It’s almost February and Anacortes is picking up its pace. January is quiet and slow, recovering from the Christmas activities. But now we’re headed into Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day. The sun is shining brightly,every trace of snow is gone, and people are out walking again. Here at Autumn Leaves we are enjoying a break before business starts to pick up around Valentine’s Day. This year we are offering a Sweetheart Package and other packages (flowers, chocolates, cheese & crackers, wine glasses etc.) so if you didn’t get around to buying a gift you can still make points with your valentine. Check out http://autumn-leaves.com/gallery_view.cfm?cid=15 Take her (or him) to Anthony’s for dinner: steak with crab, or oysters, fresh fish, scallops–all excellent, with a view of the water. http://www.anthonys.com/assets/uploads/files/Anancortes%20Dinner(5).pdf See a movie, go bowling, walk around the shops in town, hike in the forestlands or just relax in one of Autumn Leaves’ private, romantic hideaways. Call soon for a reservation.
Winter in Anacortes WA
We have had a couple of days of snow. Today it’s supposed to start melting, followed by rain which will complete the snow removal. That is pretty typical of Anacortes snowfall. We love to see it for a couple of days, and then it goes. We may get more later but I kind of doubt it. We have enjoyed walking in it–
Bird tracks all over the porch
Love to see the animal and bird tracks. I suppose it’s harder to find food, so more deer than usual are in our garden, looking for those tulips and roses they’ve enjoyed in the past. They’ll have to wait a while for those, but meanwhile we have lots of shrubs and trees to keep them busy.
Eagle Watching on the Skagit River
I have written before about Blue Sky Outfitters. They take groups white water rafting and on river floats to watch eagles. I finally signed us up to go. Only problem was, the day we went it was snowing! with a little rain mixed in, and some wind. I called to see if they’d cancel the trip (hoping they would, it was so cold) but they said no, they hardly ever cancel. So we drove to the takeoff point–took us almost 2 hours in the snow to go 60 miles. The pictures tell the story. We did see a lot of eagles, which was exciting. We all wore loads of clothes and Blue Sky lent me some rubber overalls and a jacket so I really kept dry. We’d like to do this again on a nicer day. My husband wants to go white water rafting with Blue Sky, but he’ll have to find a friend to go with; I am not signing up for that. I do recommend this company though: www.blueskyoutfitters.com
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Deer at Autumn Leaves Bed & Breakfast
Funny, we can go for weeks without seeing any deer in our garden. We know they come, because they leave their calling cards. But either they come at night or we just don’t see them. Lately there have been several. They are well camouflaged so it’s sometimes hard to spot them. Arriving guests a few minutes ago asked if we had a deer statue in our side yard. We don’t; it was a deer pretending to be a statue. Earlier he was looking in my window. I think he sleeps under our tree. His ribs are showing so we don’t begrudge him whatever plants he wants to eat.
The Eagles are Coming!
Every year up to 500 bald eagles make their way to the Skagit River to feed on salmon. This river has 5 salmon species returning each year, attracting the largest concentration of eagles in the lower states. The best place to see them is about an hour’s drive from Autumn Leaves; we can tell you how to get there. You could see trees by the road loaded with eagles, or for a real thrill you can take a boat ride to see them even closer. I’m told that January is the best time; for more information see blueskyoutfitters.com or skagiteagles.com
Shop in Anacortes for Christmas
We always try to shop locally when we can. It’s easy at Christmastime because we really do have a lot of good shops in Anacortes. Sheely’s has lots of gift items, as do Buer’s and Donatello’s. They are florists but also have a large selection of gifts including candles, china, vases, throws, almost any gift item you could think of, not to mention gorgeous floral arrangements and dish gardens. Epicurean has wonderful kitchen items and Bayside Sweets has delicious hand made chocolates. Upstage has clothing but also earrings and accessories. You can buy calendars, toys, books, locally roasted coffees, Anacortes t-shirts, you name it. So I think I’ll save some time and gas and shop at home. Maybe I’ll finish up with dinner at the Rockfish Grill. With any luck I can talk Himself into doing the gift wrapping. That would make it a perfect shopping trip.
Creative, comforting crepes
I love making crepes; it’s sort of therapy for me. My favorite way to serve them is the simplest: with lemon. But you could put any kind of soft fruit inside. Some might like yogurt inside, but it melts quickly. I like a fried apple and raisin filling. Or soft pear slices with hazlenut chocolate spread, topped with whipped cream. Or any pie filling. Or jam mixed with cream cheese. I like peaches diced and mixed with marmalade, topped with a marmalade sauce. And then there are the savory crepes: chicken with mushrooms and Swiss cheese; salmon with dill, celery and onion; ham and egg with cheddar. I usually make my crepes the day before I need them. They keep in the refrigerator for a few days or in the freezer for 2-3 weeks. You just take out however many you need, fill them and heat just until warm in the microwave. It’s easy to do and oh so good.
Indian restaurant in Anacortes
I’m very sorry to say my favorite Italian restaurant, Il Posto, has closed. In its place will be an Indian restaurant which I don’t think is open yet. When we have tried it I’ll let you know what we think. I will miss Il Posto though. I don’t know why they left. Perhaps there just isn’t enough business in the off season. Restaurants have to appeal to locals (taste and price-wise) to make it, and Il Posto was a little pricey. Worth it though. Anyway, it will be nice to have an Indian restaurant in town. We already have very good Mexican, Greek, Chinese and Japanese. For Italian we’re down to pizza places, but some of them serve spaghetti and things too so they might be good. We have lots of other restaurants too: Anthony’s is great, Cameron’s, Adrift, Rockfish Grill, Brown Lantern, the Majestic, even the bowling alley are all good. Well now I’m hungry, maybe I can get Roger to spring for dinner out tonight.
Destination Anacortes
After summer, when it’s cooler and quieter, guests at Autumn Leaves usually stay closer to “home” when they’re here. They don’t go to other islands or do day trips so much, they relax more and enjoy what’s here. They are more likely to have a later breakfast and linger at the table until checkout time. Often there is only one couple here so we can really customize breakfast to them. We recently had an English/Australian couple here who love marmalade so I made a marmalade stuffed french toast with marmalade/apricot sauce for them–something I wouldn’t ordinarily do, as so many people don’t like marmalade. It was good! When you come, remember to tell us your preferences.
Things to do in Anacortes in Autumn
Things slow down in Autumn, that’s why I like it. But if you’re thinking of a trip to Anacortes, there are still things to do here. Today, for instance,one of our guests is at an all day quilting class downtown. Her husband is off on his mountain bike. Lots of people are out walking, it’s great in the cooler weather. Ferries are still going to the other islands and Island Adventures is offering humpback whale watching cruises on Saturdays. There are people walking the forest trails and hiking up Mt. Eerie. Shops are gearing up for Christmas so shoppers are out. Restaurants aren’t as crowded as in summer. And there are always movies and bowling. Tempurature is in the 40′s to 50′s but dry and pleasant. So don’t think it’s too late for a weekend away; do it now!
