Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Skagit Tulip Festival


         Today we explore just beyond Bellingham and Whatcom county.  I have lived in this area off and on for many years, but until just recently have never made it to this great festival.  Great for all of the senses at once.   Our daughter and I had a free weekend about two weeks ago and set off to beautiful Mt Vernon.   


   Usually when I am going just down the road into Skagit county, I am going to the casino.  Although I love the casino I work at, Skagit offers a free beverage bar, good paying games, and   a great snack bar.   They also offer a free ten dollars when you buy in with twenty dollars on Tuesdays.   Maybe I should have joined there advertising team or work force.   Maybe my wife is right, again, and I think about gambling just a little to much since getting a job at a casino.  Or we end up at the mall.  Malls are never an enjoyable experience for me.  But this mall has some interesting features including a church inside the mall.  In all my travels I do not believe I have seen this before.   Whatever takes you there, Mt Vernon is literally just down the road from beautiful Bellingham, and has some great sights to explore any day.

    Just before the town you can branch off the highway and wind down Chuckanut Road.   A long but very worth it drive.   Full of great views.  We had hoped to return home this way, but our time schedule did not allow it.  

    Our daughter took it well that I had to stop in the middle of no were to snap a few pictures along the way.   I must warn all my readers now, that I got very trigger happy with pictures on this journey.   So this is a very picture filled post.  I hope you enjoy them even half as much as I enjoyed taking them!


Every time I pass this bridge I have wanted a picture of it.   

Just beyond the bridge was this great homestead with a shack in the back falling down...




    We started out in downtown Mt Vernon, just past the bus depot.  Were we got an amazingly accurate map to the tulip fields.  Close by was the old court house.   Old buildings are always amazing to me.  But it seems like the best molds are set aside for court houses and city halls.  




        Yes we have some great modern weapons, but can you imagine coming out of the woods and suddenly being eye to eye with one of these?


Easily the most recognizable building in town. 


                                                           Old theatre down town.
                                                       Just past the visitors center and the above building you hit the water front.      

                                                                 Huge tulips!

                                         I spyed this while sitting in traffic heading to the tulips. 
                        Yes the drinking parrot is kool too---but just behind him is the huge sign
   the bucket list of sorts is a huge chalk board and can be continually changed.  


                                                  Over the bridge to the country side.   
                                 The farm houses along the way were amazing.   And huge.   


I am a sucker for old barns.
This one sits right across the street from our destination 
Tulip Town.




                                          Of course the flowers were beyond amazing
                                                     But so was the landscaping.   





On to the stars of the show!





                                      As I said, I snapped many a picture.   ;)









Row upon row of amazing beauty.
The pictures do not even begin to show the size of the fields. 
And this is only one stop in all of the tulip fields.  
We never made it to any of the others.



My favorite color is red and my wife's is purple   so I could not resist this shot.





                               Another great shot--sneaking in the surrounding old barns. 




Tired of walking through the rutted fields?
Jump on a wagon.


Close up!



Last shot.

Shows that all beauty dies.  
But is still purty and amazingly important in someones eyes AND in Gods eyes. 


With our cross country move coming up very soon--I will definitely be working on new posts.
But actually posting them will be delayed.   
Please check out old posts on this page and my first blog page  www.wyomingjack.blogspot.com

And this summer I will be starting a 3rd exploring page.   
All about exploring Arizona.




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