You know that old fable of the wind and sun vying to find out which was stronger. They challenged each other to see who could strip a traveler of his coat. The wind sent a cold howling blast, but the man just gripped his coat tighter. For her turn, the sun simply warmed the land. The man soon took off his coat. The Aesop moral, of course -- gentleness and kind persuasion win where force and bluster fail. Up until today, our winds and rains have had full force and reign over our land, succeeding only in getting me to reach for my coat and several other layers for the past six months before I even opened our front door. The wind’s strength has been exceeded only by its wearying overstay. It continued this past week, as rain threatened, and the wind blew with gale force. This day was our only chance to explore a local trail this week, so off we went. We parked at the south end of the Padilla Bay Shore Path. There were only two cars in the parking lot. Brave people, Kath said. Insane, like us, I said, trying to hold the car door open against the wind long enough to get out. The dike trail is at least well drained regardless of the weather. But it is truly fully exposed to any breeze, with miles of flat, treeless farmland and seashore in every direction. As we began walking west, a couple passed us, having gone only a short way. Good luck, they said. And then they laughed. Uh-oh, I thought to myself. We wore layers of warm clothes, puffies, hoodies, hats, and gloves. It was almost enough. The wind penetrated any gap, any seam. Fortunately we were now heading northward, the wind at our backs. Then Kath reminded me that eventually we would have to turn around. She’s right. Uh-oh. The tide was out, the mud flats bleak and lifeless. A handful of birds took to the wind in flight, with sandpipers flitting the flats, a harrier hanging above the freshly-furrowed farmland, and a turkey vulture hovering, waiting for us to collapse, maybe. Then we saw the tree, the large cedar that once stood proudly alongside the trail, for centuries perhaps. It lay on its side, freshly fallen, roots rising belly up. The wind had won that battle. “The wind is a racer, a wild stallion running.” - John Denver, Windsong At the halfway point, we were feeling battered. I suggested to Kath that she and Murphy continue the rest of the way, and I turn back and meet them in Bay View with the car. She said no, she will go back for the car so that I can finish the hike and share the story of the second half of the trail. I know her voice well enough to know that objecting would be fruitless. She faced the gale winds to go back while I rode with them the rest of the way. The north half of the dike trail has been built up with rocks to slow down the rise of the tides. Good luck with that, I thought to myself. I took pictures of emerging apple flowers, tracks in the mud, and the sky lowering, threatening us even more. Three animated walkers passed me, heading south. Our greetings were blown away in the breeze, but the smiles said it all. It was crazy wild but a joy to be out here, regardless of the hurricane. I arrived at the northern trailhead a couple minutes after Kath arrived with the car. Rain began to fall. We turned on the heat, removed our coats, and savored the stormy experience. And now, as you read this, the sun should have returned, our coats retired to the closet, our puffies forgotten. The Padilla path will fill with walkers, joggers, bikers, sun-seekers, sundresses and shorts. It’s all about timing. jack Directions: On Highway 20 at the La Conner - Whitney intersection ("The Farmhouse"), go north on Bay View Road about a mile to the parking area on the west side of the road. There is room for about 10 cars. Or park at the north end of the 2.1 mile trail in Bay View, a couple hundred yards northwest of the actual trailhead.
By Bus: there is no transit service here. By Bike: the roads in this area are nearly all flat; avoid Highway 20 if you can by taking parallel roadways, as the amount of traffic is horrendous; however, the shoulder is generous on Highway 20, not so much on other roads. Mobility: the trail is readily accessible with a firm gravel pathway, level the entire way except for a short angled approach at each end.
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Maribeth Crandell has been a hiking guide in the Pacific NW for over 20 years. She's lived on Whidbey and Fidalgo Island for decades. As a frequent bus rider she easily makes connections between trails and transit. Archives by date
May 2024
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