Bellingham Bonus Ride #1: Lummi Peninsula

July 30, 2020

Several weeks ago, discouraged that my dog bite seemed to have taken a month-long hiatus from the healing process, I contacted my doctor for advice and was referred to a wound nurse. I set an appointment for this Friday, July 31st, and Rachael and I made plans to leave Bellingham two days early and drive down to Portland so I could keep the appointment.

Almost immediately afterwards my leg inexplicably began healing again, and hasn’t let up since. It doesn’t really make sense to see the wound nurse now, so a few days ago we cancelled the appointment and went back to the original plan. I’d been thinking that Wednesday’s ride to Deception Pass would be the end of our Bellingham cycling experience for this summer, but now we’ve got two bonus days up here. how to spend them?

Today is hot again and a bit muggy. We decide to start from home and get our miles in early, on a fast familiar ride to Lummi Peninsula that we took just a week ago. We reversed direction today, cycling through Ferndale first. Other than that, it’s pretty much identical to a ride we’ve taken twice before now. With no real reason to stop for photographs, we biked straight through until reaching Lummi Peninsula. After a month of riding the roads near Bellingham, I’ve about concluded that my favorite three miles are these three miles on the peninsula, looking across Bellingham Bay. All of today’s road photos are from this short, spectacular bit of coastline.

Other than that, not much excitement to report from the ride itself. The big drama came in trying to find a loo for Rachael after finding that the one in Ferndale has been closed down due to the virus sometime in the last few days. After seven or eight increasingly anxious miles looking for for a private, secluded spot in the middle of an unbroken stretch of farmland, we finally found relief just in time in the Lake Terrell game refuge, and the remainder of the ride went without newsworthy incident.

The real excitement of the day was back at home. We biked the 12 miles home from Lummi Peninsula separately after I decided to hang around with the camera for one last look around. With the day heating up quickly, Rachael decided to go ahead on her own since she knows the way well by now. I took my time poking around the bay, and didn’t arrive back home until nearly a half hour after she did.

When I arrived, I put Rodriguez in the garage and then stopped for a few minutes to take photos of some poppies in the back yard I hadn’t noticed before. Finally I made it into the house, and was startled by a racket coming from inside that I could hear even before opening the door.

It’s Rachael, hollering and banging on the bathroom door. She’s trapped inside, and has been for the last 20 minutes. The doorknob and locking mechanism has failed somehow, and the knob on the inside just spins freely without unlocking the door. It’s hot in there, so she opened the window as far as it allows, and even yelled outside hoping someone in earshot would rescue her. Bad enough, but she’s also getting bored because she didn’t take her phone or iPad in with her so there’s not much to divert her attention while she waits.

Always take your phone or tablet with you when you go to the bathroom, folks. You never know.

Fortunately, the door opens from the outside so I can easily rescue my distressed partner. We lock it open to protect ourselves for the next few days, and we’ll notify our hosted the problem.

So, a bit distressing. But nothing like that infamous hot summer day in southwest France twenty years ago, when I locked Rachael inside an outhouse and had to free her by carving out the lock with my Swiss Army Knife. I know I’ve written down that story and shared it in the past, but I can’t place it now. It’s one of our ‘favorite’ travel memories.

Looking across Bellingham Bay from Lummi Peninsula. Definitely one of my favorite views from a region crammed with gorgeous vistas.

Queen Anne’s Lace and Mount Baker, Bellingham Bay.

Thistle is really an incredible plant, striking in such different ways as it matures and dries out. Oh, wait - its teasel (Thanks, Bill!).

Teasel and chicory. Sounds like an Irish band.

Mount Baker - the perfect backdrop for every occasion.

Image not found :( — A mountain of geese.

At least I think this is a poppy. Actually it caught my eye today because I’ve been looking for radiation patterns for some reason. It’s such an interesting subject; I’m sure Rachael won’t mind being trapped in the bathroom a bit longer for it.

“Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.”

Rachael noted how well my beer can goes with my Nanaimo bike shirt. Here I’m practicing my best Ivanka product presentation move, reflecting on the name. Cosmic Dreams, a hazy IPA from Allan Brewing - makes me think of demon sex for some reason. Hope I don’t get Covid-19 from it!

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