Day 83-84
   
   7/19-20/01
   Whidby Island, WA
   
   We sailed on through night and day, watching occasional pods of Orcas
   ("killer whales") passing near the ship, while life settled into its
   usual shipboard routine.  I sat on the deck for hours at a time, out
   in the open air, somehow never tiring of the wondrous scenery of island,
   mountain, and fiord.
   
   On the second morning, we came to our final destination, Bellingham
   Washington.  I rolled off the boat and headed south along the shore,
   along one of the classic drives of the northern Pacific coast.  Hilly and
   heavily forested, I got occasional peeks of the water for the first
   hour or so until the road flattened out into a valley.  After being away
   from it for so long, it was odd to return to the land of farms, cows, and
   cornfields - and good to be back on the bike.  For the first time in
   weeks, I was down to shorts and a short sleeve shirt in the warm
   inland air.
   
   Turning westward, I biked past one of the many Indian reservations,
   complete with casino.  Here you can play slot machines and video
   poker, all in accordance with ancient tribal tradition, of course.
   
   Meandering along the road, I came across a small seafood stand.  I'm
   always in search of the perfect bowl of chowder, so I decided to try
   them out.  A mischievous mood caught hold of me - so I ordered a "clam
   chowder with extra strawberries, please".  I try to make everyone's
   day a little more surreal, which is easy if you place orders for food
   combinations mother nature never intended.   Fruit and clams, now
   that's a taste sensation.  The woman behind the counter, of course, had 
   to ask again as to what I said.  Then came the wide-eyed disbelief, and 
   the "can you do that?" look.  I don't think she caught on that I was
   joking; at any rate she just said she was out of strawberries.  Some day 
   I'll get my just desserts for these improprieties.  I'll order, say, a 
   Tuna milk shake, and someone will actually serve it to me.
   
   It was good chowder, but the reigning champion so far (as judged by my
   own taste buds and no other criteria) is Ivar's in Seattle - and I'd
   be there soon enough.
   
   As I crossed the bridge onto Whidby Island and moved farther in, the
   air cooled off due to the influence of the chilly waters of Puget
   Sound.  I camped at the state park that night, a popular place, and near the
   major population center of Seattle.  Signs this time of year always
   say "campground full", but that really just applies to cars and the lack
   of parking spaces.  Instances in my life where I have been refused a
   campsite when on a bicycle have been very rare.

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