Nan and John were there to greet us. Nan and John used to spend their winters in their San Miguel de Allende home and I got to know Nan because of horsey connections. About 5 years ago, they sold their home in SMA and then stayed in Canada to be near their grandchildren and family.
Their Sidney home was just a few minutes from the ferry dock so we went there first and they showed us to their lovely apartment that they normally rent out long term but it was vacant for a couple of days so we were invited to stay there. Then John and Nan drove us all over Sidney and to Victoria to see the sights. The beaches are all public so we stopped at a couple of places and walked to the beach to enjoy the views. We went to a Cajun restaurant right on the water for lunch. There was even alligator on the menu (imported from LA) but we passed on that. The sun actually came out during our lunch.
After our touring we went back to the house and had a very nice visit and a little wine. For dinner we went to another restaurant on the water and enjoyed a nice fresh fish meal (ahi tuna). It was delicious.
John and Nan made a lovely big breakfast the next morning and we visited some more before our return to the ferry dock for the trip back to Anacortes. It was still cloudy but no rain. We did the trip in reverse and enjoyed the scenery again. We played a little Scrabble on my Kindle.
Back in Anacortes we headed for home with a stop at our favorite grocery store for a piece of Sockeye salmon for dinner. It was very nice but I've now decided that I like the King salmon better than the Copper River sockeye. Who would have guessed that there were such differences in salmon?
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