Any visit to Mt. Erie provides opportunity to see this striking art piece by Guemes sculptor Philip McCracken. According to the Museum of Northwest Art in LaConner McCracken, a third generation member of a Skagit Valley family, was born in Bellingham in 1928. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Washington in 1953 and that summer sailed for England to study as an apprentice under famed sculptor Henry Moore. They formed a lasting friendship. Moore served as best man at McCracken’s wedding in England the following year. In 1955, McCracken and his wife moved to Guemes Island, where they have lived since.