Change of Latitude in the Pacific Northwest

Change of Latitude in the Pacific Northwest

Who: Don/Debbie/Katie Baxter/Sarah Leu
Port: Bellingham, WA

Find my iPad!

08 May 2016 | Bellingham, WA
Don/Nice

It was nice and clear when we got up, and warm. Hooray! Looks like a great week ahead of weather for the Grand Banks Rendezvous in Roche Harbor, our destination this week. Deb and I decided to keep the rental car all week since it was cheaper than renting it for a few days, turning it in and then renting it again to drive down to pick up Katie at SeaTac. Next week, our daughter, Katie, was coming out to join us for some serious cruising.

We took the one-way rental car to National and booked it for a week. Then we headed over to Fred Meyer to provision. I picked up a case of hard cider for company, coming aboard at the Rendezvous to chat and catch up. We only provisioned for a week or so, thinking we would get more food and drinks in Canada after Katie arrived. So, it was a light load of things and then we headed back to the boat to pack everything away.

Then, we headed up to Niki’s Bella Marina for lunch and the world’s best fish tacos! Niki’s is right on the water, overlooking our boat. Oh, they are sooooo good with large pieces of fried Alaska cod, lettuce, and a special sauce that is to die for. We always look forward to these on every trip. We each ate half and saved the other half for tomorrow’s lunch. The,n it was off to the storage shed we rent to get our gear and take it down to the boat. We picked up some fishing gear, boots, and a few other items that we would need and loaded them on the boat.

Now, that the boat was all ready, it was time to try to recover my iPad. I had tried to find a phone number to call online but they keep these things hidden, of course. I could still see my iPad showing up on a map of SeaTac, using find my iPhone. I decided that the best solution was to simply drive down. That would make it more likely I might meet with success, being face to face with people and showing them what I could see on my iPhone.

It was a slog through the traffic but I picked up a Starbucks to fortify me in Bellingham by the University and headed south. There was a lot of traffic but I got down to SeaTac in just over 2 hours. I parked in the short-term garage and went to the American Airlines lost and found counter. They looked but I could tell from the map of its location that it was farther out, probably at a gate. They sent me up to the ticket counter. There, an exceptional agent, Bonnie Loudon, called an agent out at our arrival gate and asked her to look for it. I set the pinging sound on the iPad, in hopes it would help her locate it. It did. She called and asked me to turn the pinging off since it was driving her crazy. Nothing like the old ping-your-ipad-to-drive-em-crazy trick! Another agent went out to pick it up since I could not go out there without a ticket. Success!!! I slogged my way back to Bellingham through the traffic but the traffic was not too bad. It only took 2 hours.

It was Mother’s Day. I took Deb out to Lafiama in Bellingham for some awesome pizza. Scott Blake had shared this secret and he was right. Amazing pizza!!! Interestingly, it was right across the street from the old building of the old Washington Grocery Market. Rumor has it that my grandfather, George Leu, started his grocery business in this building. Now, it is a coffee shop with condos. It was a nice, connecting thought as we entered the restaurant. I will post a photo of the building.
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Vessel Name: Change of Latitude
Vessel Make/Model: Grand Banks CL 42
Hailing Port: Bellingham, WA
Crew: Don/Debbie/Katie Baxter/Sarah Leu
About: We live on the East Coast but enjoy wilderness cruising in the Pacific Northwest.
Extra: We enjoy crabbing, shrimping, fishing, and clamming. Some of us are crazy enough to swim in Northwest waters during the summer.

Change of Latitude in the Pacific Northwest

Who: Don/Debbie/Katie Baxter/Sarah Leu
Port: Bellingham, WA