The weather forecast for Wednesday had predicted gloomy weather, but much to our surprise we woke up to mostly clear skies and a sunny outlook. After eating breakfast at our hotel, we were readyfor the day. We would travel back south, but be in more of the central part of the island ending up in Coupeville.
Our first destination was South Whidbey State Park. While this park is on the water’s edge, the focus of the park is more hiking and the forest. However, before we did any hiking we needed to purchase a new Discover Pass, Washington state’s park pass, as ours had expired. We read online that we could purchase one at the park, which would actually be $5 cheaper. We finally found the automated machine inside the park that took a credit card and produced a receipt which we then attached to a provided hang tag. It was easy to do, and we had our pass for another year.
There were a few different hikes available, but we decided to take the hike down to the beach. We did read that the last bit of the hike was a bit challenging because of unfinished repair work, but we soldiered on anyway. The hike itself was a bit more difficult than I expected. There were a number of hills to climb over, and in some sections it was quite narrow, but we enjoyed the occasional view of Admiralty Inlet.
We almost made it to the beach, but just as we approached the final descent, we could see the challenge that lay ahead. The stairs that went down to the beach were destroyed. A steep and gullied path took its place. A family that came behind us went through, and we saw their maneuvers and decided it wasn’t worth the risk for us, so we turned back. I did manage to get a photo of the beach area from the trail.
After arriving back at the parking lot, we debated whether to hike one of the other trails but decided against it. As we were getting ready to leave, we noticed an unusual thing near the entrance to the park, a phone booth. Yes, it was an old fashioned phone booth which still had a phone book inside. I’m not sure if it worked. Silvette picked up the phone, but there was no dial tone. Perhaps if she had inserted money, it would have worked. A couple of ladies saw us taking photos of this relic and stopped as well for a photo op. It was funny.
The next stop for our day was not too far away. Meerkerk Gardens focuses mainly on rhododendrons, but they have other plants as well. Of course rhododendron season is over, but we stopped by to see what they had to offer in July. Visitors pay a small fee to enter with Google or Apple Pay.
While there were a few rhodies in their final stages of bloom, they were not the headline flowers at this season. In the main part of the garden, mounds of purple flowers, which I believe were catmint, lined the paths. However, the star of the show for me were the beautiful purple Japanese style iris. They were such a strong statement in the flower beds. Of course there were other flowers, but the color palate was limited so the iris stood out from the others.
Beyond the central garden area, there were a number of other places to visit. Toward the east a gazebo stood with views looking out over Holmes Harbor. A short trail went down the side of the hill so we hiked down and back. Unfortunately Silvette managed to get her arm on some stinging nettles along the way, and she reacted to it fairly strongly. The pain lasted into the evening.
Near the gazebo was an area which they called the secret garden. Visitors were encouraged to look for little statues and other hidden objects. I think the intent was to create a garden for children to explore.
Surrounding the manicured garden area are woods with trails meandering through them. The maps show visitors where to hike through the forested areas. We enjoyed some of the hikes which also passed by some ponds. The hikes were not too difficult, but some were uphill.
After completing our tour of the garden, we drove a short distance north toward Coupeville stopping at Greenbank Farms which was just off the main highway. This particular stop did not prove to be as interesting and inspiring as I had hoped. The main experience they were offering was wine tasting, which we are not into. I had read that their pie was really good so I was looking forward to having a piece, but the restaurant serving pie was closed on Wednesdays. The wine tasting place had some pieces of cherry pie, my least favorite pie, so I passed. I may go back to try again.
The farm advertised some shops, but all we saw were a cheese shop and an art gallery. Maps showed trails in the area, but we didn’t pursue those either. The one thing I did do was walk through their display garden which was actually quite nice. I always enjoy getting up close to the flowers so I walked around and took photos. Their poppies were quite lovely, but the wind was a challenge for taking good photos.
The last location on Wednesday’s agenda was the town of Coupeville. This is actually the place on the island that I have visited the most over the years, but it had been a while since we stopped by. The town was crowded. We were there about 1:00, and it seemed everyone was looking for a place to get their lunch. The restaurants were quite busy. In general the stores on the main street were open, although a few were closed for the day. It turns out some close for both Tuesday and Wednesday.
We wandered into a few shops but didn’t really intend to buy anything. The main street is fairly short so there weren’t that many shops, and there was a prevalence of art galleries and studios along with the restaurants.
Probably one of the most well know landmarks of Coupeville is its wharf. It adds a picturesque point in any photo taken in this area. The red building on the wharf really stands out. We walked out to the wharf and looked around enjoying the peaceful atmosphere. It also allowed us to see Coupeville from the water side which offers a different perspective.
We did a short hike up the bluff on the northern side of the town, but the trail wasn’t very long although it did offer some nice views.
The one thing we did consider doing was buying an ice cream cone, but the place selling ice cream literally had a line out the door every time we were nearby. Since we didn’t want to stand in line for a half hour, we never got any ice cream there. After leaving Coupeville, we returned to Oak Harbor and stopped at a frozen yogurt place. It was less crowded so we were able to enjoy a cold treat.
Coupeville is part of a national historical reserve known as Ebey’s Landing. Tomorrow we will be exploring more of this area and learn what the reserve is actually all about. Until then I look forward to seeing your comments and questions, and I always appreciate it when someone hits that like icon.