Planet Earth has areas so gob smacking beautiful, they captivate the humans living there. At any given moment, Bellingham Washington residents are hiking, biking, bird watching, fishing, river rafting, sailing, kayaking, skiing…. or sipping microbrews at funky pubs while planning their next adventures. With stunning mountains, wild rivers, mystical forests, and the beckoning Pacific Ocean, staying indoors is pretty impossible.

In “Bellingham and Mount Baker,” author Mike McQuaide explains his 20-year love affair with the city: “If I had ever imagined my perfect city and surrounding area, it would have been a place remarkably like Bellingham. I could kayak and watch stunning sunsets, but also scale the heights and snowboard into May. Since I like to run and bike and hike, a place laced with miles of forested trails where I could lose myself in my thoughts...I’ve always had a wildlife jones for critters like orcas, bald eagles, and owls, so it’d be a place that had some of those thrown in as well. I welcome you to Bellingham and Mount Baker and I think you’ll agree: It’s a special place.”

River Madness

“Every time I breathe this pure air, my life gets longer,” smiles Dylan Tougas, our Nooksack River guide. Dylan coaches our group of six for an adventurous ride, in a royal blue rubber raft.

Swathed in fleece, a full body wet suit, and rubber booties, I’m not convinced this churning aquamarine river will lengthen my life. In fact, Dylan’s  “safety talk” warns us that wildly magnificent places are also dangerous.

“Make sure you stay inside the boat. This river is snowmelt- if you go overboard and get hypothermia you won’t care about saving yourself. If you do fall out, float downriver with your feet out front and kick off the rocks. We’ll rescue you with this rope…just don’t get tangled up.  Do all of you get my message? Stay in the boat. It’ll be great!”

Six almost brave river rats wedge our feet into the boat corners, hunker close, touch paddles for good luck. Seconds later, the Nooksack’s in charge, rockin’ and rollin’ us into whirling waterholes, ramming us into jagged boulders.

“Keep an eye out for cougars and bears,” yells Dylan.  Wiping away a face full of icy river water, I spot an eagle soaring overhead. Our boat spins in crazy circles. My world kaleidoscopes into cobalt, emerald, terracotta. Where am I? What day is it? Do I care? Is a bear laughing as silly humans play in his back yard?

Rocketing down the shimmering Nooksack, soaked, I’m transformed from scared stiff to exhilarated and silly.

“I love my Planet!” I shout to a cloudless sky, and a boat full of grinning paddlers.

“She’s a river rat now,” Dylan says.

An eagle feather floats into my outstretched palm. I’ve got to keep my wings ready for whatever adventure comes my way.

Sea Creatures

At Larrabee State Park, near downtown Bellingham, kids crouch over beach boulders tossed like giant dice along Bellingham Bay. Peering underneath the rocks, they yell “Jack Pot! Jack Pot!”  That’s kid talk for “Look mom. Dozens of creepy crawly crabs. I’m taking them home!”

Their moms smile, remembering their own teen-age crab hunts.

Loni Rahm, president and CEO for Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism recalls one of her family’s favorite wildlife encounters.

“We were boating near the San Juan Islands, and we’re excited to spot a pod of orca killer whales. One swam to our boat and lightly tapped it. She was checking us out. Maybe she thought we were edible? At first my kids freaked out. But then we all realized how special it was to be visited by orcas. You never know what you’ll see around here. The beauty is addictive.”

At Semiahoo Bay, I search for pink and orange starfish clinging to the rocks. Each tidal pool is the perfect home for crabs, mussels, striped snails, and manila clams. Seagulls screech hungrily over their lavish seafood banquet. A grandfather bald eagle on a stark tree limb stands guard.

A park sign offers advice: “Walk quietly with eyes wide open.”

     

Where the trolls live

After dinner at North Fork Brewery, Pizzeria, Beer Shrine, and Wedding Chapel, which serves a microbrew named “Son of Frog,” and table size pizzas topped in salami and artichoke hearts, we’re fueled for our Pacific rainforest hike.

Our guide, Mary Beth Phelan, leads us on Horshoe Bend Rail in North Cascades National Park, home to gray wolves, Canada lynx, and northern spotted owls.

She points out lush sword, maidenhair, and deer ferns along a trail so soft we bounce. Western Sitka and spruce hemlocks vault skyward. Birds twitter happily in their avian party.

The air is candy sweet.  To this lush green Universe, Mother Nature adds a bit of color: juicy red salmon berries, white fungus, tiny pink flowers and gleaming ebony rocks.

“I always find tranquility and rejuvenation here,” Mary Beth says. “This is a place where the quiet magic of self emerges to be explored and understood.”

Mary Beth’s philosophic musing inspires us to be open to serendipity. As our group trudges up the trail, I dawdle behind, photographing ferns. Through my camera lens, I spot friends from my childhood: A cappuccino colored troll with waist length green hair, and a pink troll with powder blue hair.

“Hey people, come back,” I call out. But Mary Beth and our hiking group are far ahead, searching for hummingbirds and snacking on salmon berries. “You won’t believe,” I yell, but no one hears. Have I lost my mind in this magic forest?

“This is what Planet Earth looked like on her birthday,” the green haired troll smiles.

“Welcome to Bellingham,” the other troll adds, winking.

A thundering Nooksack River drowns out my laughter. Now that’s a splendid welcome.

 IF You Go

The Bellingham Mt. Baker region is nestled between the San Juan Islands and the North Cascade Mountain Range, between Seattle Washington, and Vancouver, British Columbia. For more information, contact Bellingham Whatcom County Tourism, 360-671-3990. (www.bellingham.org)

These parks, natural education centers, tour operators, restaurants, and hotels are recommend:

•Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, U.S. Forest Service, 360-856-5700, www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs/contact

•North Cascades Institute, 360-856-5700, www.ncascades.org

•River Rider rafting guides: 800-448-RAFT, ww.riverrider.com

•Fanatik Bike Co.: 360-756-0504,  www.fanatikbike.com

•Moondance Sea Kayak Adventures: 360-738-7664,  www.moondancekayak.com

•Northfork Brewery, 360-599-2337, www.northforkbrewery.com

•Boundary Bay Brewery, 360-647-5593, www.bbaybrewery.com

•Grace Café, 360-650-9298,  www.gracecafepies.com

•Dirty Dan Steakhouse, 360-676-1011, www.dirtydanharris.com

•Inn at Mt. Baker, 360-599-3000, www.theinnatmtbaker.com

GuestHouse Inn, 360-671-9600,  www.guesthouseintl.com

•Hampton Inn Bellingham Airport, 360-676-7700,  www.hamptoninn.com

2009 Sharon Spence Lieb

and Warren Lieb

A unique new travel book

What if you could phone Jane Goodall, Jean-Michel Cousteau, Sandra Day O’Connor, and Buzz Aldrin to ask them about their favorite places?

That’s what award-winning author Jerry C. Dunn did for his unique new book, “My Favorite Place on Earth.”

Interviewing 75 celebrated men and women, Jerry found “Lots of surprises.” For example: A lost city in Sri Lanka. The Emily Bronte landscape of England. The Pasadena Rose Parade. A private island in the Caribbean. A wild dog research camp in Botswana.

Turns out Jane Goodall’s favorite place is Gombe, Tanzania. Jean-Michel Cousteau loves the Peruvian Amazon, and Sandra Day O’Connor speaks with wonder about watching Kachina dancers on top of a Hopi mesa at dawn in northeastern, Arizona.

Buzz Aldrin? Tranquility Base, The Moon. (No surprise there.)

Dunn’s 271-page book with stunning color photos is an inspiring read for armchair travelers and adventurers alike. Published 2009, National Geographic Books.