In the News
Delicious festival food
I ran into a guy yesterday who attended the Arts Festival with one purpose only: the food. It’s been a great couple of days for folks who like food and beverages in a festival atmosphere. Local bakeries including La Vie En Rose featured outdoor tables piled high with goodies. Many Bela Isola guests chose the […]
Vintage Vehicle Show
Sweet! But then it always is. That’s the Vintage Vehicle Show brought to the community by Bill Mitchell, renowned for his historic art murals. Bill was at work early this morning, directing traffic from the three-wheeled electric cart so familiar to Anacortes residents. Another familiar “star” of the annual car show is the 1917 Mack […]
Artists at work
Within a stone’s throw from the Guemes Channel is a rare treat for Arts Festival guests … an opportunity to watch artists at work. Among artists near the Port of Anacortes offices/Festival Art Display are metalsmith Paul Thorne and Native American carver Kevin Paul (Paul at top, Paul and Kevin together in bottom photo). Also […]
Festival Day One
Anacortes Arts Festival Director Joan Tezak (right) was pleased with the first day of the Festival, as evidenced by the smile in this portrait with friend Delphine Haley. The weather was great, the crowd congenial as the busy island weekend got underway. In another scene, artist Bill Jamieson of Vitreous Designs talks to a customer […]
Festival comes to life
Vendors began “putting down stakes” Thursday afternoon in preparation for the three-day Anacortes Arts Festival. Anacortes will be in the news for the weekend during the most highly attended festival on the community calendar. Among those setting up along Commercial Avenue Thursday was radio personality Scotty VanDryver of Soft Rock Kafe, 104.3 FM. This Bellingham-based […]
NAS Whidbey memories
These black and white photographs (as opposed to color) reflect the fact that I was a photojournalist working in Oak Harbor at the time they were taken. Kodak Tri-X was the film of choice. The first image, taken by NAS Whidbey Public Affairs Officer Jim Kennedy, shows an excited young Steve Berentson readying for a […]
Anti-drinking fountain
This small statue/fountain of a woman and a bird stands outside the Anacortes Museum, a former Carnegie Library. According to Anacortes Museum researcher Alex Dunn, the cast iron/zinc water fountain was created by J.W. Fiske Co. of New York. It was donated by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union in 1906 in memory of long-time Union […]
An-O-Chords barbecue
It’s like a family picnic, really … a major difference being that those who step up front to sing can actually carry a tune. Boy, can they carry a tune! It’s the annual An-O-Chords barbecue, the salmon feast and entertainment event that follows two nights of performance at Brodniak Auditorium. This afternoon barbecue was great, […]
Tugging a ferry
In many cities, crowds gather to watch construction crews. In Anacortes it is more common to see crowds gather on the waterfront, as was the case yesterday at the Port of Anacortes dock on the Guemes Channel. It was late afternoon when the crews of two Crowley tugs, the “Response” and the “Protector,” threw lines […]
Pleasant surprises
Sometimes our day includes a pleasant surprise or two, as was the case earlier this week while visiting Randy’s Pier 61 Restaurant on the Guemes Channel. My eye caught a glimpse of color from a tree near the rocks just north of the restaurant deck. When I went closer to examine the fruit, I discovered […]
Shipwreck ‘Vettes
Commercial Avenue became “Corvette Alley” for a few hours today as proud car owners gathered at the north end of town in conjunction with Shipwreck Day. Among the five dozen-plus classic vehicles was a white beauty owned by Don of Anacortes. Another, leading a “five generation” row of Corvettes, was a gorgeous red and white […]
Happy ‘Wreck Day
One of the most important elements of the annual Shipwreck Day is the opportunity to see family and friends … and the “stuff” they score on during the course of a couple of laps up and down Commercial. My first photo here is of Dee Andrich, who snagged himself a fishing pole. Then there’s sister […]