The weather was very bad and we found ourselves in some pretty rough water. It was rainy and very windy but the boat rides so nice that it wasn't a problem. It just made for a little excitement and something to talk about later. These pictures show a little of the water that was splashing over the bow and along side us.
One thing we discovered about going through the Seattle waterways is that there is so much to see! We normally go north toward the San Juans or west to the Bremerton area. There is a lot to see when you get there but we thoroughly enjoyed the sights along the way. We have lived here our entire lives but unfortunately, it is easy to take things for granted. We cruised past the Ballard area where Bob grew up and saw his parents' former home up on the bluff. It is the gray house just above the red tree. We also went past Ray's Boathouse which has been a staple in Ballard for a long time. Years ago it was converted to a restaurant and is one of our favorite places to go for dinner.
A popular city park is Gas Works Park where the 4th of July fireworks were located for many years. Also, for tourists who want to travel the waterways, Ride The Duck, is always a fun way to go.
We arrived at Seattle Yacht Club and tied up in the reciprocal moorage. Normally, a yacht club member's home yacht club must be a significant distance from Seattle Yacht Club to be allowed to use their moorage. Because we were going to be attending Don and Doris's anniversary party (they are members of SYC), the club graciously allowed us to use the reciprocal moorage. They have a beautiful facility and we enjoyed walking around the grounds, watching the U of W invitational crew races, and spending Saturday relaxing.
Saturday evening was Don and Doris's anniversary party and what a party it was! They had nearly 150 guests and it was so fun to see cousins and aunts and uncles who I have not seen in a long time. With any MacRae gathering you can be sure there will be bagpipes and dancing and we were not disappointed. The bagpiper could really play and treated us not only to songs for the dancers but to an additional song that left us in awe of his talent. The dancers included my cousin's son, Steven, and three other young ladies. They are all incredible dancers who have won numerous United States championships as well as international competitions.
It was a wonderful party and we left knowing how blessed we are to have a large and loving family. A very special photo we were able to get is this one of my mom, Avis; her sister, Anna Rose; and two brothers, Colin and Don.
We left Sunday morning around 8:30 because our granddaughter, Rylie, is celebrating her 2nd birthday today and there was no way we were going to miss that! The weather report was for wind and rain but we actually had a very smooth ride back to Everett. You can see from this next picture everything that Seattle is known for - the Space Needle, rain, misty and gray! But what a beautiful part of the country it is - beautiful lakes and Puget Sound, mountains and trees. There is no place I would rather be.
The next three pictures show us as we went through the locks on our return home. We were in the smaller of the two locks and you can see from the first picture that the water just ahead is at a lower level than we are. The second picture shows us as the water is being let out and we are lowered down to the lower level of water. Then the gate is opened and we are headed out toward the Sound.
It was a wonderful weekend and the perfect way to attend Don and Doris's party. We had plenty of time to do nothing and it sure beat the traffic jams if we had driven!
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