One Street: June in January

I've been wanting a long shot down Harris Avenue in Fairhaven for my One Street series, but the weather hasn't been very obliging until today. Out mid-afternoon in 46F / 8C sunshine, I employed my previous compact camera, repaired by Phil, to get this view.

Look back at my first One Street entry -- see the red pick-up truck? That's the spot where I was standing today, almost out in the street, using the Lumix's 12x zoom to look all the way down to Bellingham Bay.

If you turn right at the stop sign by the tall trees, you'll be in the block where Village Books is located. You saw the same stop sign in my January 1st blip. On the other side of Harris at that point, a few businesses down, you'd see The Barber Shop at Fairhaven (my Jan. 4th blip).

Further down Harris Avenue, where the grassy verge and decorative street lamps are visible, there are fine views of Bellingham Bay. On a day like today, it's a great place to find a blip. I was sorely tempted to post this pleasing image for today, but knew that the weather is likely to revert to more seasonal gray skies and rain, and decided to use the long shot of Harris Avenue instead. Educational purposes superceded artistic merit!

At the bottom of Harris, the flags mark the Bellingham Cruise Terminal, the southern connection for the Alaska Marine Highway System (ferry to and from Alaska). It also houses the Amtrak (train) and Greyhound (long-distance coaches) stations. Both public and private events are held in the handsome building; the Dome Room, with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the bay, is a popular location for weddings.

To the left of the flags, note the freight train passing by, one of a number that go through Bellingham daily, as well as several passenger trains. That number could increase dramatically, with nine full and nine empty coal trains, 1.5 mile long each, going through downtown Bellingham and along the bay daily, moving 24 to 50 million metric tons of coal annually in uncovered rail cars, if the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal project at Cherry Point, just north of Bellingham, becomes a reality -- one that many of us do not want.

I hope that this guided tour of Harris Avenue on a sunny winter's day has provided a respite for those of you coping with snow and ice, as we were about this same time last year!

(Added Jan. 21 -- See what this view looks like at night on my friend CelloNerd's Jan. 19 blip!)