My special friend and I escaped from being recently snowed in when we headed for the Skagit area on a cold but beautifully sunny day. Mt. Baker, with its new blanket of white, rose majestically on the horizon as we passed immense fields of rye grass covered with snow geese. They come from Alaska and Siberia to winter along with the majestic swans. My friend looked at the hundreds of white geese gleaning in the fields and remarked, “I wonder how they can tell each other apart when they all look alike.” I replied, “We humans probably all look alike to them as well.” After Googling snow geese I found that they can distinguish each other by the sounds they make. No two geese sound the same even though they all sound the same to us humans.
Earlier in the year we had come to this same region to enjoy the colorful expanse of tulip blooms which attract tourists from near and far. But this time we were thrilled by the big sky with family farmhouses resting amongst fields stretching for miles. It was as if we were floating along the road in a burst of cloud magic which for a time were not nimbus in variety but were holding off from dumping rain to allow us to enjoy the great expanse of snow geese covered scenery.
This trip continued in the quaint tourist town of La Conner with its majestic orange colored bridge carrying visitors to Skagit Bay where residents and tourists mingle to enjoy the scenic beauty. In the town itself is the bakery where a great clam chowder is also served for tired shoppers like me who cannot be denied a look into every little boutique. The whole town is like an art museum with hand made fabrics made up into lovely shawls and garments that drape seductively about one’s person--that is if you are a size 8 or 10. Quaint jewelry and pottery make for a browser’s delight. If you want to buy a gift for a bear fancier there is one shop devoted just to bears of every size and color.
From the street you can see the fishing boats docked for the winter as people go in and out of little shops and cafes. One shop owner remarked that if I had come in a few hours earlier the lights would have been at dim because of a power outage. During the snow that had covered my driveway for three whole days the shop owners in La Conner had shut down entirely as the whole community hid in their homes by the fire.
Granted, visitors were scarce on this cold winter day. I entered one shop where a woman had actually managed to get her fellow to give his opinion on a lovely handmade garment she was trying on. I remarked, “You are one of the few women who could get your fellow to shop with you.” She answered, “Just this once he saw something in the window that he thought would look great on me and here we are.” I must admit that my special friend does not shop and so ended up taking a walk while I dodged in to each enticing little shop.
Soon it was time to head to Camano Island and past more snow geese for a visit with a relative. While there my friend took a walk on a slippery wooded trail and landed backward with full force onto a jagged piece of timber. Six weeks the emergency clinic doctor said would be the time for recovery. Now is the time for contemplation and or reminiscing and even writing down memories that need to be chronicled while the body heals. Finally there will come physical revival along with a new lease on life and vivid memories of snow geese.
Georgie Bright Kunkel is a freelance writer who can be reached at gnkunkel@comcast.net or 206-935-8663.
