Gig Harbor Christmas

We interrupt the blogging on our recent trip to [warm] Saint Martin for a few timely local holiday sights.  We head into Gig Harbor, Washington (near Tacoma) for dinner on the harbor and, after dinner, walk down Harborview Drive along the water, observing the holiday decorations on the way.  Our first stop is Skansie Brothers Park, named after four Croatian Skansie brothers, all of whom were fisherman in Gig Harbor at the beginning of the 20th century and also created the Skansie Boat Building Company at the location of the park in 1908.  We start at the tree, alongside the memorial to local fishermen lost at sea (inscribed:  "In memory of the fishermen of Gig Harbor who have gone to sea at great risk with passion and hard work, this statue is a tribute to an industry upon whose labor our community was founded").

Holiday tree

Tribute to those lost at sea

We walk over to the edge of the harbor, observing the boats decorated for the holiday.

Decorated boats

Returning to the  tree we visit a shed filled with Santa's sled and and reindeer, open for all to climb on and enjoy.

Holiday display

Down the street, a tree of lights is located near Austin Park, dedicated to the Puyallup Tribe of Indians who established a village in the the bay and lived in three connected communities centuries before Croatian fishermen discovered the harbor in 1841.  The park and tree are alongside many of the commercial fishing vessels moored in the harbor.

Light tree view from Austin Park

Nearby baby Christmas Market (with Santa)

Along Harborview Drive, the houses and businesses are also decorated for the holiday.

Along Harborview Drive

Lights on Rosedale, intersecting Harborview

Leaving Gig Harbor and returning home, we find our neighbors have also gotten into the holiday decorating spirit.

Neighborhood sights

We're home for the holidays and enjoying the sights.

Catamaran Scoobi to Anguilla Beaches

One of our first adventures in Saint Martin is on Scoobi, a catamaran that picks us up at our  hotel beach and takes us across the channel to Anguilla, spending the day at three beaches before returning.  We stop, anchor, and swim at Shoal Bay, Cap Juluca (Maundays Bay), and Rendezvous Bay.  They all feature clear turquoise water and silky white sand beaches.  We swim ashore, walk the beach, and swim back to Scoobi.

Leaving the hotel beach

On the way to Scoobi

Lounging in Scoobi

Saint Martin in the rear view mirror

Approaching Anguilla

Anguilla is one of the most northerly of  the Leeward Islands and is a British Overseas Territory.  The main island is approximately 26 km (16 miles) long by 5 km (3 miles) at its widest point, along with a number of smaller islands and cays.  The landscape is generally low and flat, with the highest elevation at 73 meters (240 feet).

We anchor in Shoal Bay, hop in the water, and swim to the beach.

Shoal Bay

After a few hours, we raise the anchor and move up the island to Cap Juluca and repeat the swim and beach walk.

Cap Juluca

A few  hours later, we move to the next bay up the coast, Rendevezvous Bay.

Moving up the coast

Admiring yachts along the way

Rendevezvous Bay

We enjoy lunch and glasses of rose wine on Scoobi and swim some more after lunch.

Scoobi bar

Too soon, the day winds down and we head back across the channel to Saint Martin; Scoobi dropping us at our hotel beach.

Leaving Anguilla to cross the channel

Scoobi dropping us off

It's been a day full of fun with swimming, snorkeling, paddle boarding, swimming, lunch, drinks, and walks on the white sand beaches.  We look forward to another Scoobi trip in a few days.

Arriving in Saint Martin

As the winter weather descends on the Pacific Northwest and Washington State Route 20 through the North Cascades National Park is closed for the winter due to early heavy snowfall and risk of avalanche (to reopen in the spring), we head someplace tropical for a short stay:  Saint Martin in the Caribbean.

Saint Martin is approximately 374 km (230 miles) east of Puerto Rico and is divided roughly 60/40 between the French Collectivity of Saint Martin and the Dutch side of the island (Sint Maartin) which is one of the four constituent countries that form the Kingdom of the Netherlands.  The French part of the island is part of the EU, the Dutch part is not.

We are staying in Grand Case, on the French side, and arrive in time to visit the supermarket and then watch the sun set (pictures of  sunset, but not of supermarket).

Sunset across the water

In the morning. we rise and explore our favorite hotel on the island, the Grand Case Beach Club.  The sky and weather change dramatically through the day as tropical rain showers pass through, then we quickly return to a clear, sunny day.

Around the hotel

Looking out across the water

Walking down the street from the hotel, we find a public beach access path with fabulous paintings on the walls, something we haven't see in prior trips (we usually walk down the road the other direction, toward the town of Grand Case).

Public path to the beach

Art on the path

Reaching the end of the path

Soon, after a lazy day, another sunset again welcomes us to the island and indicates that it is time for cocktails and to start thinking about dinner.

Another day comes to an end

We're glad to be back on Saint Martin!