When you live in the Pacific Northwest, you can be “on the water” in moments, from most places.  We have the Pacific Ocean, Puget Sound, and numerous lakes and rivers within a short drive.  Silver Lake is less than five minutes from my house, and I never get tired of taking pictures of it.  Its color changes from steel gray to blue, depending on the clouds above, and its surface can be glassy, rippled, or show white-capped waves, depending on the wind.

This flock of seagulls has spaced themselves out, one to a tire.  Can you see the interloper?

Just north of out house is the Everett Marina, where hundreds of boats are docked, waiting for their owners to take them out to the waters of North Puget Sound.  Whenever we have dinner at Lombardi’s Italian Restaurant near the marina, we always take a walk down the rows of boats.

Of course, there’s always the Washington State Ferry System, whose huge car ferries carry people and goods all around the Sound, and across the Straits of Juan de Fuca to Canada.  Our nearest terminal is in Mukilteo, for the ferry that goes to Whidbey Island, but we more often take the Edmonds ferry over to Kingston, on the Kitsap Peninsula.  This is the Edmonds dock.  On the other side of the terminal, there is an underwater diving park!  There are old tires, wrecked boats, and other submerged things for the divers to explore.

When we go to Victoria, BC, we sometimes take the BC Ferry, whose boats are different from the Washington State boats.  The distances in BC are longer, and the car decks are more enclosed.  But you have more time to take in the sights.

Of course, not only boats go on the water!  There are at least three seaplane companies that fly to and from Victoria, and we love our hotel room on the side where we get a perfect view of all the planes landing on the water.

Last Tuesday, when we went up to Deception Pass, we had dinner later at Anthony’s in Anacortes, which is right near the Marina.  After dinner, we walked among the working boats that dock there.  There is an oil refinery right across Fidalgo Bay, so there are boats that service that refinery, and help out if there is an oil spill.  Fishing boats also dock there.

The best way to spot things on the water is to take a cruise.  In 2018, we went to Hawaii, round trip from San Francisco.  We spent many days cruising over the Pacific Ocean, many where we went an entire day without seeing any other boats.  I found that I enjoyed sitting out on our balcony, or walking the deck, watching and listening to the water go by.

When we docked at Lahaina, Maui, it turned out that there was a surfing competition going on, and we got to see the youngsters on the water.

While in Hawaii, we also saw a submarine!  The Bowfin is at Pearl Harbor, and we were able to go inside-it was very claustrophobic.

While in Hawaii, we were treated to the sight of a kite-surfer on the water, being towed by a power boat, in between the two sailboats.

We are very fortunate to live on a planet that is mostly covered by water.  And we are mostly made of water ourselves!  Water, water, everywhere.

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