Joy of Driving

When driving to Seattle from Bellingham in nice weather, it is impossible to be in so much of a hurry that the speed of I-5 is preferable to the greatness that is Chuckanut Drive. Say Seattlest was snowboarding at Baker. We lose an edge and knock our head on a tree, and then while we're lying there seeing stars someone comes speeding past and skis right through our carotid artery. We have to get to Harborview or die. We still take Chuckanut. Yes, it's a boutique route, but it doesn't forsake the task of taking you from A to B.

Most might say that the best part of Chuckanut Drive is the bluff overlooking the San Juans, and, yeah, that's great. For the passenger. The driver can steal a few glimpses over there, but generally the narrow winding lanes wrapping around blind curve after blind curve (any one of which are likely to reveal a maniac on a bike, or, like we experienced this weekend, a random dude walking inside the guard rail) mean that outside of the pull-off areas the driver is not going to be soaking in too much view. No, the best part of Chuckanut for the driver occurs when the road twists down into the flats where the Japanese garden and alpaca farms gently envelop that whacked-out antique/junk store. There you can truly enjoy the ride, even with a bleeding neck.

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By Dan in Miscellaneous on February 25, 2008 1:40 PM

Comments [rss]

Troy Morris

Jessejb-

You don't seem to understand how this works. Seattle gets condos. Suburbs may or may not get condos depending on income levels. Once you get outside of the county- it's all strip malls and Walmarts. That's where the money is in Skagit and Whatcom. Bring on the Walmart!

Brenda Helverson

I did Chuckanut drive this Summer around 3 a.m. The moonlight on the water was beautiful. I encountered a deer grazing on the side of the road. Because there was no traffic, I stopped and we contemplated each other for a few minutes. I took the trip very slow and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Clint

Just took this drive last weekend and came around one of those tight corners to see a motorcyclist who'd literally just crashed. He looked okay, but his bike didn't. His buddies were attending to him and directing traffic, and half a dozen response vehicles flew past us on their way to the scene. We feared for the bicyclists peddling along without a clue. Scary.

That antique/junk shop is awesomely junky.

jessejb

what?! thats developable land! bring on the condos!

ozmafan

yes, yes, yes. couldn't agree more. i once had one of the greatest times ever driving along that flat stretch while listening to "putting the days to bed" by the long winters. i always look forward to chuckanut drive when planning a trip to bellingham. need to do it again soon.