What We Didn’t Get to Enjoy While on the Road
Make Time for the Small Experiences
For 15 years, we lived in the small town of Anacortes, WA, on an island about an hour north of Seattle. It was a tight community filled with amazing people and even more amazing artists. I was very involved with the arts and to some degree the Chamber. Volunteering was a passion and provided me the opportunity to meet many of the great people of our small town. When we made the decision in 2021 to buy Betty Jo (the Airstream) and hit the road, it was bittersweet leaving the people and the town.
This small town played a BIG role in the inspiration of traveling across the country. We had BIG dreams of rolling into small towns and absorbing a small amount of their culture. To find small local events, farmers markets, local’s favorite food joints and shops — to get a peek at what life was like in their small town.
That did not happen!
Life in Anacortes was filled with joyous and stunning events, especially in the summer. A Farmers Market that was a Saturday morning must, filled with a bounty of deliciousness and artistry. Music often filled the air from one venue or another many days of the week.
Summer was kicked off with Anacortes Waterfront Festival and the Quick and Dirty Boat Race.
July was a bargain hunter and treasure seeker’s dream with Shipwreck Days.
The first full weekend of August, the town was bulging at the seams as tens of thousands visitors walked our downtown and enjoyed the Anacortes Arts Festival, one of the largest in the state. Not bad for a small town up north.
September ended the season with Oyster Run, one of the largest Motorcycle gatherings in the Pacific Northwest.
All of these large events brought visitors from all over but it was the small community events that made Anacortes even more special and introduced me to what living in a small community is all about.
These photos are of a traditional Viking Ship. A man from the East coast commissioned a well-known wooden boat builders, a true artist, to build him a traditional Viking Ship. The launch was on a cold November day, flurries of rare snow fell, fitting for a Viking ship launch. It was supposed to be a small event, just a few people, but when you live in a small town, word spreads quickly. Hundreds of us showed up, it was very rare to have a traditional launching of a true replica of a Viking Ship, built by one of Anacortes’ own amazing wooden boat builders, in our community.
History was being made.
It was an experience of a lifetime. One I will never forget and always treasure. To be immersed and to share such a tradition with others was nothing short of wondrous.
This was what I hoped to experience while on the road. But, alas, we did not. We never stayed anywhere long enough, so no surprise we didn’t experience much. To truly experience a piece of small community, it might help to know others that live there, we did not. I expected to find Farmers Markets everywhere but we didn’t, a big disappointment. Could be I wasn’t looking in the right place. We did manage occasionally to feast on local dishes, a small culinary experience but I would have enjoyed being submersed in a full gathering of locals and local cuisines.
Many RVers hit the road to experience the amazing locations our country has to offer in Nature, to sit on a beach lapping up the sound of the waves, to hike, to immerse themselves in the quiet mountains, to commune with nature in a way many of us do not get to experience in the city. We enjoyed many of those same places, rare treats for a city girl to experience, treasured memories I am so grateful for.
I just wished I had planned better to truly experience a few small community events like I experienced during the launch of a traditional Viking ship.
