Guemes Mountain

 "Mountain" is a bit of an exaggeration, but it was great to be outside and on a trail; the hike takes you to the highest point on the island - a whopping 688 feet. 

Guemes Island

I usually go somewhere for the Thanksgiving holiday - Canada, Mexico, one year Iceland, but these are unusual times and adjustments had to be made. So this year, instead of leaving the state (not advised) or leaving the country (not possible), I searched the map and found Guemes Island, one of the lesser known of the San Juans. This morning I drove to Anacortes and got on a small barge-ferry for the 5-minute crossing to this lovely, rural island which is home to about 600 people. I drove around for about an hour; half the people in cars and all the people on the road walking or biking waved to me. There are Black Lives Matter signs everywhere and practically every other property had a Biden-Harris sign out, which I did not expect and was delighted to see. 

The tiny ferry dock in Anacortes.

My home for the next two days.

This exact sign was all over the island. Usually next to this one:

I only saw one of these. 

Kubota Garden

Continuing with my local jaunts -- Kubota Garden is a public park in Seattle that was started as a private garden in 1927 by a Japanese immigrant. It's a great place to see the fall colors and go for a walk on a sunny autumn day.

Camano Island

Clear view of Mt. Baker

Camano Island is an 'island' that warrants air-quotes as it's disconnected from the mainland by just a tiny strip of water that you can easily drive across on a highway-bridge. It's only about an hour from my house yet I'd never been there in all my years in Seattle. There is no real draw... it's very close to town and the highway that crosses the bridge to Camano is barely off I-5 so it doesn't feel like a true getaway; there isn't a quaint village area that I observed, just plenty of chain fast-food joints and way too many Trump/Pence 2020 signs; but with nothing better to do yesterday and no place [else] to go, I hopped in my car and drove north to a coastal trailhead I spotted on the map.